‘Politicians have betrayed nation’
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 26— It has been a hectic week for the politicians at the Centre, with several political parties trying to come together to stake their claim to form the government. And today with the announcement of the dissolution of the Lok Sabha, the common man is at least clear that the final mandate would be his.

TNS spoke to a cross-section of people in the city to find out what they thought about the mid-term elections thrice in a row in a period of three years, and would they want a change in the government at the centre now.

“All this mess could certainly have been avoided. I personally feel that the BJP government should have been asked to continue. But since Vajpayeeji had tendered his resignation, maybe this was the only course left. But now even after elections the BJP would be able to form the majority government, because look at what the Congress did. It is all a game of numbers”, said Mr Gajendra, an MBA, who owns a factory in Chandigarh.

Mrs Indu Chopra, a teacher, said, “There is so much of chaos and instability in the country today that the larger causes, which actually affect people like us, tend to get forgotten. But who will tell this to the politicians? I do not think that now the Congress can come to power. And what kind of a Prime Minister would Sonia Gandhi make? What are her credentials as a politician? That she comes from a family of Prime Ministers and politicians? All that we need today is a stable front to have a look at the country. There has been too much of “power-consciousness amongst the politicians”.

Most people said they did not really care which government stayed, as long as the government worked for the good of the country. They also noted the fact that “the present government should have been allowed to carry on, with the exchequer not having to carry the burden of another election”.

Interestingly, most government employees when spoken to though did not want to comment on the situation, all of them did not fail to bemoan the fact that once again they would be “forced” to do election duties!

“I think people have again been betrayed by the politicians. The “fights” at the Centre have had a bad impact on the country as a whole. But out of this whole situation, leaving even the issues of onions aside, the BJP would definitely gain. In fact the overall image of the BJP has got a fillip out of this said Mr Prabhjeet Singh, a government employee.

Manish, a professional, also vouched for the fact that the BJP was “sure to get sympathy vote at this stage”. While stating that no “Italian Prime Minster” would ever rule the country, he added, “The recommendation of the dissolution has come as a welcome step, and it seems clear that the BJP would emerge as a sure-shot winner”.

“I also think that the country will never have an “outsider” as a Prime Minister. Even if the Congress wins these elections, they would have a “sensible” person as the PM of India, somebody who has had some experience in he field of Indian politics”, said Dr Rakesh, an MBBS from Panchkula.

Mrs Pamela Bhatnagar, a housewife, does not seem to think that the dissolution has been a very wise step. “The BJP government could have continued at the Centre. But even if the elections take place, I do not think the Congress will make it. No party has a majority today, at least the BJP seems to have more in terms of numbers than the rest of them”.

Mrs Kiran Gupta, another housewife, and one of the few who seemed to be open to the idea of having Sonia Gandhi as the country’s Prime Minister said, “The BJP did some good things for the country, like the “bus to Pakistan”. But then it is not fair to say whether one Prime Minister would be good or the other, especially if the other has not been given any chance to perform”.

Bhanu played perfect host to police meet
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, April 26 — The logistics involved in the hosting of the 42nd All- India Police Duty Meet at the Basic Training Centre, Bhanu, near Panchkula, could be gauged from the fact that the regular training courses at the centre had to be suspended for one month and scores of officers of the force posted in field areas had to be requisitioned for numerous duties.

Officers and jawans connected with the holding of the meet heaved a sigh of relief after the successful culmination of the meet which was hosted by the force for the second time within a span of only three years as the state entrusted with holding the meet this year backed out, citing a “resource crunch”.

That the experience of hosting a meet of this magnitude, which saw the participation of more than 1, 100 personnel of various state police departments besides central police organisations, had been of immense value was stressed by Mr R.L. Manon, DIG, organising secretary of the present meet and the one held in 1996, during the closing ceremony.

The hosts overcame all difficulties of logistics and finances through their ingenuity and the entire expenses were met through funds raised by bringing out a souvenir and through other channels. Mr N.K. Mishra, ADIG, and Additional Organising Secretary, proudly claimed that other states or CPOs hosting the future meets would find it difficult to conduct the meet within the amount spent by them.

That there were no complaints regarding the accommodation, food, transportation and lack of allied services during the week-long stay was a statement of the way things went with clockwork precision.

A majority of the participants — 11 contingents comprising more than 400 participants — had been put up at the centre, said Mr I.S. Negi, Commandant, BTC, Bhanu. The rest had been billeted at 9 th Battalion and the Transport Battalion while the officers had been put up at guest houses provided by the governments of Haryana, Punjab and Chandigarh.

