Two elected unopposed CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — The members of two UT panchayats were elected unopposed after the withdrawal of nominations for the panchayat poll here today.

Badal for ayurveda
institute in UT
CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — The Centre must take steps for setting up an institute for research in the ayurvedic system of medicine in Chandigarh, Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said today.

Now it is painless childbirth
CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — For centuries women have been enduring pain during childbirth but now they can have a baby without the accompanying pain, thanks to a latest development.

A lensview of City Beautiful

Garbage, garbage everywhere
CHANDIGARH, Jan 8 — The much-touted beautiful image of the city has taken a beating, thanks to the littering of garbage in different parts of the city.

Student Club holds first meeting
CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — The first general meeting of the International Student Club was held at Student Centre, Panjab University, here today.

Sector 8 school tops in quiz

Seminar on career options

‘Euphoria’ cultural contest results

Man killed in collision

President arrives 10 minutes late
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — The President, Mr K.R. Narayanan, arrived at the airport around 3.40 pm amid tight security, and in attendance to receive him were all top dignitaries of Punjab, Haryana and officials of the Union Territory Administration.

The President, who was accompanied by his wife, Usha, flew back to Delhi in the same aircraft three hours later after presiding over a special session of the conference on "Chandigarh 50 years of the idea" at Panjab University.

The special aircraft carrying Mr Narayanan and his entourage was expected to arrive in the city around 3.30 pm, landed 10 minutes late. He inspected a guard of honour presented by the Army. Senior officials of the Air Force and the Army were present to receive the President , who is also the Supreme Commander of the forces.

He was received by Governors, Lieut-Gen B.K.N. Chhibber, and Mr Mahabir Prasad; and Chief Ministers, Mr Parkash Singh Badal and Mr Bansi Lal, of Punjab and Haryana, respectively. The Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs and Tourism Mr Madan Lal Khurana, the Adviser to the UT Administrator, Mr Jagdish Sagar, the Home Secretary, Mrs Anuradha Gupta, DGPs of both states besides the IGP of Chandigarh were also present.

After dis embarking at the airport, the motorcade of the President escorted by the motor cycle riders of the Army drove straight to Punjab Raj Bhavan before proceeding on to Panjab University.

All along the route the traffic had to be held up on key roads for several minutes, leading to traffic jams. The condition of traffic on the busy Dakshin Marg was the worst. Trucks, buses, four-wheelers and scooters had lined up for at least a km long stretch. The traffic jam was more evident as the entourage of various states' dignitaries followed the President's motorcade and this led to long stoppages of vehicles.

All along the route from the airport to the university a large number of policemen had been posted. A policeman could be seen every 20 yards and a cluster of policemen were present at all road intersections.

'City planning depends on society'
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — "There is no city planning that can succeed in the face of the facts of our society, the habits of our people, lapses of our administration, and poverty and lack of education and health care of our people," says Mr K.R. Narayanan, President of India.

Speaking at a special session of international conference celebrating "Chandigarh — 50 years of the idea" at Law Auditorium of Panjab University here this afternoon, the President complimented Le Corbusier for taking some of these social facts into account while planning Chandigarh and to a degree "his city is better off than most other cities of India in the matter of services, health and educational facilities, greenery and relatively pollution free environment."

The conference, the first of its kind featuring nearly 700 eminent architects, town planners, critics, will continue for three days.

"Its social and communal harmony has been creditable in the context of the events of the last of decades. Perhaps, the visionary faith of its planner, Le Corbusier, in the ability of the built environment to mould a community of people, has really been realised here. But it has been realised only very partially.

"Ultimately, it is the facts and forces of the society, the degree of education, the economic development, and the level of satisfaction of the needs and aspirations of its people, and, of course, the quality of governance would produce that intangible civic sense and civic pride that will sustain Chandigarh," Mr Narayanan said.

