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World Kabaddi Cup off to a glittering start
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World Kabaddi Cup ceremony sees additional power load
World AIDS Day today
World AIDS Day today
People wait for their turn to deposit property tax at the single window put up at the office of Municipal Corporation Bathinda. Tribune photo: Pawan Sharma
Sangrur player cries foul over selection
Hockey players from UP and Karnataka fight for ball during the 59th National School Games in Bathinda on Saturday.
Tribune photo: Pawan Sharma
Man duped of Rs 27 lakh
by fraudster
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World Kabaddi Cup off to a glittering start
Bathinda, November 30 While the spectators were asked to occupy their seats by 5:30 pm, people had started pouring in well in advance. Those coming from far off places like Muktsar and Ludhiana had come a day before. "I did not want to get caught in the traffic and the crowd. I have a relative here at whose place I reached on Friday night," said Satvir Singh from Muktsar city who had come with his cousin. The seats in the stadium were full before 3.30 pm. The VIP and the VVIP blocks were packed by 5.30 pm, while the slot for the commoners remained vacant and the cops were seen occupying most of the area. Meanwhile, people reaching the venue after 6 pm were not allowed inside the stadium. VVIP, VIP pass holders and all others were refused entry. Since the entry to the event was on invitational passes, the phones of cops and the officials kept ringing with people pleading for passes. "I was given ten VVIP passes, which I gave to my relatives. I am still getting calls from different quarters," said an irate cop posted in police. Barricading was done by the police inside and outside the stadium and a person was frisked five times before entering the stadium. Spectators in the gallery for commoners were given white ribbons to wave during the performance by star artists. Cops lined the private and government buildings for security purposes. Over 4,000 cops had been deputed to ensure smooth law and order situation during the event. A cop from Patiala said though his colleagues had got rooms in hotels, many of them had been coming daily from their respective headquarters. As soon as the event started, the cops blocked entry at the VVIP and VIP points. The toilet facility for spectators had been provided outside the stadium. Since the VVIP gallery did not have a toilet facility, people had to go out to ease themselves. "It was only after much persuasion that cops allowed me to go and ease myself," said Rupinder Singh, a student from Polytechnic College.
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World Kabaddi Cup ceremony sees additional power load
Bathinda, November 30 The stadium has a regular supply of only two power meters of 35 KV to 40 KV load. These were utilised in the two VIP and VVIP blocks in the stadium. To obtain uninterrupted power supply, the organisers had obtained transformers from the Powercom and generator sets from the Punjab Mandi Board. More than 300 KV was sought to illuminate the dark zones and other purposes for which a 500 kg generator set has been provided by the Powercom. Two 180 KV each generator sets have also been provided by the Punjab Mandi Board as an alternative. Some residents of Ajit Road and nearby areas complained of power cuts in view of the extra power drawn for the stadium. The Powercom officials, however, denied cuts. "Since the function requires uninterrupted power supply, we suggested to the organisers to use generators, instead of regular power. Six lights, each of 73 KV, in the four floodlight poles, have been given by the Powercom and if all lights in the poles are used, then the services of generators would be sought," said a senior Powercom official, pleading anonymity. Last time, the stage was 80 feet X 80 feet in size and this time, its size has been increased to 100 feet X 100 feet. It was divided into three parts, including a raised platform for the star performers and lower areas for the other artists for a better view of each performer to the audience. Last minute accommodation for nearly 3,000 students participating in the National School Games was also made at the stadium premises on the orders of the Education Minister Sikandar Singh Maluka. Powercom officials were also seen repairing the streetlights in the surrounding areas of the sports stadium. |
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Sangrur player cries foul over selection
