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| Monday, January 17, 2000, Chandigarh, India |
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Grace
& poise PANCHKULA, Jan 16 — Seventeen appears to be the lucky number for the new Femina Miss India World, Priyanka Chopra. Though her badge number read 23, “Mimmi”, as she is called by family members and friends, was “at the top of the world” yesterday in her 17th year ( she was born on July 19, 1982), when she was crowned Femina Miss India World at a contest held at Pune. The 170 cm tall beauty, a Leo, shared her success story with Chandigarh Tribune, over the telephone at the residence of her paternal aunt, Ms Saroj Bhogal, who resides in Chandi Mandir. Ms Bhogal is among the few personalities to whom Priyanka attributes her success. Divulging more about the new Miss India World, she said: “Mimmi has a unique grace and a regal bearing, which many beauties acquire after much practice. People around her feel dowdy in comparison”. Born at Jamshedpur, she got her early education (till class V) studying in various schools across the country as her parents, both doctors, were serving in the Army Medical Corps (AMC). Her parents are now well settled after retirement at Bareilly, where they complement each other in running their hospital. Mimmi was nine when she was sent to Boston in the USA, where she pursued her studies till matriculation, said Ms Bhogal. Naturally gifted with the art to sing, she undertook some amateur singing assignments in Boston. “Mimmi has a special liking for the town, and used to spend most of her time here, the latest being in August when we all had a great time”, she said. Pursuing her 12th boards in non-medical, Mimmi was a ordinary girl from the very beginning. The modern day Cinderella may not believe in ‘antique ballgowns’ and ‘pumpkin carriages’, but for her, she says, fairy tales can still be true. Earlier, the beauty queen had won the title of Miss Bareilly. Priyanka, said she, believes in taking life as it comes, and would weigh the merits accordingly if she was offered roles in Bollywood. Her aunt, however, revealed that she had earlier turned down such offers during the preliminary rounds at the contest. Hailing from a conventional family background, her parents and family members would insist her to pursue singing and not acting as her main focus, said Ms Saroj. Mimmi has always had a strong desire to be in the limelight, reaffirms her aunt, narrating an incident of her childhood when she innocently argued with her parents on discovering her name missing from the name-plate outside their house. Following this, the parents added her name along theirs, as it then read — “Mimmi Chopra- KG 1”. A lover of dogs (she has
three in her house) and an active player of basketball,
she swims equally well. At this point of time, she comes
across as a very confident person with a pragmatic
outlook for life, hoping to earn many laurels for the
nation in the future. |
Desperadoes’
bid to rob Panchkula resident PANCHKULA, Jan 16—Three men, aged around 30, tried to rob Surinder Kumar Malhotra, a resident of Sector 19 here, at gun-point at his residence this evening. Relating the sequence of events, Mr Malhotra’s brother said the three persons rang their house bell at 7:30 pm when Surinder Kumar Malhotra was alone with his sister, Jyoti. The door was opened by Mr Malhotra himself, who was caught off-guard when one of them put a pistol to his head and the three forcibly entered the house. A scuffle between the miscreants and the occupant of the house followed for nearly 15 minutes before Mr Malhotra screamed for help and alarmed his neighbours. During the scuffle, the three men attempted to beat him up, tore his clothes and tried to snatch the gold chain he was wearing. Their attempt, however, proved to be futile. The assailants, who wore helmets, made it difficult for the victim to give any description of the trio. While two of them escaped on a Yamaha motor cycle soon after Mr Malhotra raised the alarm, one of the assailants ran down the road and managed to give the neighbours a slip. The second motor cycle, a red Yamaha bearing number HP-5H-3157, was, however, left behind by the assailants. The police had not
registered a case till late night but had reportedly
assured the complainants that it would be done soon and
that they would try to ascertain the identity of the
owner of the motor cycle impounded by the police.
