& V I C I N I T Y
Friday, October 9, 1998
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C H A N D I G A R H & V I C I N I T Y |
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Friday, October 9, 1998 |
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spotlight today's calendar |
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Power
to cost more from November 10 |
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 Jayanti Mata temple portion
collapses |
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UT Administration's
clarification Live
cataract surgery session today Impressive
fly-past marks IAF day celebrations
Higher
payment for acquired land sought CTCC
seeks 10 lakh per acre as land compensation |
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Power to cost more from November
10 CHANDIGARH, Oct 8 —The Electricity wing of the Chandigarh Administration today doled out a 10 percent to 20 per cent hike in power tariff as a Divali gift to the residents of the Union Territory of Chandigarh. The wing in a late evening three page press note tried to justify the hike on the basis of repeated reasons, including lack of sources for power generation, charging the same rates for overdrawal of power from costlier power stations, and requirement of a heavier budget for the purchase of power. The press note said that the power purchase bill this year would touch Rs 150 crore as against Rs 125 crore last year. The new rates will be effective from November 10. The press note said that a phenomenal increase in power consumption was also a factor for raising the tariff. Between April and August this year, the drawal of power from Central projects increased by 12 per cent as against the routine growth of 5 per cent. The peak power consumption touched 33 lakh units a day against the allocation of 22 lakh units a day. It further said that the Administration was to generate an additional amount of Rs 33 crore over and above the budget grant for the purchase of electricity. An additional expenditure of Rs 3 crore had also been incurred on arrears of pay for the employees because of the revision of pay scales. The Administration has maintained that it has tried to give maximum consideration to weaker sections of society while revising its tariff. Domestic consumers using up to 100 units a day will be paying Rs 1.33 per unit against the purchase cost of Rs 1.99 per unit, the press note claimed. It further said that the commercial and industrial consumers would pay more though the overall rates would be lower than both in the neighbouring town of Panchkula. With the exception of domestic consumers, power rates in Chandigarh will be higher in most of other categories as compared to Punjab because it generates 66 per cent of its total power requirement at about 50 per cent of the rates at which UT buys electricity. The minimum monthly charges have not been touched as they are lower than Punjab for all categories of consumers. The breakdown given by the Electricity wing says that for domestic consumers, first 25 units of power will be charged at 95 paise a unit now as against 85 paise previously while in neighbouring Punjab, it is Rs 1.29 for first 30 units and the next 70 units are charged at Rs 1.73 a unit. In Chandigarh, next 75 units will be charged at Rs 1.46 a unit against Rs 1.30 at present. In Haryana, the rates are Rs 1.91 for the first 40 units and Rs 3.06 for other domestic consumers. Domestic consumers using more than 100 units of power would be charged Rs 2.15 per unit for 400 units and Rs 2.62 per unit for 500 units and beyond that. The upper slab in these categories in Punjab is Rs 2.16 per unit and Rs 2.63 per unit. For NRS category of consumers, the rates are much higher in Chandigarh than in Punjab. It will be Rs 3.60 per unit in Chandigarh as against Rs 3.19 in Punjab. Similarly, consumers with large supplies will pay Rs 3.51 in Chandigarh as against Rs 2.80 in Punjab while the medium requirement category will pay Rs 2.89 per unit in Chandigarh as against Rs 2.43 in Punjab. For consumers with small industrial supplies, the rate will be Rs 2.54 in Chandigarh as against Rs 2.25 per unit in Punjab. Even fund-starved
municipal corporation will pay Rs 3.60 per unit for power
used for street lights as against Rs 3.19 in Punjab. The
Administration has also raised the tariff for the farm
sector to 59 paise per unit against free supply in
Punjab. For temporary supply, the rate will be Rs 4.66
per unit against Rs 3.95 per unit at present, and Rs 4.36
per unit in Punjab. |
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Jayanti Mata temple portion
