HEALTH

AIDS spreading fast in India: physician
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 2 — Dr Anurag Markanday, a physician specialising in internal medicine and infectious diseases at the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Centre, is here to share the latest research in the field of AIDS and hepatitis-C.

Dr Markanday, who is visiting India till January 30, says he is a specialist in the diagnosis and management of patients with AIDS and HIV diseases and is a part of a research group testing newer therapies.

He has been working with some leading researchers in the United States on the epidemiology and treatment protocols for chronic hepatitis.

Dr Markanday says work of the team of which he is a member has been presented at various academic medical society meetings, including at the Infectious Diseases Society of America and at the World Vitreous Conference in Rome (Italy).

“As per the recent medical literature, AIDS is spreading fast in India and if corrective action is not taken at this stage, it will have disastrous consequences for our country.I believe that AIDS and multidrug resistant tuberculosis (as a result of AIDS) will be a very serious threat to our country’s resources in the next five to 10 years,” warns Dr Markanday.

He says he will welcome an opportunity to address medical students, residents and the faculty at various teaching institutions in Chandigarh, Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh during his stay here. “I am doing this so that the medical community can be made aware of the magnitude of the problem at our hands and also to create awareness regarding the latest diagnostic and therapeutic modalities available for these diseases. People education is very important, both about AIDS and hepatitis-C”, he adds.

SPORT

Dharam Singh wins gold
By Our Sports Reporter

CHANDIGARH, Jan 2 — Dharam Singh of Sarvhitkari School, Sector 40, clinched the boxing gold medal in bantamweight by overpowering Varinder Singh of Government College for Men, Sector 46, in the sub-junior final.

This marked the end of the two-day 22nd Chandigarh Junior State Boxing Championship at Boxing Coaching Centre, Sector 40. Dharam Singh was also adjudged best boxer, while Varinder Singh of Boxing Coaching Centre, Sector 46 best loser. The overall championship went to BCC-46, while Sharda Sarvhitkari School, Sector 40, were declared runner-up.

Results ( finals) —

Bantamweight — Dharam Singh (Sarvhitkari-40) b Varinder Singh (GCM-46) - RSC OC IVth round; featherweight — Sandeep Yadav (Sarvhitkari School-40) b Ashok Kumar (BCC-23)- WP; light flyweight — Ajit Singh (GSS-27) b Vipan Kumar (BCC-46)-WP; flyweight — Karamvir Singh (BCC46) b Rajiv Kumar (GSSS-23)-KO Ist round; lightweight — Vinod Kumar (SD Club-32) b Sunil Kumar (SD club-32)-RSC III rd round; lightwelterweight — Jaswinder Singh (BCC-46) b Navneet Kumar (SD club-32)-WP; welterweight — Rajiv Kumar (BCC-46) b Vijay (Sharda-40)-WP; light middleweight — Parveen Kumar (SD Club-32) b Munish Kumar (GSSS 20)-RSC Ist round.

Excise and Customs win

Central Excise and Customs XI team emerged winners of the Inter-Institutional Cricket Tournament by overpowering State Bank of Patiala by five wickets at PCA Stadium, SAS Nagar, here today.

Dinesh Mongia scored 106 not out. SBOP team won the toss and elected to bat. They were all out for 181 runs. In reply, Customs made 182 runs with the loss of five wickets.

Brief scores: SBOP 181 all out (Munish Bali 35, Sanjay Mahajan 37, Gagandeep 2 for 27); Central Excise & Customs-182 runs for five wickets (Dinesh Mongia 106 not out, Sanjay Mahajan 2 for 22).

Junior snooker

The 17th Open Chandigarh State Junior Billiards and Snooker Championship for under 21 began at Chandigarh Billiards Coaching Centre, Sector 22. The meet is being organised by the Chandigarh Billiards and Snooker Association.

In junior snooker matches, Anshuman Murarka got the better of Abhinav Gupta 51-23, 64-33, 44-28, while Karan overpowered Abhinav Bajaj 47-31, 60-32, 38-59, 19-60, 64-33.

In other matches, Akshay Manchanda defeated Akshay Sharma, while Anandit beat Maneet.

Shooting stars of CISF

Shimon Sharif and Praveen Rawat both have done the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) proud by excelling in shooting. They created new records in the air rifle (ISSF) event, in the recently concluded 24th Northern India Shooting Championship held at Patialai Rao ranges, in Sector 25.

