 |
|
|
Substandard mid-day meals
Gurpurb celebrated with fervour in city
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
30-bedded community health
centre inaugurated by CM
The 30-bedded Community Health Centre that was inaugurated in Kapurthala district on Sunday.
A Tribune photograph
Homage paid to Lala Lajpat Rai on his martyrdom day
Dilemmas of a farmer and actor staged
Patients with diabetic foot ulcer at risk
From campus
Students participate in a modelling show during the Annual Fete at St Soldier Institute in Jalandhar. Tribune Photo: Sarabjit Singh
Order to docs on prescription of medicines
NGOs carry out 3rd phase of cleanliness drive
3-day cricket tournament to kick off today
Birthday of Guru Nanak Dev observed
Academician attends int’l engineering meet
|
|
Rights body seeks report
Aparna Banerji Tribune News Service
Jalandhar, November 17 The news items titled "Insects found in Mid Day Meal", "Most schools have insanitary conditions", and "No lessons learnt, insect infested rice supplied to schools for mid day meals", were published in The Tribune from Amritsar, Jalandhar and Ropar on July 19 (Amritsar) and 20. The state of these schools’ mid day meals was highlighted after the Bihar mid-day meal tragedy, which had claimed the lives of 20 children this year. Taking note of these stories, Jalandhar-based social activist Kulwant Singh Nagra had approached the commission. The commission, in its order issued on October 4, sought a report from the DPI (Primary) before the next date of hearing on December 18. However, DPI (Primary) Darshan Kaur said she was not aware of the details of the issue. When asked whether any action had been taken against the erring schools, she said she did not have the details as her office did not handle mid-day meals directly. Though inspections were carried out at various government schools in the state after the Bihar incident, the schools where mid-day meals were prepared in unhygienic conditions were let off with warnings by education department officials. The stories published in The Tribune had highlighted the presence of insects in mid-day meal wheat flour at Karampura and Faizpura in Amritsar; dingy kitchens, bug-infested grains, thin gravy and insanitary water coolers at government schools in Jalandhar; and insects in wheat and rice used for mid-day meals in Ropar.
|
|
Gurpurb celebrated with fervour in city
Jalandhar, November 17 As the city sparkled with festivities and lights and thousands partook of langar in gurdwaras on the occasion of Gurpurb on Sunday, Jalandhar Tribune caught up with some families for whom the spiritual message of the Gurus and the sense of purpose to pass on the message to the next generation, holds prime importance. Activist Amarjit Singh Anand worries that things have seen a major change from the time he was grasping the scriptures as a child to the present times, where many children are oblivious of the message. "Guru Nanak Dev passed on a universal message of righteousness and oneness of beings, devoid of their caste, creed and colour. It is a message that propagates peace. However, many in the present generation are getting distanced from the scriptures and falling prey to money-driven pursuits, which is bothersome. During Gurpurb celebrations, what is most important is to bear in mind is that without the spiritual aspect, the celebrations aren't complete. When we slept at night, our mother used to read us
'sakhis'. But the same is not being done by present generation parents," he says. In his own family, however, the custom is still followed. "On
Gurpurb, we start the day with the 'Panj Bani Paath', followed by meditation and then a visit to the
gurdwara. In the evening, the 'paath' of 'rehraas' is recited and before we sleep,
'kirtan sohelas' are recited." While greetings to relatives and 'deepmala' in the evening are also essential part of their Gurpurb routine, religious lessons are deemed very important. In the Sondh family as well, the tradition of reciting the scriptures is followed
enthusiastically. Manpreet Sondh says her husband, two daughters and their children are part of the
'paaths' and recitations which begin weeks prior to the festival itself. "I do not believe that the way of celebrating Gurpurb has changed much overtime. My children energetically participate in reciting scriptures. They like it a lot. For all Gurus' birth anniversary, we set an aim of reciting a certain number of
'paaths' within a certain time and those targets are religiously adhered to." "Like this
Gurpurb, we had to recite 'Japu Ji Sahib Path' 50 times collectively until the day of
Gurpurb. So we started days prior to the festival and the entire family joined in the exercise together," adds Sondh whose husband and a daughter are chartered accountants. "Of course, the afternoon
langar, 'deepmala' at night and lighting of crackers as well are important aspects of the festival that we enjoy together," she quips. |
|||
|
30-bedded community health
centre inaugurated by CM