collapses JAYANTI MAJRI VILLAGE (Ropar), Oct 8 — A portion of the historical Jayanti Mata Temple complex built on a hillock adjacent to the village collapsed in completely damaging the community kitchen and some storerooms. The temple, built during the times of Emperor Babar about 525 years ago by the erstwhile rulers of the state of Hathnaur, has been revered ever since and the incident is being interpreted as a displeasure sign of the presiding deity by residents of the area. Villagers from far off have been coming to see the damage and the general feeling among them was that something has to be done to escape the wrath of the goddess. The last time the residents attribute the wrath of the Devi was about 300 years ago when the city of Hathnaur was destroyed by a dacoit, Garib Dass, who lived in the jungles adjacent to the present day Manimajra. He was said to have been instructed to do so by the goddess herself in his dream. Showing the damage, Mr Diwan Singh, sarpanch of Mullanpur Garibdass and patron of the Jayanti Devi Management Committee, told TNS that the structure housing the community kitchen had been damaged due to the cave in. Some store rooms had also been swept away and the danger of the temple being damaged could not be ruled out. The committee has been managing the affairs of the temple since 1937 and had over the years spent a lot of money in constructing dharamshalas besides running community kitchens on Sundays. The donations are "cornered by the pandits" who are least concerned with the upkeep of the mandir, it is alleged. Another reason was that even the sewerage water from toilets is being let out on the hill sides in the absence of a proper disposal system which in their view was "sacrilegious". Mr Arvind Puri, Mr Bhupinder Chawla and Mr Naib Singh, members of the committee, said the collapse occurred because of the erosion of the soil at the base of the hillock due to the open disposal of waste water and the indifferent attitude of the state government in constructing retaining walls to shore up the crumbling hill side. The committee had been representing to the government for the last many years that more walls were needed to save the temple but the response was lukewarm. Promises by the area MP, Mrs Satinder Kaur Dhaliwal for financial help have yet to materialise. The Chandigarh MP, Mr Satya Pal Jain, had also recommended Rs 10 lakh to the Punjab Government but that, too, has met with no success. A majority of the villagers demand the formation of a trust to manage the affairs of the temple at the earliest so that the part of the offerings could be used to keep the temple in good shape. The annual offerings , including the two annual fairs, was about Rs 20- 21 lakh. They said a resolution had been passed by panchayats of 25 adjoining villages for the formation of the trust. No pandits of the temple
were forthcoming on their views on the episode. |
Live cataract surgery session
today CHANDIGARH, Oct 8 — A live surgery session with foreign experts performing cataract operations will be held at the PGI tomorrow. Cataract is the most common cause of blindness, pointed out Prof Amod Gupta, head of the PGI's eye department . Experts have gathered at the PGI to attend the eighth biennial conference of the strasbismological Society of India. A special two day workshop on "vision care in children" opens tomorrow. Through a special live transmission of the surgery, experts will also answer questions of the doctors sitting in separate hall while performing surgeries. Talking about squint, experts pointed out that it was the number two cause of blindness in human beings. Squint or misalignment of the eyes if not corrected before six years of age is irreversible, they opined. The experts will give demonstrations and deliver lectures. Dr Yadavinder. P. Dang from the USA said cataract blindness could be reversed. However, blindness caused due to squint was irreversible. Squint will be corrected before the age of six, pointed out Dr Marilyn T. Miller, also from the USA. In 50 per cent cases squint is caused due to hereditary factors. In rest of the cases the cause are not yet known, Dr Miller added. "May be there is combination of genes that are causing it. If squint is not corrected the particular eye does not see properly. As a result the brain does not get used to seeing things, Dr Dang added. In the long run the focusing mechanism of the eye gets affected and it could never be corrected, he added. Corrections carried out later were cosmetic and the eye would not improve. Close to 2.5 per cent of the 250 million population of the USA suffers from squint. In India, the number was close to four crore, said Prof Amod Gupta. This is the second major
conference being organised by the PGI in the past three
years. |