The President, who could not come for the originally scheduled inaugural ceremony at Open Hand monument in the morning, released a number of publications on Chandigarh during the special session which lasted nearly 45 minutes. He also released a special first-day cover on Chandigarh. The Ambassador of France presented him a special poster as homage from France to Chandigarh.

The President in his address said that India had been urbanising itself with rapidity since Chandigarh was planned and built. "During this period, the urban population of India grew from 19 per cent to 32 per cent. The population of Chandigarh has grown from one lakh to eight lakhs to one million. The city may have to see itself less and less as a brand new experiment in urban planning, and more and more as an existing city, one among many, facing new problems and pressures it was not designed to cope with.

"It has been often asked why should there be slums in the city of Chandigarh, why there are squatters, why there are informal markets, why do cows and buffaloes roam in the streets, why public sanitation is so inadequate. It would not be fair to level these charges at the door of Corbusier and his colleagues who planned the city. After all don't we see cows and buffaloes roaming about in Lutyens city of New Delhi, and alums and squatters swelling up to nearly half the population of this Capital city of India," the President said.

He also made a reference to the criticism of Chandigarh for its failure to house the very poorest.

Earlier, the Governor of Punjab-cum-Administrator of Chandigarh, Lieut-Gen BKN Chhibber (retd), said that" this young and beautiful city now stands at a crossroads". Talking about the growing economic activity and growing population, there were also the problems of urban poverty and homelessness.

"These problems exist in all Indian cities and were there in Chandigarh all along, but were not so evident in a small government town as they have become with the rapid immigration taking place into the thriving city of today. The population of this city would now be about 8 lakhs. This is already three lakhs no less than 60 per cent more than what it was planned for. The period of highest percentage growth was 1961 to 1971 (146 %) and the next decade was less than 40 per cent. However, there is no sign of any further slowing down, and what is more important is that the present continuing growth rate is on a much higher base and that Chandigarh is running out of space.

"The future of Chandigarh does not lie only in the Union Territory of Chandigarh. For the past couple of years, the Union Territory Administration has been promoting the idea of planning for a greater Chandigarh i.e. an urban complex, including Chandigarh and also the parts of surrounding areas of Punjab and Haryana. We are suggesting the endless cloning of Chandigarh in all directions. But what is required is that the unauthorised development which we see going on all-round in the periphery of the city, be replaced by good, planned development that would meet the housing needs of all growing population of the region, and also provide place for an orderly pattern of urban growth.

"All this undoubtedly implies some modifications in the original periphery idea, which, wily Nile, have already taken place, or are taking place, before our very eyes. None of this should mean loss of the wonderful urban heritage of Chandigarh. An urban plan that served as well for 40 years is not to be cast aside, but to be supplemented and built upon," General Chhibber added.

Mr Satya Pal Jain, MP, stressed the need for a joint integrated approach for the development of the periphery of Chandigarh. The Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs and Tourism, Mr Madan Lal Khurana, said that Ministry of Tourism would help improve Rock Garden, Sukhna Lake and Museum and Art Gallery besides completing a de luxe five-star hotel at a cost of Rs 34 crore in the city.

Earlier at the inaugural session Mr Kenneth Frampton of Great Britain, in his key note address, said that the architects and urbanists should be educated at two levels. First, they need to be able to discuss macro-environment policy questions not only to be able to engage directly in the debate on these issues but also to engage in overt cultivation of an intelligent client base as little cultural consequence may be achieved without an enlightened committed client.

Second, they still need to be critically trained in the specifics of their own to be able to create work that has a layered, interstitial character, to produce landscaped matrices in fact rather than loose assemblies of free standing objects.

Mr Jagdish Sagar, Adviser to the Administrator of Chandigarh, in his inaugural address, talked about how Chandigarh had been projected before him by different people or by different pressure groups, wishing to influence the Administration and its policies. He also talked about Chandigarh's conservatism.