Fattudhinga (Sultanpur Lodhi), November 17 Addressing the gathering at a programme after the inaugural ceremony, Badal said the Congress-led UPA government had failed to deliver goods to the common man in a right perspective being a votary of
"aam aadmi", who was feeling disenchanted by promises made by it during the last Lok Sabha polls. Badal said sky-rocketing prices of essential commodities had broken the backbone of the common man, coupled with widespread corruption and
maladministration, adding that he rated it as the world's most inefficient and corrupt government. He said the
SAD-BJP government had been taking up the issue from day one that Centre-State relations should be recast with the thrust on true federal structure rather the UPA government has gradually diluted the nation's federal character to unitary one, thereby encroaching upon the jurisdiction and powers of the states. He said the states had been merely relegated to the dignified municipal bodies, who have to look upon the Centre for their petty demands because enormous powers in terms of economic and financial were vested in the Union Government. Badal said the NDA government at the Centre would ensure our rightful share from Central funds to hasten the speed of development. Training guns at the state Congress leadership, he said the Punjab Congress was in the habit of criticising the
SAD-BJP government on trivial matters. The Chief Minister said he was fully seized of Congress psyche, as it was bereft of any agenda and thus resorting to mudslinging to air its negativity. Later,
Badal, accompanied by former Cabinet minister and senior Akali leader Dr Upinder Jit Kaur, paid obeisance at the historic Sri Ber Sahib Gurdwara associated with Guru Nanak Dev on his
"Parkash Purb". Badal announced a 2-km road to be constructed to link the GNDU regional campus, newly constructed Community Health Centre and grain market in Fattudhinga village. He also gave away prizes to the winners of a kabaddi tournament at Sultanpur
Lodhi. Prominent among others present on the occasion included Cabinet Minister Ajit Singh
Kohar, Chief Parliamentary Secretary Som Parkash, SGPC member Gurpreet Kaur, Special Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Ajoy Sharma and Deputy Commissioner Kapurthala DS
Mangat. |
|
Homage paid to Lala Lajpat Rai on his martyrdom day
Jalandhar, November 17 HMV College principal Rekha Kalia Bhardwaj, secretary of Gulab Devi Trust Dr KK Pashricha, BJP councillor Ravi Mohindru and chief administration of the Trust Dr Rajinder Singh paid floral tributes to Lala Lajpat Rai by garlanding his statue installed on the hospital premises. Nursing students of various institutes expressed their views during a declamation contest on the topic "Role of Vallabh Bhai Patel in unifying India," on the occasion. Lala Lajpat Rai himself set up this Trust in memory of his mother Gulab Devi at Lahore in 1927. A hospital in the name of Lala Lajpat Rai's mother Gulab Devi is being run in Lahore, the capital of Pakistan's Punjab province after the partition.
|
|
Dilemmas of a farmer and actor staged
Jalandhar, November 17 Staged here last evening, the play "Makkar Jaal Ton Paar", directed by Prof Ankur Sharma, was the tweaked product of a concept which evolved owing to an interplay between the script of the play "Maya Jaal" by Devinder Gill and the group's own musings and improvisations in reaction to the plight of the farmer Natha Singh (Maya Jaal's lead protagonist). While they were initially supposed to stage out the life (and suicide) of Natha Singh, the actors so identified with the dilemmas experienced by Natha that they decided to incorporate the conflicts and angst of an actor interspersed with those of the farmer he is supposed to portray in the play. So the script went : MNC guy sells seeds to Natha Singh making lofty promises of a good harvest, Natha buys, crops are diseased, same MNC guy sells pesticides as cure, crops fail, do not sell in market, MNC guys washes hands off responsibility, farmer commits suicide. In the midst of rehearsals, the actor playing the role of Natha, in a dream vision, encounters his own failings. The forced childhood lessons he was compelled to take even when he wanted to do theatre, the sweetheart who ditched him, the interview that he never cleared, the family which never understood this good-for-nothing shift to theatre and the identity crisis which came from the myriad characters he played Hamlet, Mirza, Yasin, Natha. But who is he really, he asked. While the unique comparison and the classic Shakespearean dilemma "to be or not to be" plagued the protagonist all through, the play presented a unique parallel between the actor and the farmer and their rural and urban " contrasting yet similar" conflicts, both veering towards doom. In a classic cliché and somewhat contrived need to enforce hope, the actor chose to fight on deciding not to kill Natha (or himself) in the climax. The massive stage web and ingenuity in lighting marked a dramatic shift from usual presentations, the street theatre segments incorporated in the play gelled well.