Bathinda, November 30 "I played in the 1st World Cup Kabaddi but was ousted from the training camp in the 2nd World Cup since my dope results were positive following which a two-year ban was imposed on me which ended this year," Singh said. He added that this year, he was selected in the trials and was taken to the training camp but was not allowed to practise with the other players. "The coach of the Indian men’s team, Harpreet Baba, asked me to get a dope test conducted from National Anti-Doping Agency and submit the report. I submitted the report, which turned out to be negative, on November 19," Singh said. "I was not taken to New Delhi along with other players for the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) dope test. They told me that I would have to pay for my own test to which I agreed and asked them to fix a date for my test since it is a government organisation. They didn't fix a date for me for the test," Gulzar Singh added, voicing his
disappointment. "Till the day of the final trials, they didn't give an answer. On Friday evening, when the selection committee was conducting the trials, I spoke to the chairman of the association and Maluka asked the committee members to allow me to appear for the trials. I secured all the four points during the four raids I conducted and still I wasn't selected," he said. He said he went to Ludhiana where the team was to be announced and met the coach and the committee members asking them for a clarification on his name not being in the list. "They didn't speak to me and instead misguided Maluka stating that I didn't attend the camp. The accusation is false," he said. Singh questioned the inclusion of Shilu, a raider from Haryana, as a stand-by in the team. "His dope test was also found to be positive during the first world cup and this year, he has been chosen in the team. I wonder why I am being discriminated against," he said. Refuting the allegations, Harpreet Baba, said, "It is human nature to cry over something that one doesn't get. The trials, training camp and selection of the team were conducted in a fair and transparent manner. We have chosen the best possible team that we had at the training camp." |
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HIV cases: Men outnumber women
Megha Mann Tribune News Service
Bathinda, November 30 Talking on the eve of World AIDS Day, whose theme for the year 2013 is "Shared Responsibility: Strengthening Results for an AIDS free generation", Dr Monica said more men turn up for treatment than women. "In most of the cases, it is men who have passed on the disease to their wives. Whenever a man reports with HIV positive status, we check his wife also. There have also been a handful of cases wherein women coming for pre-natal check-up during pregnancy are diagnosed with HIV positive virus and then their husbands are checked," she added. Started three years ago, the ART centre at the Civil Hospital provides treatment and follows every HIV positive patient closely. The patients are given free counselling and are also entitled to free railway passes enabling them to travel for the treatment. Besides people suffering from AIDS due to unprotected sex, the centre also has a seizeable number of patients who have contracted the disease after sharing needles with infected people. These people mainly constitute the category of intravenous (IV) drug users. Dr Monica pointed out that many people prefer to keep it under wraps because of the stigma. With the youngest patient at the centre being around eight to nine years old, Dr Monica said the need of the hour was to educate people about safe sex and no sex outside marriage. "Indian society has rightly adopted monogamy. If we adhere to our society's rules, we would never get astray. In any condition, people should be educated never to have unprotected sex, which not only destroys the life of patient, but also that of others in their contact," she added. Meanwhile, the health department will hold an awareness rally on Sunday that will be flagged off from the Fire Brigade Chowk at 10 am. The Bathinda Vikas Manch will hold an awareness rally in Beant Nagar.
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Property tax
Bathinda, November 30 After December 10 till December 31, people cannot avail any rebate and will have to pay the full amount. Later, after January 1, people will have to pay 25 per cent penalty. Sources in the department said the dates may be extended further. "Government may take the last date of penalty-free payment to March 31, 2014. People are not voluntarily coming forward to pay the tax. It's only the salaried middle class families that have turned up so far in big number at the state level. The industrial houses and traders are postponing it till the last possible date," added a senior government functionary preferring anonymity. In Bathinda with tax payers holding back their pockets, the collections of Municipal Corporation Bathinda (MCB) has suffered. Against the targeted collection of Rs 8 cr for this fiscal year, the MCB has collected mere Rs 2.60 cr as the property tax. The target for house tax, the predecessor for property tax, collection in city was Rs 8 cr. Of the 65,000 households, several commercial establishments and industries, the MCB has received only 15,000 applications and collected Rs 2.60 cr. "We had expected around Rs 3 cr collection for residential areas and remaining Rs 5 cr from the commercial establishments and the industries. However, the response has been lukewarm," said the MCB officials. However, in the past one week the number of applicants has registered a sudden increase. Trying to meet with the increased traffic of applications, the MCB had put up multiple counters at its office. MCB employees have been working till 10 pm completing the forms and tabulating the data. Till 4 pm today, more than Rs 50 lacs were collected at all the counters working. Highlights