"There may be a growing spirit of resignation to the inevitability of some change, but plain dissent is still not popular in many circles and the prudent, convenient to do, the line of least resistance, is often just to coast along on an inflated cushion of hype about the heritage of the City Beautiful. I am not personally among the strong dissenters, and my purpose in saying all this is not to denigrate but to draw the attention to this unignorable vein of received opinion."

He said that Chandigarh Conservatism was a collection of forces rooted both in modernism, the aesthetic and idealism which informed the creation of the city, and in an appreciation of — and concern for the stability of the quality of life it offered.

He also talked about various categories of violators and maintained that every violator of the law could point to another who should be dealt with first.

There was a strong feeling within the Administration — and it was not an unreasonable one — that once you start loosening up, there was no stopping. There would be pressure to relax one control after another once it was made known that the Administration was amenable to any pressures to relax anything at all and it would become difficult to enforce controls that were changing and they would be violated more easily, he added.

Sidelights
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — It was freezing cold when the inaugural session of the international conference celebrating "Chandigarh 50 years of the idea" was held at the Open Hand monument at the Capitol Complex in the morning. Participants, including top architects from abroad, had a bone-chilling experience as they sat huddled, with temperature gradually dipping as the ceremony continued.

* * *

Though the organisers provided 50 seats for journalists accredited to cover the conference, only a handful sat through the inaugural session. A couple of journalists left the venue soon after the Adviser to the Administrator, Mr Jagdish Sagar, started his inaugural address.

* * *

The mock-up structure of the main door of the Governor's Palace built by the Ph.D Chamber of Commerce and Industry for the conference looked majestic in its bamboo and cotton frame.

* * *

At the special session, there was some confusion before the President arrived. Members of the media were asked to vacate the first row of the block earmarked for newsmen. Soon after the President arrived, the audience stood, expecting the National Anthem to be played. After waiting for a while, when nothing happened, everybody sat down before it was announced that the National Anthem would be played. Except for the President, who was presented a memento by the Governor of Punjab-cum-Administrator of Chandigarh, others seated on the dais were given mementoes. The beneficiary was Mr Madan Lal Khurana, who towards the close of the function, was presented his second memento by the Haryana Governor, Mr Mahabir Prasad.

* * *

Each of the VIPs seated on the dais received at least six special volumes on Chandigarh by different authors released today to mark the conference.

* * *

As the President was in the middle of his speech, the sound system in the right hand side of the Law Auditorium failed. Nothing was audible in the media gallery and almost the entire right half of the auditorium. Even those connected with the sound system could not identify the snag. The system was back to normal when the National Anthem was played to mark the end of the session.

* * *

Among those present at the special session were a former Adviser to the Administrator, Mr Ashok Pradhan, a former Chief Engineer, Mr Surjit Singh; and a former Chief Architect, Mr V.P. Arora, besides others.

Two elected unopposed
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — The members of two UT panchayats were elected unopposed after the withdrawal of nominations for the panchayat poll here today.

The jubilant members of the panchayats of Behlana and Khuda Jassu were garlanded by their supporters.

Although their election is yet to be formally notified by the Election Commissioner, the members were elected as the opposing candidates withdrew their nominations.

In another development, all seven panches of Kaimbwala were elected unopposed. The polling will now be held to elect the sarpanch from among five contestants. Similarly, the Scheduled Caste lady candidate of the panchayat of Mauli Jagran was also elected unopposed.

As many as 293 candidates are left in the fray for the panchayat poll after 81 candidates withdrew their papers today before the four returning officers for the poll.

Initially 480 candidates had filed their nominations for 147 posts of sarpanches and panches of 17 villages. While 28 candidates withdrew their papers for the posts of sarpanch, as many as 53 contestants withdrew their papers for the posts of panch.

According to official sources, 293 persons are contesting for 130 seats of panches and 66 for the posts of 17 sarpanch.

The contests in the villages have become clear following withdrawals of a large number of candidates for the post of sarpanches though the numbers for the post of panches remain on the high side.