|
|
Patients with diabetic foot ulcer at risk
Jalandhar, November 17 Explaining the findings of the study, Dr Ajay Yadav, consultant vascular and endovascular surgeon, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi, said diabetic foot ulcers were sores or wounds on the foot and often a strong indicator of advanced diabetes. Most commonly, these wounds occurred on the bottom of the foot under pressure points, such as the ball of the foot and on the toes. Dr Yadav said the simple presence of a wound was serious because growth of bacteria might take place and cause an infection. The signs of an infection were redness, swelling and formation of pus with yellowish coloured drainage. "Over 25 per cent of patients with diabetes developed foot ulcer. More than half of all foot ulcers become infected, requiring hospitalisation and 20 per cent of the infections result in amputation," revealed Dr Yadav. “Diabetes contributed to approximately 80 per cent of all non-traumatic amputations performed yearly. After a major amputation, 50 per cent of the people would have their other limb amputated within two years. The people with a history of a diabetic foot ulcer have a 40 per cent greater 10-year death rate than the people with diabetes alone. Diabetic foot ulcers would double death rate and heart attack risk while increasing the risk for stroke by 40 per cent,” claimed Dr. Yadav. Ironically, one person in the world dies of diabetes every 10 seconds, while there are two new diabetic cases in the world being identified every 10 seconds. Every 30 seconds, there is a major amputation in a diabetic patient. The disease is most likely to affect those having a sedentary lifestyle, lack of exercise and who consume unhealthy diet, experts say. Strict control of diabetes and regular exercise is of paramount importance to get rid of the disease, Dr Yadav said. |
|
|
HMV win GNDU Netball Championship
Tribune News Service
Jalandhar, November 17 Principal Dr Rekha Kalia Bhardwaj congratulated the students, the staff of Physical Education Department and the coach for this achievement. Paramjit Chahal, Head, Physical Education DEpartment, Sudarshan Kang, Rajnarinder and Harmeet Kaur were also present on the occasion. Gurpurb celebration
The young devotees of Manav Sehyog School, V. Shahpur, Jalandhar, celebrated Gurpurb today by paying obeisance to Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the first Sikh Guru. They presented a special assembly dedicating hymns and informing all about the life and values preached by the revered Guru. The soothing hymn presented by the students filled everyone’s heart with joy. Principal Rajni Sharma appreciated the efforts of the students. Road safety
Ivy World School, Jalandhar, organised a lecture-cum-demonstration about awareness and traffic rules as well as road safety in collaboration with the traffic education cell, Traffic Police,
Jalandhar. An interesting lecture along with awareness of rules, regulations and traffic signs was imparted by ASI Ranjit Singh, head constables Shamsher Singh and Ramesh Kumar which had been organised through special efforts made by Commissioner Police Ram Singh, ADCP Traffic Sukhdev Singh and ACP Traffic Mohinder Singh. Principal S Chauhan, the faculty and the drivers of the school buses were a part of the lecture-cum-demonstration as the students were urged to help elders whereas the elders were advised to follow all rules to help make road safety an integral part of our lives. A road safety week was also being observed in the school to help the children learn about their civic responsibilities. |
|
|
Order to docs on prescription of medicines
Jalandhar, November 17 Pulling up doctors, the Director told them to prescribe only those medicines to the patients which were available in the hospital dispensaries. He also warned the doctors of departmental action for not complying with the directions. Dr Nayar also expressed his displeasure with the functioning of the trauma centre and its upkeep. He asked the doctors to pull up their socks so that the centre patients get the best possible facilities. He also asked Dr Cheema to ask the
contractor of the company to whom the job for the construction of the 100-bedded MCH centre had been allotted, to speed up the work so that
it could be completed in the stipulated time and be put to use. The Director also held a meeting of the hospital staff and heard their grievances and suggestions. |
|
NGOs carry out 3rd phase of cleanliness drive
Amritsar, November 17 “The main entrance of the Amritsar railway station has a footfall of over 50,000 everyday. Voice of Amritsar started the campaign in the morning when about 60 of its members joined to clean the main portico of the station entrance. “We also cleaned the Golden Temple replica in the verandah of the railway station. Posters and illegal hoardings on the walls were scrapped and all the garbage was removed. The Voice of Amritsar has over 4,000 people and we have made it our priority out to clean the city,” said Dr Rakesh Sharma, president, Voice of Amritsar. They were joined in their effort by Eco Amritsar, GNDU faculty members and students, students from Government School Heir, Mission Aghaaz, Amritsar Vikas Manch, Global NGO and other
organisations. Some of the Ngos have come together to form an umbrella club, Go-NGO, which will work for the development and cleanliness in and around the city in collaboration with the administration.
|
||
|
3-day cricket tournament to kick off today
Amritsar, November 17 The tournament is hosted under the auspices of St Francis School along with the cooperation of Alexandra School, Sri Guru Harkrishan Public School, Basant Avenue and St Joseph’s Convent School,
Khasa. Various schools affiliated with the Indian Schools Certificate (ASISC) from across the country will take part in the event.
|
||
|
Birthday of Guru Nanak Dev observed
Phagwara,
November 17 As many as 31 youths donated blood at the camp. Anita Som Parkash, along with the president of the club Vitin Puri and other dignitaries, including Harjinder Gogna, honoured the donors. 'Open Dera Baba
Nanak corridor'
Phillaur: Mahatma Gandhi Peace Mission president Gurbinder Singh Atwal and secretary Brij Bhushan Goyal said both India and Pakistan should sort out the issue of opening up the Dera Baba Nanak corridor so that Sikhs and Punjabis would be able to visit the Gurdwara Nankana Sahib.
|
||
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | E-mail | |
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal inaugurated a 30-bedded community health centre built at a cost of Rs 6.33 crore here today. He also inaugurated a bridge at Nanakpur village constructed at a cost of Rs 2.5 crore on the Kapurthala-Fattudhinga road.
Jalandhar, November 17