UT Administration's clarification CHANDIGARH, Oct 8 — The Chandigarh Administration issued a two-page note, clarifying matters pertaining to transfers and postings to and within the Administration. The note said that so far the deputation of the Home Secretary was concerned, the matter was pending before the Central Government as the Administration wanted an extension of the officer's deputation in view of the change of the Finance Secretary and also because of important vigilance inquiries involving senior personnel, which are incomplete. The Home Secretary as Chief Vigilance Officer was made the target of allegations in courts, which were not accepted by the courts in this connection. Some of the accused are absconding. The Administration had reiterated the desirability of allowing the Chief Vigilance Officer to continue for the time being to avoid any setback in these cases. The Union Government had decided to upgrade the post of the IGP, and the present Home Secretary was in the super time scale, it was considered desirable that the post of Home Secretary should be upgraded to the super time scale. The officer's deputation had initially been extended with the concurrence of the Haryana Government. The Tribune had carried no such report. One of the reports has also alleged favouritism in the distribution of work. This was unjustified. The charge of the Education department was given to the Home Secretary over a year ago and it is extraordinary that it has been raked up (not in The Tribune) now, obviously at the instance of certain motivated person (s). No mention was made of the fact that the Home Secretary was being relieved of the charge as chairperson of CITCO simultaneously. Certain other reports have appeared regarding postings and transfers in the union territory alleging "interference". It is clarified that in the case of Class-I officers, all such decisions have to be taken with the approval of the Administrator. All files are routed to the Administrator through the Adviser. Naturally, once officers
are placed at the disposal of the Union Territory
Administration, the Administration has the discretion in
assigning work to them. In certain reports in the press,
it appears to have been taken as normal that an officer
deputed to join the Administration should be able to
specify the work to be assigned to him before joining.
This is incorrect, and the Administration has at no stage
exceeded its powers in this regard. |
Impressive fly-past marks IAF day
celebrations CHANDIGARH, Oct 8 — An impressive fly-past and a ceremonial parade marked the 66th anniversary celebrations of the Indian Air Force at the Air Force Station here today. The Air Officer Commanding, Advance Headquarters, Air Vice-Marshal T.M. Asthana, received the general salute at the parade, commanded by Air Commodore R.V. Kumar, Air Officer Commanding, 12 Wing. Felicitating all ranks of the station, Air Vice-Marshal Asthana called upon the Air Force personnel to rededicate themselves to serve the motherland. He also read out the messages received from the President, the Vice-President, the Prime Minister, the Defence Minister, the Air Chief and the AOC-in-C, Western Air Command. A fly-past by IL-76, AN-32 and Dornier aircraft in a big boy formation led by Gp Capt S.P. Singh, Commanding Officer, 25 Squadron, was witnessed by a large gathering. A cultural programme was organised on the eve of the anniversary by Air Force personnel working at the Chandigarh station. A social get-together was
also held for all serving and retired officers of the
station. |
UT restrained on accepting tenders CHANDIGARH, Oct 8 — The Punjab and Haryana High Court today restrained the Chandigarh Administration from accepting any tender for executing work on C Block of the Government Medical College and Hospital. This order was handed down by a Division Bench consisting of Mr Justice R.S. Mongia and Mr Justice S.S. Sudhalkar on a public interest litigation filed by Mr Rajiv Sharma, a resident of Sector 21, contesting the administration's decision inviting pre-qualification bids from only "A" class contractors. The petitioner told the court that the administration followed the Punjab PWD rules. Under these rules, any A class contractor could make a bid for any work, irrespective of its cost or value. The administration decision inviting pre-qualification bids was, therefore, against these rules. He added that pre-qualification tenders discouraged healthy competition among contractors. This decision was also likely to cause a loss to the public exchequer. The pre-qualification criterion adopted by the administration was arbitrary. It had been designed in such a fashion so as to suit certain contractors. Illustrating this point, the petitioner stated that while calling pre-qualification applications, the department advertised the amount of the works as Rs 1.56 crore, Rs 2.16 crore, Rs 2.28 crore and Rs 2.41 crore. The department also stated that prospective contractors should have executed two works of a similar nature and having the same magnitude of Rs 63 lakh, Rs 87 lakh, Rs 92 lakh and Rs 99.96 lakh. These figures showed that the tenders amount was kept very high to reduce the number of applicants. The Bench, however,
allowed the administration to process the tenders. It
also issued notice to the administration for October 15.
