& V I C I N I T Y
Saturday, January 16, 1999
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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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Saturday, January 16, 1999 |
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spotlight today's calendar |
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Complaint centres fail to
come up Panchayat
poll today 'Saffron
brigade poses danger to security' |
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 Jalandhar coldest in Punjab |
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Question
mark over circus animals' fate Seminar
on career options in forces today City
boy tops in talent promotion exam |
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Complaint
centres fail to come up CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — Even after five months of the promised opening of complaint centres and the publication of the "citizen's charter" for the redressal of public grievances by the Municipal Corporation of Chandigarh (MCC), these are still to see the light of the day. The opening of the complaint centres and the publication of the "citizen's charter", which were to be done by August 15 last year as part of the golden jubilee celebrations of the Independence of the country, might take some time as the necessary infrastructure and staff was yet to be created for here. The centralised complaint centre in the MCC office in Sector 17, which is proposed to be functional round-the-clock, is yet to be readied and telephone connections of only some of the complaint centres had been released. Corporation sources informed that though the "citizen's charter" had been "finalised", it would be published only after the complaint centres were ready. The estimates for the complaint centres had been prepared and it would not take long before the complaint centres were in place, the sources claimed. It may be recalled that the MCC had proposed the opening of 10 complaint centres with a view to attending various problems of the residents relating to various civic amenities. As the existing three complaint centres — in sectors 4,15 and 32 — were not adequate, the civic body had proposed to start seven more such centres. The 10 complaint centres catering to the 20 wards of the MCC were to be set up for the benefit of the residents of the area so that they would not have to approach top functionaries of the corporation for the registration of routine complaints. It had been observed that in the absence of the proper platform for the registration of the complaints, a large number of residents visited the offices of the Mayor, the Commissioner and the Chief Engineer, with minor complaints, a majority of which were to be redressed by the officials of up to the rank of the SDO. The "citizen's charter" was to give necessary details such as officials responsible for the redressal of respective complaints, the time taken for the redressal of grievances, address and telephone numbers of the officials concerned and the location of the complaint centre. Meanwhile, even when the
complaint centres are opened and the "citizen's
charter" published it might not be easy for the
civic body authorities to stick to the timeframe for
redressal of grievances as certain departments of the MCC
such as the roads and electricity wings are reportedly
plagued with shortage of staff. |
Panchayat
poll today CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — The panchayat elections will be conducted tomorrow amid tight security and the results will be declared by midnight. The polling will start at 8 a.m and end at 4 p.m. The counting will start immediately after that. As many as 45,700 voters will exercise their franchise. The security aspect has been tackled and more than 900 cops have been deployed in the 15 villages and 62 polling centres. Five villages— Kajheri, Palsora, Hallomajra, Khuda Ali Sher and Maloya — have been identified as "sensitive", and additional forces have been deployed in these villages to prevent any untoward incident, police sources said. The counting for the gram panchayats of Kishangarh, Mauli Jagran, Daria and Raipur Kalan will be held at the premises of the Chandigarh Transport Undertaking, Industrial Area. For the panchayats of Hallomajra, Kajheri and Palsora the counting centre will be at Government Senior Secondary School, Sector 32. In the remaining villages, the counting will be done at the respective polling centres. The Election Commission, UT, has advised the contesting candidates to follow the model code of conduct. The panches of three panchayats — Khuda Jassu, Kaimbwala and Behlana — have been elected unopposed. The sarpanches of Behlana and Khuda Jassu too have also been declared elected unopposed. As many as 52 candidates
are in the race for the remaining posts of 15 sarpanches
out of a total of 283 candidates for the posts of panches
of 15 village panchayats. |
'Saffron
