Shooting star of city
By Arvind Katyal

CHANDIGARH, Oct 19 — Sixteen-year-old Sabeeha Dhillon, a class XI student of Bhavan Vidyalaya, Sector 27, has established herself in the world of shooting.

Sabeeha took to this game at the initiative of her father, Mr Iqbal Singh Dhillon, a national-level shooter. Her mother stresses on hygienic and nutritious food, aerobics and jogging. She says her maternal grandfather has been a strong driving force.

She took to shooting at the age of 11. In her maiden tournament, Punjab shooting championship in February, 1994, she bagged the sub-junior girls title by scoring 111 out of 200. She also won the sub-junior crown in the Chandigarh state shooting championship.

When she was in Class VII, she won the gold medal in open sight event in air rifle peep sight by scoring 302 out of 400 at the National shooting championship at Coimbatore in August, 1995. Next year she scored 354 out of 400 in the GV Mavlankar national shooting championship. She also won the gold medal in the Chandigarh inter-school shooting championship.

Sabeeha was the youngest girl in the SAF games held in 1997 and got the fourth position. During the final of the Punjab shooting championship, a Hungarian coach Agnes visited Chandigarh and advised Sabeeha to go ahead with shooting. Sabeeha went to Delhi and was coached by Szucsak.

She says her aim is to score more than 380 out of 400 in the national championships and will like to take part in major championships in the .177 air rifle (ISSF) event. She has set her eyes on the 2004 Olympics.

She practises at the Sector 25 shooting range for at least two hours. A 10 m shooting range for practice will soon become operational at her house, says her grandfather.

'Basics of teaching should stay'
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Oct 19 — In the changing education scenario, the use of latest technology is essential, but schools should not forget the basics of teaching, says Ms Suchint Khorana, Principal of Shishu Niketan Model Senior Secondary School in Sector 22 C. She says that the main responsibility of schools lies in ensuring the overall development of a child into a matured individual.

According to her, since it is teachers who have to teach how to use latest gadgets, emphasis should be on training them in the art of using these devices. A good teacher is the one who is dedicated and sincere to her duties. She like the 'guru' of the old days should be a role model for her students and should give them maximum knowledge. A good teacher ought to be thorough in her subject and should keep updating herself on the latest developments in her field, she adds.

The school, situated in the heart of the city, was established by Ms Khorana in 1953 in a house with only two students. Today, it has 4,500 students on its rolls. The school got the high school status in 1975 and became a secondary school in 1994. Under her guidance, the school has made enviable progress in academics, sports and extra-curricular activities.

She believes in giving equal importance to sports and extra-curricular activities. The senior classes, due to the pressure of studies, are not forced to participate in these activities. However, at the junior level, it is mandatory for students to take up these activities and one period daily is meant for this. She says children of today have no time for extra-curricular activities as they are bogged down by tuitions and unreasonable expectations of their parents.

She is against the concept of tuitions and has forbid her teachers from doing so. She says that if teachers do their job properly in schools, students will not need to take tuitions. Parents should also monitor homework of their wards and help them solve problems. However, students can take tuitions while preparing for competitive examinations, she adds.

Even working parents should try and spend quality time with their children. "We do see the involvement of parents in their children's progress, at the time of admissions to various classes,'' she says.

As far as possible, teachers should refrain from giving corporal punishment as it lowers the morale of a student. They should instead concentrate on giving moral lessons to discipline them. She says that the respect commanded by teachers should be such that students feel afraid to tell lies.

Though largely satisfied with the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), Ms Khorana opines that the syllabi in case of subjects like social cciences is lengthy and should be made more compact.

She was awarded a prize for being the best principal by the All-India Parent Teacher Association, though she has never applied for any award. "I have done this not for an award but to contribute my services to the society. She said the school motto 'Come to Learn, Go to Serve' had stood the test of time.

No bus service to villages
From Our Correspondent

RANI MAJRA (Kharar), Oct 19 — Resentment prevails among residents of Rani Majra, Salampatpur, Teor and other villages in the absence of any bus service to these places.

villagers demand that a regular public transport facility should be started for the development of the villages. A number of villagers complained that a CTU bus was started for the villages earlier but was withdrawn afterwards.

A teacher at Government Primary School, Salampatpur, complained that in the absence of any bus service, she had to walk 3 km to catch a bus. "In an emergency, a patient has be transported in tractor-trolley. Lack of transport facility endangers life of an ailing person," said a local resident.

Poor roads are another problem in the area. Villagers complain that roads have not been repaired for past several years.Potholes on roads have often resulted in accidents, particularly during night. Villagers demanded that streets lights should also be arranged.

Mrs Gurjeet Kaur, principal of Rani Majra Government High School, said it becomes difficult for them to reach the school in time as water remains stagnant on road. The grossly ignored area discourages teachers to be posted in the rural areas, where even a good road is not available to reach easily, complained a teacher.

Several teachers demand that buses, which halt at Mullanpur village, should pass through the villages. A girl said a regular bus service would benefit the womenfolk. "We are not allowed to carry on our higher education due to travelling problems but if the area is connected with buses, we could also dream of getting better and desired education."

"Our political representatives and the administration have not paid any attention to our problems," said Mr Jagdeep Singh, a local resident.

Lack of bus service hits villagers
From Our Correspondent

CHANDIGARH, Oct 19 — Dozens of villages in the periphery of Chandigarh, including Salamatpur, Kasoli, Gaudan and Darali, are devoid of a proper bus service.

Kasoli, Gaudan and other villages near the PGI have no means of transport. These villages are surrounded by rivulets and villagers have to wade through them. Transporting patients to hospital is a major problem. An elderly villager says some patients have died while being carried to hospital.

The absence of a bus service discourages people from sending their children for higher studies. Mr Atma Ram, Sarpanch of Kasoli, says girls from the village are denied high school education as the nearest high school is 10 km away, at Mullanpur or Dhanas.

Residents of Seonk, Perch and Jayanti Devi say buses plying on route number 70 take a long time. It will be useful if buses that halt near Khudda-Lahora come to the area. It will save more than half an hour, says Mr Bhag Singh, Sarpanch of Perch.

Route number 101/123 of the Chandigarh Transport Undertaking to Darali and Manauli villages was suspended about two months ago and this has hit commuters. The area is now served by irregular private buses, which often skip their trips.

Some villagers who go to work in Chandigarh and SAS Nagar say they reach their places of work late. A teacher at Government Primary School, Darali, says it is difficult for teachers to reach the schools in time. A teacher at the school in Sangala says she has to ask for lifts or hire auto-rickshaws to reach the school.