The Central Industrial Security Force, Border Security Force, Punjab Police, Haryana Police, Central Reserve Police Force and the Railway Protection Force had made their own arrangements at various places in and around Chandigarh and in the vicinity of the venue of competitions.

To cope with the problem of providing decent accommodation to the participants, guests besides their own recruits and officers, they had to empty the barracks of the men and put them up in more than 200 tents erected in two colonies on the campus on the occasion. There were nearly 2, 000 persons on the campus during the course of the meet, he said.

With this three batches of recruits, numbering more than 500 men, were accommodated. Each tent was home for six men during the course of the meet. Similarly, more then 60 bathrooms and toilets were constructed in both colonies for the convenience of the men and ease the pressure on similar facilities in the barracks. The idea was to let the participants have the place to themselves without any interference, he said.

The main problem was to cater to the culinary tastes of the participants from different parts of the country. The system of providing food from a single mess was discontinued this time in view of their past experience since most people did not like the preparations. This time they had asked the participants to prepare their food as per their taste and provided more than 24 cook houses. The food was collected from there and taken to various competition venues well in time, he said.

Transport was provided and more than 70 vehicles of various types had been provided along with separate liaison officers for each contingent. Efforts were also made to depute officers who knew the language of their respective contingents. Similarly, a control committee was also formed to keep track of the participants and to deal with various exigencies faced by them.

To make the trip of the participants memorable, daily bus services originated from the centre to various centres of tourist attraction twice a day. The timings were such that a majority of the people could avail of the service which was a huge success.

Besides, a cultural troupe, courtesy the Himachal Pradesh Government, entertained the participants with folk dances and other entertainment programmes.

Weighing educational options
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, April 26—Students, having taken their board examinations for Class X, while waiting for their results, are weighing the various options they have at their disposal with regard to their studies. Even though these students are clear about the stream they are interested in pursuing, they want the formal stamp of the State Institute of Education on their choice of stream. Therefore, nowadays one sees a large number of students taking the aptitude test conducted by the institute, located in Sector 32 here.

``My parents and seniors at school advised me to take the test even if I had decided on what I want to pursue. My inclination is towards science but I am indecisive whether to take up medical or non-medical. Therefore, this test I have taken is going to play a major role in whichever stream I ultimately opt for,'' Rupanjit Kaur, a student who took the test, opined.

Though Abha Bansal's parents prodded her into taking the test, she is glad she could sit for it. ``The result of the test will tell me what I'm best suited for though I personally feel admission to the medical stream will do me good. The availability of the aptitude test in the city will stand the students in good stead if they haven't made up their minds.''

Anjum Diman took the test to find out the subjects he could excel in. ``I also wanted to know my strengths and weaknesses in the analysis they give at the counselling session. In spite of being inclined towards non-medical I am willing to change my option if advised by the panel of experts here. My personal preferences are secondary but their advise to me will be second to none, I am sure,'' he adds.

On the other hand are students like Parul Bali who says:" I have decided what I want to do and nothing and nobody will change my mind, not even the result of the test even if it is in direct contrast to my choice. I took the test because the ultimate analysis is not confined to academics alone. They summarise your whole personality during the counselling and even give a rough estimate of our marks in the boards. That is what drew me to the test in the first place.''

Sandeep Singh is of the opinion that the test is there to guide the students what is best for them.``If the result of the test speaks otherwise I am willing to reconsider my decision and rethink on the matter though I doubt that the result of the test is likely to clash with the stream I am desirous of pursuing,'' he says.

``Instead of regretting the decision you take it is better to be sure you are doing what is in your best interest and what better way of judging that than taking this aptitude test. It instills confidence in us and acts as a great morale booster when it is the future we are talking of. Otherwise I have decided that I want to be a computer engineer,'' Saurabh Bhambry states.

Darpan Bharija says he took the test because an uncle said it would be beneficial to him. ``I will opt for the arts stream whatever the net result of the test,'' he says.

Preeti Kaushal says she has made up her mind to pursue commerce and if the results of the test gel with her liking, it is alright, if they don't she couldn't be bothered though she admits it is of great help to those who take their studies seriously.

That all parents think alike is evident from the fact that Mr Balbir Sharan, with the Haryana police , and Yogesh Kalia, who works in a bank, thought it was best that their children could avail of the facility. ``The institute provides proper guidance to the students and they can join the next class with the consolation that their choice is approved by the institute as well,'' both unanimously claim.