Bus service in villages poor
From Our Correspondent

MANAULI (SAS NAGAR), May 15 — Dozens of villages in the periphery have no proper bus service. The bus route number 101/123 of Chandigarh Transport Undertaking (CTU) en route to Darali, Manauli and more than seven other villages near SAS Nagar was suspended without any notice to the general public, said Mrs Surinder Kaur, the local Sarpanch.

The worst affected due to lack of proper bus service are students and the service class.

Bajinder Singh, a student of Papri village, complains that the suspension of the bus has affected his studies. He comes to Phase VI to take tuitions for 10+2 class. "I often reach the institute very late and my time also gets wasted as I have to reach at Phase XI, SAS Nagar, to take the bus," he adds.

Several residents of the area , who work in Chandigarh and SAS Nagar say that they are facing a lot problems for the past one week as they reach late at their places of work.

Mr Atinder Singh, who works in a bank at Sector 17, Chandigarh, said that he has to change at least three buses to reach office.

The Manauli Panchayat has written a letter to the GM of CTU, demanding the plying of the bus on it's previous time for the convenience of the residents.

Residents of other villages, including Chahar-Majra and Mullanpur- Garibdass, about 7 km from the PGI, are also crying for better bus service in the area. They face difficulties in reaching here from the Chandigarh bus stand.

According to Mr Ranjit, initially the area had a sufficient bus service but for the past few months, CTU buses had stopped several routes. Due to lack of proper service, commuters have to wait for hours for buses. The routes which have been cancelled include 76 and 102/42 numbers.

Residents of Seonk, Perch and Jayanti Devi villages complain that the only bus route number 70 to the area takes a longer route. The bus reaches here after taking a round of Dhanas village. The residents said that it would be better if buses halting near Khudda-Lahora village came to the area. It would save their time by more than half an hour, said Mr Bhag Singh of Perch.

Villagers want that private buses be introduced in their areas to improve the situation.

No drinking water facility
From Our Correspondent

DERA BASSI, May 15 — Due to an inadequate drinking water facility at the local Government High School, the students have to quench their thirst with water from a concrete tank which has been in a dilapidated condition for a long time.

Partially covered, the water tank has gathered moss. Besides, there are cesspools around it. Leaves of the trees fall into it. The birds too use this source to quench their thirst. In the process they take bath in it and the water gets contaminated.

The consumption of this unhygienic water poses a threat of various water-borne diseases. The same is the case with the school toilets. The stinking toilets are seldom cleaned. The cleanliness of the entire school premises, including the toilets and water tank, has been ignored by the management.

The school lacks in other basic facilities like furniture, fans, proper blackboards and even adequate classrooms. The floors of some of the classrooms have potholes and the windows are without wire mesh. The school does not have enough desks for the students. The blackboards need urgent repair as their plaster has peeled off at a number of places. The ceiling fans do not function.

Stray cattle, pigs and dogs can be seen roaming about freely on the school campus. There are heaps of garbage and other wastes dumped by kiosk owners and horse-cart owners along the boundary wall of the school.

When contacted, Mrs Balbir Kaur, principal of the school, admitted that there was no adequate provision for the water storage and the problem became severe during long power cuts. Due to insufficient funds the school had to face these problems. The Punjab School Education Board had been given many representations, but no action had been taken by the authorities.

Village lacks basic amenities
From Our Correspondent

NAYAGAON (KHARAR), May 15— Choked sewers, heaps of garbage and leaking drinking water pipes have made the life of residents of this sleepy village miserable. Residents fear outbreak of some epidemic if timely action is not initiated.

The village, which is near Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh, lacks basic civic amenities. Villagers blame the authorities as well as the local panchayat for inaction.

In the main market, a drinking water pipe has been leaking for the past several days. It has not only resulted in low pressure of water supply but the accumulated water is also posing a threat to the villagers as they fear outbreak of some water- borne diseases in the area.

“The Administration is issuing notification to check the sale of cut fruit in the city to avoid any epidemic, while for the villagers and those living in nearby areas, its attitude is altogether different,” said Mr Subhash Chand, a local resident.

In the absence of any arrangement to dispose of garbage, heaps of rotting refuse can be seen all along the main road. A local resident, Mr Satwant Singh, said the dumping of waste material in open areas is a big nuisance for the villagers. Despite its proximity to Chandigarh, no attention has been given to keep the village clean.

Blocked sewerage pipes represent a the picture of poor maintenance. Polythene bags and plastic waste have clogged open drains. Due to this, sewers are overflowing and the foul smelling slush is stagnating in streets. Shopkeepers demand that these should be cleaned at the earliest and before the onset of monsoons.

Mr Pawan Lal Sharma, who runs a printing press in the village, said the power supply in the area is erratic. “Power supply has severely affected our business for the past two months. Now I am planning to shift to a nearby village falling in the jurisdiction of Chandigarh as those areas are better in all respects,” he said.

Roads in the area are also in bad shape. Inner lanes have developed potholes. Mr Tirlok Singh, another resident, said the roads had not been repaired for at least four years.

Residents also complain of inappropriate water supply. The village gets the water for an hour twice a day which is not sufficient, say a number of residents.