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Higher payment for acquired land
sought CHANDIGARH, Oct 8 — Residents of villages whose land had been acquired for the development of the third phase of the union territory have demanded residential plots and enhancement of the compensation to them. In a representation to the Home ministry, villagers alleged that though under the Chandigarh Allotment of Dwelling Units to the Oustees of Chandigarh, 1996 scheme, the Chandigarh Housing Board had fixed a quota for the oustees after the scheme, no further scheme had been floated leaving the oustees at the mercy of the board. On the other hand, there was no ban on acquiring the land by the Administration and hundreds of acres were being acquired for the cooperative societies, General Medical College and Hospital, Sector 32 and various rehabilitation colonies without any scheme for the oustees whose land had been acquired. Mr Harbhajan Singh Kajheri and Mr Gurdeep Singh, president and general secretary, respectively, of the local unit of the BJP's All-India Kisan Morcha, raised this issue at the national conference of the morcha held at Rewari on October 5 and 6. A delegation of the morcha, led by its national president, Mr Hukam Dev Narayan Yadav, will call on the Home Minister, Mr L.K. Advani soon in this connection. Demanding compensation on
the Delhi pattern at the rate of Rs 14 to 19 lakh as
against the current Rs 3.5 to 5 lakh, they also demanded
allotment of alternative plots to the oustees who were
solely dependent upon dairy farming. |
Father, son
jailed CHANDIGARH, Oct 8 — The Sessions Judge, Mr B.S. Bedi, today convicted Priya Swamy, a resident of Sector 31, under Section 304, Part-II, IPC, and sentenced him to undergo rigorous imprisonment for five years. The judge also slapped a fine of Rs 500 on the convict. His son, Kumar Swamy, was convicted under Section 323. He was ordered to undergo rigorous imprisonment for six months. According to the prosecution, Priya Swamy and Modly Appan were playing cards. Swamy staked Rs 10 in the game. Mr Appan told him that he would not indulge in gambling. This comment of Mr Appan infuriated Swamy who caught hold of him by hair and threw him in the street. Mr Appan was seriously injured. This incident took place on November 11, 1996. Mr Appan was admitted to
hospital where he died. |
CTCC seeks 10 lakh per acre CHANDIGARH, Oct 8 — The Chandigarh Territorial Congress Committee (CTCC) has demanded Rs 10 lakh per acre as compensation for the land acquired by the Chandigarh Administration, and improvement in the civic amenities in the villages. Public meetings organised by the party today at Maloya village and colony were addressed by the local chief, Mr Vinod Sharma. The sarpanches of Kajheri, Khudda Lahora, Sarangpur, Dhanas, Hallo Majra, Dadu Majra and Behlana participated. He said the sewerage in
the villages should be revamped and the inadequacies in
the water and power supply should be removed. Other
matters raised by the villagers would be taken up with
the administration, he added.