The date for polling is January 16. As many as 45,700 voters will exercise their franchise at 72 polling stations, a majority of which will be set up at the same as places during the parliamentary poll.

Meanwhile, the Chandigarh Territorial Congress Committee has congratulated Mr Darshan Singh, sarpanch elect of Behlana village, and claimed that the candidate had the backing of the party, according to a statement by Mr Sunil Parti, a party spokesperson.

Badal for ayurveda institute in UT
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — The Central government must take steps for setting up an institute for research in the ayurvedic system of medicine in Chandigarh, opined the Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, today.

Addressing a national-level ayurvedic convention organised by the Rashtriya Ayurveda Parishad here, Mr Badal said that the Punjab Government would make maximum contribution for the proposed Institute. The Punjab Government would make more allocation in the next year's Budget for promoting this system of medicine and a professional director, who will be a specialist in this field, would be appointed soon for heading the ayurveda directorate.

The Chief Minister was of the opinion that as the Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Mr Madan Lal Khurana; the Health and Family Welfare Minister of Punjab; ministers of Ayurveda of Himachal and Haryana were also present, they must discuss the vital issue with eminent ayurvedic physicians attending this national convention and evolve a concrete proposal for submitting it to the Government of India.

This system of medicine was prevalent and popular and was being effectively used for ages. He laid stress on collective efforts at all levels for reviving the diminishing popularity of the system. Strongly pleading for cheap medical treatment to the common man, Mr Badal said that various needy patients could not avail of the medical facilities because of the cost factor.

He called upon ayurvedic doctors to make their contribution in this regard and go to the countryside where the poor needed them the most.

The Union Minister for Tourism and Parliamentary Affairs, Mr Madan Lal Khurana, said that the Central Government has given top priority to the ayurveda system of medicine and provided a grant of Rs 30 lakh to ayurvedic educational institutes.

This grant amount is being increased to Rs 50 lakhs. Mr Khurana urged that every state should open a 100 bed hospital in the state and more ayurvedic dispensaries to popularise the system.

Prominent among those who were present at the convention included Mr Manoranjan Kalia, Health and Family Welfare Minister, Punjab, Mr Mohan Lal, Ayurveda Minister Himachal Pradesh, and Ms Kanta Devi, Ayurveda Minister Haryana.

‘We need a better deal’
From Our Correspondent

CHANDIGARH, Jan 9— Parents of autistic children said they wanted a better deal from society which had pushed them out to the fringes because of its negative attitude.

Says one parent, "People are not sympathetic about the whole thing and instead tell us that we have a problem because we are problems ourselves.''

They were attending a group meeting held at Prayaas, a rehabilitation centre for handicapped children, in Sector 38, here today.

The parent of one such child said schools of the city had refused her child admission and it was heart-rending for parents. She says,"We have changed the definition of the word 'normal' to mean any child who can show his capability. We need help of students, doctors and voluntary organisations to create an awareness about autism and provide facilities of doctors, psychiatrists and institutions under one roof.''

All of them, in one voice, say they are in dire need of a school where individual attention could be given to their children. In utter desperation, one parent says: "We need help.'' Another adds, "We are in a state where we ourselves require help to deal with the realisation that our child is autistic and the society adds to those are suffering by looking down upon us. Some of our so-called friends go to the extent of telling us not to bring our children to their place, which is very disgusting.''

A grandfather of one such child says: "We need tremendous moral support. There is need to educate these children to make them self sufficient. Separate schools are required for these children as each child has his own unique difficulty and the difficulty levels are different. These schools must have residential accommodation as people come from outstation as well.''

Mrs Georgiane Singh, who is handling these children single-handedly at Prayaas, is referred patients by Dr BNS Walia of the PGI. She says: "The attention span of these children is about three to seven minutes. Whatever is conveyed to them in that time will register. Any amount of drilling beyond that doesn't help. The need is to set a schedule for these children which must be followed rigorously day after day.''