Both were also instrumental in the CISF becoming the overall champion in the team championship here.

Shimon, aged 21, took to shooting in 1995 and won gold medals in five nationals championships. He was also a member of the Indian shooting squad, besides winning a gold medal at the Imphal (Manipur) and Bangalore National Games.

At the present meet, Shimon scored 580 out of 600 points, breaking the record set by Abhinav Bindra in 1998 (572/600). Here he won three gold medals in different events.

Another shooter of repute of the CISF is 21-year-old Praveen Rawat who took to shooting in 1989. Parveen has so far won 19 gold medals, 23 silver medals and 14 bronze medals in various national level shooting championships since 1989 with five national records to boot.

Praveen also won a gold medal and created a new record in the second SAF Shooting Championship held at New Delhi in 1997. His other achievements include winning 27 gold medals, 18 silver and 12 bronze medals in the Delhi State and North Zone Shooting Championships in the past ten years.

In the present meet, Praveen created a new record by scoring 575 out of 600 points in the air rifle (ISSF) event, but stood second after Shimon. He won two gold, one silver and one bronze medal at this meet.

Cricket tourney

Punjab Civil Services Cricket Club defeated Phoenix Club by 49 runs in the inaugural match of late BS Duggal Memorial Cricket Tournament at Government Senior Secondary School, Sector 27. Sunil scored 59 runs in 40 deliveries, while Kulbir Singh took five wickets for 25 runs.

Hockey trials

Trials to select the Chandigarh women’s hockey team for the National Hockey Championship, to be held at Jabalpur later this month, will be held at the Sector 42 Hockey Stadium on January 4., Dr JPS Sidhu, Secretary, Chandigarh Women’s Hockey Association, announced this here today.

Football tourney begins today
From Our Sports Reporter

PATIALA, Jan 2 — The Patiala District Football Championships will be held at the local polo grounds from January 3 to 12.

The championship will be played on a league-cum-knockout basis. The teams desirous of taking part in the championships may contact Mr S.S. Gill football coach, on January 3 at the local polo grounds before 12 p.m.

ADMINISTRATION

Large property lying unoccupied
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Jan 2 — A large property of the Chandigarh Housing Board, including more than 200 booths in various colonies, are lying unoccupied.

Some of the property constructed and completed in 80s and early 90s has become a haven for encroachers and unauthorised occupants where "undesirable activities" are being carried out.

Recently a delegation of the Chandigarh Citizens Welfare Front, led by its President, Mr Gurbachan Singh, had called on the Adviser to the Administrator, Ms Vineeta Rai, and had submitted to her a detailed memorandum on vacant property of the board. It had demanded that the administration must work out a policy to allot the booths to unemployed youth and other deserving candidates so that the board and the administration could recover the money spent on the property.

Among the oldest property, which is lying vacant, is the commercial complex at Maloya where 100 booths were built in 1987. Of these, only 15 booths were allotted and the remaining were left vacant.

These booths are in a bad shape in the absence of proper maintenance and care.

Some of these booths are being used by the residents of the area for rearing pigs and also as stores for their milch cattle and other things.

Similarly, shops and booths built in Mauli Jagran Complex after the rehabilitation of slum dwellers, too, have not been allotted. At least 39 booths are available for allotment. All these booths and shops are also being misused by antisocial elements.

The situation is no better in Mani Majra where 95 of the 120 booths constructed several years ago are lying vacant. These booths, too, are being misused.

It is not only in slums and rehabiltation colonies that such large number of unallotted property is being misused, there are instances even within the city and some central sectors where the situation is the same. For example, in Sector 22, at least 10 booths in rehri market have not been allotted.

In the case of dwelling units, 240 such double-storey units were built in Colony No. 4 in Industrial Area, Phase I, in early 90s. However, till date, none of these units have been allotted to anyone. This property is being put to gross misuse. Vandals have even decamped with windows, doors and other items from these buildings.

In various Chandigarh Housing Board colonies, a large number of completed dwelling units have been lying unallotted for the past many years. Though, the board tried to auction or allot these houses, each time, the proposal fell apart for one reason or the other.

There have been a couple of instances when lists of the vacant property were prepared but no action was initiated.