brigade poses danger to security' CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — The "Sangh Parivar" and the BJP were responsible for the calculated, pre-planned and continued attacks on the minorities in various parts of India. This consensus emerged at the end of a tele-conference on "The Status of Minorities in India". The tele-conference was organised by Peoples Action Front (PAF), Chandigarh, with a cross section of society, including legal experts, university teachers, youth leaders, religious heads and women representatives of India. The Vice-President of the Punjab State and the President of the Chandigarh unit of PAF, Prof Joginder Kaushal said that the "saffron brigade", with the blessing of the BJP, had posed a great danger to the security of India. Acts of vandalism, said Prof Kaushal, had alienated Indians from more than 50 per cent of the world. Prof Kaushal condemned the statement of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) according to which the conversions to Christianity had become more frequent after Mrs Sonia Gandhi became the President of the Indian National Congress. Mr G.S.Dhillon, an NRI speaking from Calgary, Canada, said that attacks on Churches in Gujarat had caused a setback to India's image in the Christian countries. Mr Dhillon termed it as "unfortunate such" irreligious' acts in a country known in the world as the land of "gurus, saints and sufis". The President of the Nationalist Women's Organisation (NWO), Mrs Rajinder Kaur Duggal condemned the persistent attacks on women in the country. She urged the minorities in India to rise as one force and defeat the communal and fundamentalist forces. Mr Sarjit Singh, senior advocate of the Punjab and Haryana High Court considered, the attacks on the minorities as danger signal for India's unity, integrity and secular traditions. Mr Pramod Sharma, a student activist and editor of Yuvsatta, asked the youth to organise itself along strong nationalist lines and provide effective dealership from its own ranks so that India enters the 21st century with greater degree of confidence. Rev Patel Kalyan, of CNI
Church, Kharar, Mr Prem Massih and Mr Randhir Gogat,
President and Secretary respectively of the Punjab
Christians Front, Kharar, said that Christianity preached
the gospel of peace and any attack on its places of
worship was shameful. |
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CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 (UNI) — The cold wave gripping most of the north-west region continued unabated as also the fog which again disrupted air, rail and road traffic. The fog this winter has prolonged for almost a month, the longest spell recorded so far. During the 1997-98 winter, the fog had lasted 20 days and in previous years since 1993 just for a week, according to the local weather office. The day temperature in and around Chandigarh hovered around 12.5°C while the minimum this morning rose slightly to 6.6°C against the respective normal temperatures of 18.6°C and 7°C. There has been no let-up in the severe cold wave conditions in the forward areas of Jammu and Kashmir and the adjoining tribal belt in Himachal. Leh and Kargil (Ladakh) shivered under 7°C to 10°C. Jammu, saw the minimum temperature rising slightly to 5.8°C against the normal of 8°C. The minimum in Srinagar, too, improved slightly to 0.7°C, 3°C above normal. Palam reported the low of 6.8°C and Safdarjung 9.4°C. Reports said the national Capital remained enveloped in fog till late in the morning. Jalandhar turned out to be the coldest place in Punjab, reporting the minimum of 3.3°C this morning. Hisar in Haryana was colder with 6°C. Solan in Himachal had the coldest night of the season with the minimum temperature dipping to 1.2°C. Shimla reported the day temperature around 13.5°C. Bhunter turned out to be the second coldest place in HP after Kalpa with the low of 0.4°C this morning. Sundernagar, with 1.1° C and Una with 1.4°C were other cold places in Himachal. According to a weather
forecast, a few places in Punjab would have ground frost
and the night temperatures falling during the next 24
hours. |
Fog hits
trains for second day CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — All trains running north of Delhi were delayed due to fog for the second consecutive day today thus delaying thousands of commuters, delivery of mail and freight. This morning fog that has descended over the entire north-western region slowed down all major trains, including the prestigious Shatabdis running between Delhi — Chandigarh and Delhi — Amritsar. Daily passengers were once again inconvenienced. The Delhi — Chandigarh Shatabdi reached Chandigarh 20 minutes behind schedule. The Amritsar — Delhi Shatabadi on its downwards journey was delayed by 75 minutes by the time it reached Ambala while the Swarn Shatabdi between Delhi and Amritsar was running according to the schedule. The Inter-City Express between Bathinda and New Delhi was late by two hours by the time it had reached Ambala and the Shane-e-Punjab was delayed by two hours and 30 minutes as it reached Ambala on its upwards journey between New Delhi and Amritsar. The Kalka Mail arrived at
Chandigarh 15 minutes behind schedule in the morning.