She adds that it is a lifetime education for them which never ends. They must be trained to take care of themselves while they are still children. If they wait too long, it gives rise to many behavioural problems. The severely autistic children sometimes become so violent that they end up in asylums.

Mrs Georgiane Singh says: "If these children come and speak to me or touch me on their own, it is a big achievement for me.''

Autistic children avoid eye contact or any interaction even when they are in a group. They are usually identified when they are in the age group of 30 months to three years. They have a difficulty with developing imagination, verbal and non-verbal communication and with social relationships in spite of being very intelligent.

Doctors, too, are mystified about where the problem really begins and as yet there is no cure for autism. Specialised education and structured support could help maximise a child's skills and minimise behaviour problems.

Now it is painless childbirth
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — For centuries women have been enduring pain during childbirth but now they can have a baby without the accompanying pain. Thanks to a latest development. Experts at the Department of Anaesthesia, PGI, have started the procedure of " painless child birth".

The pain free procedure, the latest development, was started at the PGI six months ago and till today 50 women have delivered children without bearing any pain, explained the head of the Anaesthesia department, Prof (Mrs) Promilla Chari while talking to mediapersons said today. Most of the women belonged to the educated class.

A two-day Continuing Medical Education (CME) programme on the subject to educate doctors in the region about the possibility of providing pain-free childbirth to a woman commenced at the PGI today.

Professor Chari while explaining the procedure said: "It is not as easy as say a full term pregnant woman walks in and asks for pain-free childbirth. The process has to start two months before the child is due and the mother has to be trained for it.

A small incision is made at the back of the woman and the supply of drug that prevents the pain from reaching the brain is maintained through a catheter. The woman could be walking around till the very last minutes of delivery. The catheter is implanted in the back as the nerves carrying signals of pains travel from the back upwards to the brain.

The PGI has also acquired an infusion pump that costs Rs 1.5 lakh. This is a highly sophisticated machine that enables a continuous minimal dose of pain killing drug.

Talking about the side-effects, Professor Chari said that use of the drug could trigger a longer duration of the delivery period.

The professor warned that the procedure had to be carried out by highly trained personnel and admitted that misuse of the procedure was possible by unscrupulous doctors. Drug administered by an unqualified person might cause hyper tension in a woman and even death if the dose exceeded a certain limit, the doctor said. "We cannot stop any such person, but we can educate women".

Meanwhile doctors from surrounding areas listened with rapt attention as experts of the PGI explained the procedure.

Garbage, garbage everywhere
By Pradeep Sharma
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 8 — The much-touted beautiful image of the city has taken a beating, thanks to the littering of garbage in different parts of the city.

Non-removal of garbage for days together, littering of garbage in the open by residents, staff shortage and complaints against private contractors where the sanitation has been privatised are only some of the problems that plague the garbage disposal system in the city, especially in the southern sectors and labour colonies and villages incorporated in the Municipal Corporation of Chandigarh (MCC).

In spite of the claims by the MCC to the contrary, a visit to different parts of the city today revealed that garbage bins in a number of southern sectors and rehabilitation colonies were overflowing, exposing the residents to serious health hazards. Though the areas along the route to be taken by the President, Mr K.R Narayanan, on his visit to the city tomorrow and northern sectors have been spruced up and are in a better shape, the same could not said of other areas.

And several garbage bins on the road separating Sector 32 from Sector 33 and the road leading to SAS Nagar had reportedly been removed by the civic body, leaving no option with the residents but to litter the garbage in the open. The safai karamcharis do not remove garbage regularly from these spots, alleged residents.

It may be recalled that The Tribune had recently highlighted the poor state of garbage disposal in four villages within the municipal limits. The residents had alleged that though the private contractors were quick to remove cow dung, they were not that quick in clearing garbage, making the place ideal for breeding flies and mosquitoes.