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300 phones
dead for 10 days CHANDIGARH, Oct 8 — The Dera Bassi Vikas Parishad has urged the Telecom department to repair more than 300 telephones which have been out of order for the past 10 days. Mr T.L. Sharma, president of the parishad, said they had taken up the matter with the authorities concerned, but to no avail. A cable fault is stated to
be the cause of the problem. |
Probe
ordered into road construction CHANDIGARH, Oct 8 — Mr Siri Kishan Dass, Minister for Town and Country Planning, Haryana, has ordered an inquiry into the irregularities committed by HUDA in the construction of a road in the Industrial Area, Panchkula. He said here today that he
had himself visited the site along with the Commissioner,
Town and Country Planning, the Administrator and the
Chief Engineer, HUDA, and found that the workmanship was
very poor, and the work was not as per the
specifications. |
100 jhuggis
demolished amid protest PANCHKULA, Oct 8 — At least 100 unauthorised jhuggis were removed by the enforcement staff of the local estate office of HUDA in Indira Colony here today. The affected jhuggi dwellers alleged that they had been "regularised" under a rehabilitation scheme announced by a former Chief Minister, Mr Bhajan Lal. Some of them even produced receipts, showing that they had deposited the requisite money under the rehabilitation scheme. When the demolition drive was in progress certain jhuggi dwellers threw stones at the enforcement staff. No one was, however, injured. An official of HUDA said
the jhuggi dwellers had encroached upon HUDA land meant
to be used for laying the dual carriageway between sector
16 and Budanpur village here. |
MC parking
fee case CHANDIGARH, Oct 8 — Mr Manpreet Singh Chahal, who had filed a suit contesting the levy of parking fee by the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation, today questioned the locus standi of two persons, Mr Vikas Walia and Mr S.R. Kanwar, for being impleaded as parties to defend the action of the corporation. In reply to their application, he stated that they could not put forward any reason how they would be affected by the imposition of the parking fee. He added that they had abused the process of the law, especially when they did not file any affidavit, which is a condition precedent. He added that the decision
of the corporation to impose parking fee had been
resented by various political parties and residents. No
wonder various political parties were organising dharnas. |
Lawyers go
on strike CHANDIGARH, Oct 8 — The Chandigarh District Bar Association today observed a strike in protest against the ill-treatment meted out to Mr Arunjeev Walia by the Mohali police. Mr Walia had gone to the Central Police Station of Mohali to meet a suspect in police custody with orders of the court. He alleged that the Mohali police not only restrained him from meeting the suspect but also misbehaved with him. The Bar association
decided to send a copy of its resolution to the higher
authorities for taking necessary action against the
erring cops. |
CHANDIGARH , Oct 8 — Dr Satya P. Gautam, president of the Panjab University Teachers' Association, has been nominated as a member of the University Senate, an official spokesperson of the university said here today. A communication in this regard has been received from the office of Mr Krishan Kant, Vice-President of India, who is also the chancellor of the university . Dharna: The on-going dharna by members of the Panjab University (non teaching) Employees Federation continued for the second day. Employees are demanding payment of arrears and medical allowance on the Punjab pattern. Criticised: The Pay Revision Committee of Panjab University at a meeting on Thursday criticised the undue delay in the official announcement of the amendments in the pay revision notification issued by the Centre on July 27 in the light of an agreement between Mr Murli Manohar Joshi and teachers' representatives . The pay revision panel also expressed its indignation that university and college teachers have been "denied the payment of additional dearness allowance since July 1997". The committee of the All India Federation of Teachers' Association in a separate press note expressed concern over the "negative attitude of the Punjab Government in not releasing salaries of university and college teachers who had gone on strike". Lecture:
Prof Prem Nath memorial lecture on "secularism,
religion and culture" will be delivered by Prof G.C.
Pande, chairman of the Indian Institute of Advanced
Studies, Shimla, at Gandhi Bhavan on Friday. |
CHANDIGARH, Oct 8 — Two persons, including a child, have been injured in separate incidents and admitted to the PGI. Surjit Singh, a pedestrian, was hit by an unknown vehicle. Rani, a six-year-old girl was injured when her hand was caught in a fodder chopping machine in Khuda Ali Sher village. Motor cycle stolen: A motor cycle (HR-05-E-2308) owned by Mr Jasbir Singh of Sector 44 has been stolen from his residence. In a separate incident,
Madan Lal of Palsora was nabbed while carrying seven
bottles of liquor without a valid permit. |
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