Malwa Express , the duplicate Howrah, the Chattisgarh,
Jhelum Express, Pooja Express and Swaraj Express were
running late anything between one hour and six hours. |
Tension over
water tank demolition CHANDIGARH, Dec 15 — Demolition of a water tank outside a religious place in Sector 18 led to tension as shopkeepers downed their shutters in protest and held up traffic for nearly three hours near the Sector 18 and 19 traffic lights here this evening. The police had to divert traffic during the peak rush hours. Long queues of vehicles could be seen on all roads around the sector. The trouble began when teams of the enforcement staff of the Administration and the Municipal Corporation demolished some structures built on a green belt near the religious place. Shopkeepers said the water tank had been built almost 15 years ago. The enforcement officials said the area came under a green belt and residents had raised hedges and the management of the religious place had built the tank to encroach on the vacant land. The staff used a bulldozer and labourers to pull down the tank and remove the hedges. The operation lasted about two hours. During the operation,
entry points to the area were sealed by the police to
prevent any untoward incident. Senior officials rushed to
the spot and pacified the agitating residents and
shopkeepers. |
Question
mark over circus animals' fate PANCHKULA, Jan 15 — Would hundreds of lions and tigers that have been used to entertain people by various circus companies throughout the country now be rendered homeless? A recent order of the Maneka Gandhi-led Union Ministry for Social Justice and Empowerment bans any training and exhibition of lions, tigers, monkeys, panthers and bears. The future of these species, which have been bred in captivity and do not know how to survive in the wild, has confronted the government. The union ministry had identified at least 356 lions and tigers in 17 different circuses which face the consequence of the ban. The exact strength of other animals covered by the ban has not been ascertained yet. As the circus operators or the roadside 'madaris' would not be in a position to exhibit animals following the ban, the rehabilitation of these animals has become all the more important, said an official in the Wildlife department. The activists of animal rights say that the animals which had to pass through unnecessary pain and sufferings and, some of which might be ill, would have to be taken care of. Their most probable home would be zoos but accommodating the animals might not be possible for the zoos that are already starved of funds. The rehabilitation of those related directly or indirectly with the training and exhibition of the animals is another issue confronting the government. Meanwhile the ministry in a communication to the Chief Wildlife Wardens of different states has said that as the circuses would surrender the animals to the government, they would have to be rehabilitated in the existing zoos. The wildlife wardens have been requested to provide information regarding the infrastructure available in their respective zoos where the animals could be rehabilitated when required. Information regarding the availability of land for construction of rescue homes for these animals has also been sought by the ministry. Sources in the Wildlife department said that the ban had been imposed after the government constituted a committee under the chairmanship of the Additional Inspector- General of Forest (Wildlife) after the Delhi High Court suggested to the government to consider afresh notification that it issued in March, 1991, banning training and exhibition of certain animals in the country. Mr Ashok Kumar, vice-president of the Wildlife Preservation Society of India, said the high court had directed the government to bear the cost of feeding of the animals till their future was decided. A decision of the court regarding the future of the animals was awaited, he added. Meanwhile, the Chandigarh
chapter of the People for Animal (PFA) has planned to
start a rehabilitation programme for the 'madaris'
affected by the ban from next month. The person in charge
of the PFA, Ms Payal Sodhi, said a survey of the persons
engaged in the profession would be carried out in
coordination with Yuvsatta, a Chandigarh-based social
organisation.
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Camp on
dental health PANCHKULA, Jan 15 — The State Local Government Minister, Dr Kamla Verma, inaugurated a three-day dental health awareness show at Aggarwal Bhavan organised by a local dental care and implant centre today. An exhibition on the prevalent dental diseases, their prevention and advances in the field of oral health has also been organised on the occasion. Special sessions are being
held for school students. |
ICA's
seminar today CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — A seminar on "New legal directions for arbitration and conciliation" will be organised by the Indian Council of Arbitration (ICA) and the Department of Laws, Panjab University, at the English auditorium tomorrow. Mr P.C. Markanda a member of the governing body of ICA, at a press conference here today, outlined the aims of the council which exclusively deals with resolution of disputes between litigant parties to the exclusion of the courts through arbitration, conciliation and mediation. The disputing parties are free to choose arbitrators from a panel of the council. A large number of commercial units are making use of the arbitration facilities which have been modified to current needs after provisions of 1940 were repealed in 1996, he said. The panel of the ICA includes nearly 200 retired judges from the Supreme Court and high courts besides experts in related fields. Even the courts are promoting arbitrators, particularly in wake of large pendency of cases, he added. Prof V.K. Bansal of the Department of Laws said the department was considering renaming the legal aid cell of the department and the Centre for Arbitration and Legal Aid Cell in collaboration with the ICA. Over 250 delegates from
all over the country are expected to attend the seminar. |
Modification
in exam likely CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — The system of conducting examinations at the plus one level may undergo a slight modification from this year onwards. There is a possibility that a single question paper for the plus one classes of government schools run by the Chandigarh Administration will be introduced in the science and commerce streams. This was confirmed by Mr D.S. Mangat, DPI, Schools. Earlier, the papers for