Though the corporation has time and again claimed that more garbage bins had been provided, the ground reality seems to be just the opposite. For instance, there is only one garbage bin in MIG Chandigarh Housing Board complex in Sector 61 and garbage from that bin is not being cleared regularly.

The stray cattle menace only compounded the problem for the residents. As a substantial number of them were on the roadsides they invited stray cattle particularly around the villages. Though it made the removal of garbage by tractor-trailers slightly easy yet it was a serious traffic hazard.

Moreover, rag-pickers, by separating the polythene bags from the garbage, make the task of garbage removal difficult by throwing the garbage outside the bins.

On the other hand, the corporation sources, while blaming lack of civic sense on the part of the residents, said the civic body could do nothing if residents threw garbage in the open.

The sources maintained that until a public awareness campaign was launched the situation could not improve as making the city beautiful the cooperation of the public was a must.

The sources said that an acute shortage of staff at the disposal of the civic was another cause for the poor state of garbage disposal. The staff strength had not been revised though the population, particularly the migrants, had risen tremendously.

Freedom of ideas was Corbusier's watchword
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — Le Corbusier stood for belief and freedom of ideas while executing the master plan of Chandigarh said Mr B.V. Doshi, an architect, while addressing a panel discussion as part of the international conference on "Chandigarh: 50 years of the idea" at Panjab University here today.

He was deliberating on the process of conceptualisation and was reminiscing years of his work with the architect of the city who" was constantly questioning his own work". He started with an idea but had the capacity of going beyond it. This was evident from the changes that he allowed in his original plans", he said.

Mr Doshi, commenting on slides of Corbusier's sketches said symbols of Indian culture had an impact on his work consciously or sub-consciously. "The Himalayas are a recurring figure in his sketches. He makes frequent use of the bull, tortoise, goat, birds and elegance in poverty" he illustrated.

"Corbusier left many things in his creations to chance. This was a purely Eastern concept in philosophy. He left blanks and let chance play the game in their completion while working on certain portions in Capitol Complex", he said.

Commenting on the main creation of Corbusier, Capitol Complex, he said Corbusier understood the fusion of the eternal and the temporal. The removal of the complex from the main city seemed a conscious idea.

Mr Jean-Louis Veret, another eminent architect, who had the occasion of working with the architect of the city spoke about his experiences on projects in Ahmedabad.

He also spoke about Nehru's role in allowing him freedom in realising his dream of a modern Indian city. The city embedded an ambition to progress as the West but with its roots in the Indian tradition and culture where new views could replace certain outdated ones.

Mr Romi Khosla said Corbusier was constantly struggling with Indian symbols and undoubtedly gained his importance for a valuable reason. Dwelling on the concept, he said Nehru's envisaged an India with development in science, democracy and in social equality. While Bhabha was the instrument of his pursuit of excellence in science Corbusier could be seen as a player in setting up democratic values.

Corbusier seemed to have given up on the master plan after some time and it was largely due to the effort of Jane Drew that the dream was fully realised. He also spoke about certain other areas of disagreement.

Mr Jeet Malhotra, another member of the original team, drew contrast between the personalities of Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret. While Corbusier was assertive and imposing, Jeanneret was calm and seemed to be more closer in understanding Indian needs. In the beginning Corbusier had different ideas about the proposed city but changed over a period of time. He even wanted more foreigners on his team in the initial stages.

It was, however, enlightening for a whole generation of Indian architects to see how environment was interwoven into the creation. He was highlighting the importance of environment in the preservation of the cities.

A session on impact of architecture of the city was held earlier during the day. The main speakers included Mr William Curtis and Mr Lasdun Denys while the discussant was Mr Peter Smithson.

Mr Achyut Kanvinde who was in the chair said he was optimistic about what had happened to the city over the past 50 years. The question now was how to conserve the city. It went without saying that the government would have to play a major role in this direction. There was also no denying that a city where the population had increased more than was envisaged would also attract slums.

