More toppers reveal secret of success
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, May 29 — A few other students who have scored above 90 per cent marks in the ICSE examination and are among the top few are happy with their results but many among them feel that they could have done better. Most of them are of the view that consistent hard work and sincere efforts helped them succeed.

"Regular studies, personal efforts and motivation of parents and teachers helped me score well in the boards,'' says Sukhmeet Singh Toor, the topper of St Joseph's High School, Sector 9, with 92 per cent marks. He feels that he could have done better if there was more competition in his school. He did not study more than four hours per day but his good grasping power and paying proper attention in class came to his rescue. He is of the view that students should concentrate more on understanding the concepts and not cramming. "Good performance in this first external examination helps you build a better base for future examinations," he adds.

Ramanpreet, the topper of Yadavindra Public School, SAS Nagar, with 91.5 per cent marks is not too satisfied with her performance because her score in commerce is much less than she had expected. Having a cool approach towards examinations, she believes in enjoying life to the fullest. However, to do well one should be more organised and systematic with studies. "The boards are not at all scary if you have been regular in attending classes and doing the assignments regularly,'' she says. She nurtures a desire to be a commercial pilot but will also try for the civil services, since it gives a person lot of status.

Megha Malik of St Xavier's School, Panchkula, with 91.3 per cent marks owes her success in the boards to her parents and teachers who only inspired her to study but never forced her. "I had a fixed daily routine in which I had not only provided for the study hours but also spare time, which would only help me refresh my mind,'' she reveals.

Her advice to her juniors who will be taking this exam next year is not to get nervous and draw motivation from achievers who strive to do well in various walks of life.

"I could not have achieved such high marks without the support and guidance of my father, who stood by me all through my preparation for the pre-boards and boards,'' says Rahul Nagpal of St Kabir Public School with 91.2 marks. Planning to opt for the commerce stream, he feels that there is no need to fear the vast syllabus of the boards which is quite simple, if one studies all the topics thorougly. Moreover, there are plenty of choices, so one can even think in terms of being selective in case of few subjects. According to him, dedicated and sincere efforts round the year are bound to yield good results.

Vikas Mangla of St Xavier's with 91 per cent marks says that God's grace and the moral support of his parents gave him the necessary push to do well. "Do not be a book worm, but be consistent in your studies. There is need to constantly practise subjects like mathematics and physics to score high marks'', he maintains. He took tuitions in these subjects during the last two months only to revise them more thoroughly and get a feel of the examination.

"It is planned systematic study right from the start, besides the blessings of parents and teachers which are responsible for my 90 per cent marks in the examination," says Rupanjit Kaur of Yadavindra Public School. She did not have to give up any other activities right till th last day because she believes in planning her studies by way of a schedule and then sticking to it. " One should not take the boards as a heavy burden and planning is the key word to success,'' she adds.

Among others who have scored more than 90 per cent marks are Gagandeep Singh(90.2 %) and Ravinderjit Singh (90%).

Meanwhile, St Kabir Public School, Sector 26, has shown a 100 per cent result with all 65 students securing the first division. As many as nine students of the school have a score of 90 per cent and above.

Delay in completion of bridge
From Our Correspondent

MAULI BAIDWAN (Sohana), May 29 — Residents of more than six villages near hear are a resentful lot as the Punjab Public Works Department has done little to speed up the completion of a bridge which was damaged by the swirling water of a nullah two years ago. The nullah carries the discharge of sewage of SAS Nagar.

The bridge, situated at Mauli Baidwan village, 4 km from Sohana (Ropar district), was the only connection among more than six villages in the area. Hundreds of people are put to great hardship.

Commuters have to pass through the knee-deep filthy water to across it. Students and teachers are the worst hit as they cannot reach schools on time. The fluctuating flow of water, which is sometimes very swift, especially during monsoon, further poses a risk to people while crossing the nullah during night.

Commuters have to cover an extra distance of more than 6 km to reach Sohana.

Mr Swaran Singh, a local resident, said the bridge was built with poor quality material and subsequently was damaged and swept away by the nullah water. "It is a chronic problem as the area is prone to floods due to sudden increase in the water level during the rainy season. But nothing concrete has been done in this direction so far despite numerous complaints to the authorities", he added.

About two months ago, residents of the village made some temporary arrangements to make the road accessible to other villages, including Chilla, Manauli and Pappri. But the sudden showers on Sunday made the situation worse as the causeway developed by them was merged in the swollen nullah.

Residents allege that the work on the bridge was going on at a snail's pace. According to Mr Jeevan Dass, another resident, the work would not be completed before the onset of monsoons.

Gunning for Mumbai gangsters
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, May 29 — A city lad is driving the fear of law in the heart of the Mumbai underworld and is categorical and firm when he says gangsters deserve no sympathy.

He is Param Bir Singh, a resident of Sector 36, who made it to the Indian Police Service in 1988 and was allotted the Maharashtra cadre. Son of Mr Hoshiar Singh, a retired HCS officer, he studied in Government Model School, Sector 20, graduated from the Government College for Men, Sector 11, before doing MA in sociology from Panjab University.

Handpicked to head the crime detection branch by the Police Commissioner, Mr R.H. Mendonca, in view of advocating a tough line against gangsters, he will also be in charge of the crack special operations squad (SOS). The squad, consisting of commandos, can operate anywhere in the metropolis to check organised crime.

Having an envious track record, he has given tough time to several notorious gangsters like Dawood, Chhota Rajan, Arun Gawli and Amar Naik. His tenure as in charge of zone II saw him dealing a big blow to the Arun Gawli gang. In fact, this zone witnessed the largest number of police encounters last year. He is also looking after the Nadeem extradition case.

His team has gunned down nearly 60 gansters in the past 30 months, while nearly a 100 were arrested for indulging in extortion and related activities.

In the city for some well-deserved rest, he interacted with TNS and talked about the challenges ahead. The police has been able to get the upperhand, with all major gangs in disarray. While Dawood is operating from Karachi,Chhota Rajan is in Malaysia, Arun Gawli has been externed outside Bombay and Ashwin Naik operates from Canada or South Africa. The Babloo Srivastava gang is also active in some parts and specialises in kidnapping for ransom.

He said all gangs have been handicapped by losses of their men, who were killed in encounters in 1996 - 97. It was a good year for the police but there was a temporary setback due to a court judgement. But the high court upheld the view of the police and we were again on job.

The dare-devil officer, while critical of the low conviction rate, is all praise for the newly introduced Maharasthra Control of Organised Crime (MCOC) Act, which allows telephone tapping, making recorded statements by the police admissible in courts and forfeiture of criminals’ property.

The police has acquired sophisticated weapons and bullet proof jackets as it is necessary to meet the firepower of gangsters.

He also confirmed that many persons arrested were in fact motivated by films. Many of them are unemployed and there are instances where college students have been known to pick up phone, dial any number and ask for money. Owing to fear psychosis, many people accede.

He specially mentioned that recent movie, Satya, was quite realistic.