this class were set by teachers of the respective schools
which encouraged tuitions. However, evaluation of the
answer books, will be done by the teachers of the schools
themselves. |
IYC chief
coming today CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — The President of the Indian Youth Congress (IYC), Mr Munish Tewari, will visit the city tomorrow. Mr Manjeet Sahdev, spokesman of the local unit of the IYC said here today that Mr Tewari would attend the charge-assuming ceremony of Mr Davinder Singh Babbu, president of the youth wing of the Punjab Congress in the afternoon. Later, he will address
party workers at his residence in Sector 24. |
Students
donate blood CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 —
A total of 92 units of blood were donated by students and
staff of the Food Craft Institute, Sector 42, at a camp
organised by the institute today. |
PGI doctors
meet Health Secretary CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — A delegation of the PGI Faculty Association today met the Union Health Secretary, Mr K.K. Baksi, and presented a memorandum to him demanding better wages. The secretary was in town to discuss certain matters with the PGI authorities. A spokesperson of the association said that the secretary assured to convey the anguish of the doctors to the officials concerned in the finance ministry. The association also informed the secretary that a delegation of PGI doctors would join the protest march being organised by the AIIMS faculty on January 18 in Delhi. The march is to protest
against low wages and non implementation of the new pay
scales suggested by a committee headed by the Health
Secretary, Government of India. |
Seminar on
career options in forces today CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — A presentation-cum-seminar on career options in the Armed Forces will be organised by the Headquarters Recruiting Zone, Ambala, at Government College for Women, Sector 11, at 10. 30 a.m. tomorrow. The seminar is an attempt to present the Army as an attractive career option for college and school students. A similar function will be held at Government College for Men, Sector 11, on January 21. The participants will be addressed by Maj Gen Vinod Bhanot, Chief of Staff, Headquarters 2 Corps; and Brig P.S. Sandhu, Deputy Director General Recruiting. A team of officers led by Col Sarat Sharma will elaborate on career options in the Army. A motivational film "Do You Have It in You", will also be screened. An armament display will be the highlight of the presentation. During the two hour
presentation 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. |
CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — The finance and contract committee of the Municipal Corporation of Chandigarh (MCC) has urged the Chandigarh Administration to take over the streetlighting work as it was short staffed. The committee at a meeting here today, recommended that streetlighting connected to the underground cables should be taken over by the Administration. The meeting also recommended to the House that sanitation in the Colony no 4 and in colonies in sectors 31 and 25, excluding the PGI and Panjab University, and motor market in, Mani Majra should be privatised. The meeting passed various estimates for the development of the parks and recarpeting of roads. A proposal to replace the condemned machinery was also approved. Meanwhile, a committee
member belonging to the BJP objected to the decision of
the officials to undertake the work on the second grain
market, in Sector 39 without the approval of the House
committee. |
CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — The police tonight booked an agro-forestry company for allegedly issuing cheques worth several lakhs that have bounced. The Manimajra police booked R.K. Verma and Baldev Verma under Section 420 of the IPC. Eleven persons had lodged a complaint against the company. Schoolboys arrested: Two schoolboys were arrested by the police for allegedly trying to get fresh with a Class VIII girl student of their school. Santosh and Amit, students of a Sector 35 school, were arrested and booked under sections 354, 506, 342 and 323 of the IPC for allegedly confining the girl in a room. The girl made a complaint to the school authorities in this regard. The authorities then made a complaint to the police. Injured: A Kajheri woman, Ms Asha Pandit, was injured when she fell off the roof of her house. She has been admitted to the PGI. Arrested: A resident of Kajheri village, Mamchand, was arrested by the police for allegedly creating nuisance in a drunken state in the village. PANCHKULA Booked: Three persons, including proprietor of a transport company, have been booked for allegedly cheating a Barwala-based businessman by not delivering his consignment of rice in Gujarat. The businessman, Mr Rakesh, in his complaint with the police said he had booked a truck of the company, for transporting rice worth Rs 1.17 lakh. The consignment had failed to reach its destination even after 15 days. A case under sections 407 and 420, IPC, has been registered. Truck stolen:
A truck was stolen from near Majri chowk here on
Thursday. The police has registered a case. |
Army Day
celebrated CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 — Army Day was celebrated with great zeal and enthusiasm at the Western Command headquarters, Chandimandir, today. Lieut-Gen H.R.S. Mann, Chief of Staff, Western Command, laid a wreath at Veer Smriti, the command war memorial. He extended his greetings to all retired and serving officers and exhorted them to uphold the glorious traditions of the Army. A large number of officers, JCOs and other ranks stationed at Chandimandir attended the memorial service. After January 26 1950,
when India became a Republic, January 15 is celebrated as
Army Day every year. Ceremonial parades are held to
commemorate the occasion.
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City boy
tops in talent promotion exam CHANDIGARH, Jan 15 – Mayank Lakhanpal, a student of Class VIII of St. Stephen's School, Sector 45, has stood first in the Group B of the Students talent promotion examination, 1998, conducted by the Children's Welfare Trust of India, (CWTI), Mangalore. The CWTI will award a scholarship amounting to Rs 10,800 spread over a period of three years. The scholarship is being
awarded under the Students' Excellence Fund Programme. |
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