Mr Aditya Parkash, a former Principal of the Chandigarh College of Architecture and member of the original team, also commented on the impact of the city.

Chalk-down stir by KV teachers
From Our Correspondent

CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — Teachers of Kendriya Vidyalayas of the city will observe a chalk-down strike on January 15 in support of their demands, a press note issued by the Regional President of the Rashtriya Kendriya Vidyalaya Adhyapak Sangh, Mr J.S. Toor, said here today.

A rally in New Delhi has been planned on February 20 if the demands of the teachers are not met, it added.

Sector 8 school tops in quiz
From Our Correspondent

CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — Students of DAV Public School, Sector 8, won the inter-school quiz organised by the Chandigarh Librarians' Association at the school here today. St.Stephens School, Sector 45, came second while the third place went to Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 16.

Comprising eight rounds, the quiz was conducted by Mrs Rita David of Government College, Sector 46. There was a visual round and a quickfire round besides six other rounds which dealt with general awareness of myths and legends, literature, geography and women of substance.

The Director of the State Institute of Education, Sector 32, Mr H.C.Sharma, presided. He said that the present generation was going to be the leader in the 21st century for which they must be well-read and fully informed which was the only possible way if they were library-minded.

The general secretary of CLA, Mr IB Verma, said that these competitions were being organised to bring awareness about libraries and books among the students.

The next competition in the series is "Extempore speech inter-school contest to be held at Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 21 on Monday.

Man killed in collision
From Our Correspondent

PANCHKULA, Jan 9 — An unidentified person, aged around 45, died and the driver of a Canter was seriously injured in a collision between a Canter and a truck on the Panchkula- Manimajra road, near here, on Saturday.

According to information available, the Canter, being driven by Santosh Kumar, hit the truck from behind. The police has arrested the driver of the vehicle.

Seminar on career options in Forces
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — A presentation-cum-seminar on Career Options in the Armed Forces will be organised by the Western Command in Chandigarh to present the Army as an attractive career option for college and school students .

The seminar will be held in Government College for Women, and Government College for Men, Sector 11, on January 16 and 21, respectively.

The participants in the seminar include Col Sarat Sharma, Col K.G. Chatterjee, Col A.K. Sharma, Lieut-Col J.S. Rao, Major Sanjay Patole and lady officers from Judge Advocate General, Army Service Corps, Ordnance, Signals, Engineers and the Army Medical Corps.

The students will be informed about Army as a career, life in the Army, traditions and customs, role since Independence, branches of the force, system of officers' selection, types of commission, pay privilege and service benefits and what the army offers.

The presentation, which will last for 1½ hours will be covered in three parts — career options, video film display and display of army equipment, respectively.

The invitees include the VC, Dean and Registrar, PU, education secretaries of Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh, DPI, Schools and Colleges, Secretary, Rajya Sainik Boards, Punjab, Haryana and Himachal besides the head of the department of Defence and Strategic Studies, PU, and mediapersons.

Cold wave becomes more intense

CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 (UNI) — Cold wave sweeping the north-west region became more intense due to snowing during the past three days on the higher and low middle reaches of the western Himalaya.

Piercing chilly winds continued to lash the plains of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal and Union Territory of Chandigarh as the sky remained overcast today.

The entire Kashmir valley and the Jammu region was also shivering under the impact of cold wave. Srinagar recorded minus 3° Celsius temperature while Jammu temperature stood at 7.3° Celsius which was one degree below normal.

Jalandhar in Punjab was the coldest place with 3.4° Celsius temperature. Hisar with 6.8° Celsius temperature was the coldest place in Haryana.

Mandi, Dharamsala, Kulu and Kangra valley were also under the impact of severe cold.

The meteorological office has predicted isolated snow and rain in Himachal Pradesh and cloudy condition in Punjab and Haryana.