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School Games Day 3: Punjab beat J&K in hockey
Bathinda, November 30 Knockout matches of boxing in the under-14 boys’ category were conducted today. In the 30 kg category, Suraj of Manipur beat Rahul of Delhi, Aman from Haryana beat Santosh of Tamil
Nadu, Ankit of Maharashtra beat Nitish of Bihar and Vishal from Punjab beat Bablu of
Orissa. In the under-17 girls category of hockey, Chandigarh beat Himachal Pradesh 4-1, Haryana beat Kerala 21-0, IPSC beat Uttarakhand 7-0, Orissa beat Karnataka 7-0, Bihar beat Delhi 3-0, Orissa beat Uttar Pradesh 3-1, Karnataka beat Rajasthan 2-0, Tamil Nadu beat West Bengal 12-6, Bihar beat J&K 7-0, Andhra Pradesh beat Madhya Pradesh 19-0, Uttar Pradesh beat Rajasthan 17-0, Chhattisgarh beat Vidya Bharti Sangthan 8-0 and Gujarat draws with Uttarakhand 1-1. In the under-17 boys category of hockey, Karnataka beat CBSE 9-0, Orissa beat Kerala 5-0, Delhi beat NVS 3-0, Andhra Pradesh beat Chandigarh 3-0, Orissa beat Rajasthan 1-0, Uttarakhand beat Bihar 3-0, Haryana beat Andhra Pradesh 8-0, Uttar Pradesh beat Karnataka 8-0, Maharashtra beat West Bengal 3-1, Himachal Pradesh beat Madhya Pradesh 1-0 and Punjab beat J&K 17-0. Chandigarh and Madhya Pradesh tied at 0-0 while Bihar and Chhattisgarh tied at 3-3. In the under-19 girls category of netball, Delhi beat Chandigarh 22-15, Punjab beat Andhra Pradesh 33-9, Haryana beat Chandigarh 26-16, Maharashtra beat Tamil Nadu 26-10, Gujarat beat CBSE 13-4, Punjab beat Madhya Pradesh 46-7, Chhattisgarh beat Tamil Nadu 27-9, CBSE beat Jharkhand 12-3, Haryana beat Uttar Pradesh 34-19 and Maharashtra beat ICSC 28-6. In the under-19 boys category of netball, CBSE beat J&K 14-4, Chhattisgarh beat Jharkhand 35-9, Chandigarh beat Gujarat 32-5, Karnataka beat Vidya Bharti Sangathan 40-6, Tamil Nadu beat Uttar Pradesh 24-22, Delhi beat Maharashtra 36-17, Adhra Pradesh beat Madhya Pradesh 40-6, Punjab beat ICSC 43-9, Uttar Pradesh beat Karnataka 30-29, Chhattisgarh beat Gujarat 34-13 and Chandigarh beat Jharkhand 37-8. The results were compiled by Harmander Singh, Sukhwinder Singh, Balvir Singh Commando,
Surinderpreet, Radhe Shyam and Rajinder Singh. |
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Man duped of Rs 27 lakh
by fraudster
Bathinda, November 30 After remaining in touch with the man from August 9 to August 27, the 'female' switched off her cell phone after some arguments over a trivial issue with
Gurmeet. After two days, a man identifying himself as a police inspector from Chandigarh, informed Gurmeet that the woman had committed suicide and named him
(Gurmeet) in her suicide note along with his cell number. The inspector also named a former Bathinda
SSP, who also served as SSP in Chandigarh, on whose orders the phone call was made. Gurmeet Singh pleaded innocence and urged the inspector to sweep the case under the carpet by accepting money. The inspector initially demanded Rs 50 lakhs and later got ready to accept Rs 37 lakhs to dispose the case.
Gurmeet, however, managed to arrange Rs 27 lakh by selling a piece of his land and deposited it in the bank account of the
'inspector'. The policeman, however, pressed Gurmeet for the pending Rs 10 lakhs and threatened to lodge another police complaint against him for his refusal to 'return' the Rs 10
lakhs. Carpenter Gurmeet Singh then made a complaint to police alleging that he was being blackmailed. Police found that the man, posing as inspector was the same who had earlier posed as a woman using voice converter phone. The accused has been identified as Jugraj Singh of Udham Singh
Nagar, Bathinda. The accused is a known family friend of the complainant Gurmeet
Singh. SSP Gurpreet Bhullar said a case has been registered against the accused Jugraj and Rs 10 lakhs has been recovered from his possession. Two licensed weapons, including a revolver and double barrel gun, have also been recovered.
— TNS |
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The state government has extended deadline for paying property tax at a rebate of 10 per cent by December 10. As per the earlier deadline, today was the last day to pay newly introduced tax at rebate.
Confirming this, Secretary, Local Bodies, Government of Punjab, Ashok Gupta, said people could now avail the 10 per cent rebate till December 10.
Bathinda, November 30