‘Euphoria’ cultural contest results
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — The first-ever inter-medical college cultural contest "euphoria 99" continued for the third day today as students took part in various cultural events.

The following are the results in the order of merit: Western dance: GMCH, Chandigarh; GMC, Amritsar; and GMC, Patiala. Instrumental music: Lokesh, GMCH, Chandigarh; Manish Mahajan, GMC, Patiala and Ntanish, GMCH, Chandigarh; GMCH, Chandigarh. Quiz: Vikram and Laxmi, GMCH, Chandigarh; Pushpal and Jatin, Ludhiana.

Debate: Harmit, GMCH, Chandigarh and Gaurav, MAMC, Delhi. Mehandi: Preti, GMCH, Chandigarh; Aman, GMC, Amritsar; and Jitender, GMCH, Chandigarh. Cartoon Making: Parul, GMCH, Chandigarh; Kanchan, Amritsar and Pushval, Ludhiana. Painting: Sarvjit, Faridkot; Kavish, Patiala; and Pushval, Ludhiana.

Student Club holds first meeting
From Our Correspondent

CHANDIGARH, Jan 9 — The first general meeting of the International Student Club was held at Student Centre, Panjab University, here today.

Students from school, colleges and university attended the meeting of the newly formed club.

The club aims to promote talent among the students, conduct exchange programmes and personality-building programmes, work for the uplift of the poor students and conduct social welfare activities.

The following were elected office-bearers for a period of four years: president : P.S. Brar; vice president : Prashant Arya; general secretary: Anand Rohilla; organising secretary: Anshu Chandna; finance secretary: Kuldeep Singh.

A lensview of City Beautiful

CHANDIGARH: Good architecture is one of those things which makes our cultural heritage rich. The standards set by the masters of yore have not been easy to maintain. Still, the best efforts have been put in by the architects of today to give something exquisite and practical, keeping the present needs in mind. One example of adept planning and construction is our very own city — Chandigarh. It is a name which heads the list of well-planned cities.

The fact that Chandigarh had been designed by the French architect Le Corbusier is no longer a novelty. One more name which is taken in the same league is Pierre Jeanneret. He worked on the city's capital project for 15 years and did notable works like Punjab University Campus, four schools and MLA flats and hostels besides various housing schemes. On the university campus his important buildings are Administrative Block, Gandhi Bhavan and library. His involvement with the city was to such an extent that he had expressed his last wish that his ashes be immersed in Sukhna Lake when he breathed his last in Geneva in 1967.

The City Beautiful completes its 50 years, and to mark this event the Chandigarh Administration has organised a convention of architects. As part of this convention a photo exhibition titled "Living Chandigarh 50" is also being held at Government Museum Art Gallery. The exhibition has been dedicated to the great architect Jeanneret and is the outcome of the labour of the Photographic Exhibition Committee.

This show has 62 colour black and white photographs on display. It shows all the beautiful buildings and parks designed by foreign and Indian architects. All the significant structures have been given an out-of-the-world quality by the lensmen. In fact, a few of them present a scene of the inside of the building which plays a pivotal role in political decision making. The photograph of the Assembly Hall by Navneet Saxena shows the graceful interiors of the hall which a common man could have never imagined (the finesse and the proceedings — what a contrast).

The line-up of the photographs has it all. The community park, government houses, government model school, Rock Garden, Rose Garden, high court, Secretariat, Museum of Evolution of Life, Congress Bhavan, a church, a roundabout — everything is there for which Chandigarh is well-known. The name of the architects too are unmatchable like Jeet Malhotra, S.D. Sharma, Aditya Prakash, M.N. Sharma, Piloo Mody.

Apart from these is a section of works of ex-students of Chandigarh College of Architecture which has names of Satnam and Namita Singh (husband-wife team), S.S. Bahga, Yashinder Bahga and Kuldeep Saini.

The exhibition will be open till January 25 (except on Mondays).

— Priti Verma