However, the Superintendent of Police, Mr Sudhir
Chaudhary, was not availble for comment. |
PO work
suspension upsets depositors CHANDIGARH, Jan 16 — The Post Office savings bank account holders are both upset and agitated over the sudden suspension of operations indefinitely by post offices yesterday following the decision of the Union Finance Ministry to cut interest rates on all small savings schemes and the Public Provident Fund (PPF). Unaware of the developments, many of them, mostly senior citizens, had queued up at various post offices in the city yesterday to make their deposits in their respective accounts before they were told that all saving bank operations, too, have been stalled following downward revision of interest rates on small savings schemes. “The post office savings bank interest rates have not been changed. Why have they suspended these operations,” asked a senior citizen at the Sector 19 post office as he hesitatingly slipped out of a queue from in front of a multipurpose counter yesterday. “Why do they do it again and again? They did the same thing last year and kept the operations suspended for almost a fortnight without realising the hardship it causes to people like me,” he added. It is not only post office savings bank account holders who are upset over the suspension of operations but also the Punjab Government, the agents who work for various small saving schemes, besides the investors. The Punjab Finance Minister, Capt Kanwaljit Singh, may take up the issue with the Union Finance Minister to resume the small savings operations in post offices without any further delay as the state on an average generates Rs 10 to Rs 11 crore of deposits everyday. In the last financial year, Punjab had net savings of Rs 2049 crore as the total deposits were around Rs 3,000 crore. In Chandigarh, the total net deposits were around Rs 60 crore with the deposits touching Rs 150 crore mark, meaning thereby that Rs 40 lakh is deposited in various saving schemes everyday. The operations were suspended yesterday following a receipt of a fax message from the Union Finance Ministry here. Though the investors and agents agree that it was the prerogative of the Union Government to revise the rate of interest on various small saving schemes, inordinate delay in implementing the new rates and reviving the operations after a fortnight was “uncalled for”. The post offices, they said, must be authorised to get new stamps, seals and other documents prepared so as to revive the savings and banking operations at the earliest. In fact one of the reasons given for long suspension of work is the printing of new stationery, including certificates, which have printed on them the rates of interest and maturity value. In January last year, the operations had remained suspended on similar grounds for a fortnight. At that time also, the rate of interest was lowered by 1 per cent. Last year, the Union Government had even lowered the rate of interest on savings bank accounts in post offices from 5.5 per cent to 4.5 per cent to bring it at par with banks. Though the rate of interest has been lowered, the small savings schemes of post offices are still more lucrative than the banks and other financial institutions. The main reason being the exemption on payment of tax on interest accrued on small savings. Two schemes the Kisan Vikas Patras and Monthly Income Scheme — which still offer 11 per cent interest, are more attractive than any other savings or investment scheme. The main attraction remains that tax debate has not been withdrawn on any of the small savings schemes. Even the Post Office Savings Bank Scheme, too, gets covered under Section 10 of the Income Tax Act to save depositors from payment of any tax on interest. The agents maintain that January to march is their peak season but suspension of operations in between renders them unemployed for they have no other work to do till the operations are revived. The sources in the
Directorate of Savings, however, maintain that suspension
of deposit operations notwithstanding, the depositors can
make the withdrawals from both the small savings schemes
and their respective post office savings bank accounts
even during this period. |
Rs 86 lakh for widening
of Kalka-Ambala road ZIRAKPUR, Jan 16 — The Punjab Public Works Department (PWD) has started work on the widening of the road in order to reduce traffic congestion on the Kalka-Ambala highway. The Buildings and Roads wing of the department will spend Rs 86 lakh on the project. A stretch of about 700 metres, towards Ambala from the Parmar filling station, is being widened into a four-lane road and a bus leeway is being constructed, at a combined cost of Rs 49 lakh. More than 20 trees flanking the road will have to face the axe. The department will spend Rs 37 lakh on widening a 750-metre stretch on the Chandigarh-Patiala highway and the construction of a bus leeway. There is also a provision for drainage on both leeways. According to Mr K.S. Bhinder, Deputy Executive Engineer, the leeways will be constructed along the highway, adjacent to the traffic light point where buses coming from Ambala side will stop. Buses coming from Patiala side will stop at the leeway on the Patiala-Chandigarh highway at Zirakpur. "The PWD has paid Rs 10,000 to the Forest Department for the removal of trees which have come within the width of the road. The construction of bus leeways will be completed by March end," Mr Bhinder says. According to sources, the width of the Ambala-Kalka highway will increase by 25 feet. It will still be below the required parameters, since many more trees will have to be cut to facilitate this. The construction work has created traffic chaos on the busy highway. Vehicles can be seen lined up on the road in the absence of proper traffic diversions. People living in Zirakpur Nagar Panchayat area hope that traffic congestion on this road will be reduced and commuters will get buses to Chandigarh, Ambala and Patiala frequently, for which they have to wait for hours. The accident rate will decline after the formation of the leeway and widening of the highway.
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Rally by
Naya Gaon residents CHANDIGARH, Jan 16 — To press for its demands, the Ghar Bachao Committee, Naya Gaon, organised a rally at Sector 17 Housing Board Chowk here today. The committee is demanding regularisation of constructions by creating a Nagar Panchayat and merging four villages — Naya Gaon, Kansal, Janta Colony and Chhoti Karoran — on the pattern of the Zirakpur Nagar Panchayat. Addressing the rally, Mr Surjit Singh, Chairman of the committee criticised the Punjab Government for its proposal to establish Anandgarh City adjacent to Chandigarh. Besides residents of the
villages, Mr Arjun Singh, Senior Vice-President, Mr
Darshan Singh, Vice-President, and Mr N.P. Singh, General
Secretary of the committee, respectively, were present. |
Living
under the shadow of fear CHANDIGARH, Jan 16 — The residents of the housing complex of the Chandigarh Housing Board (CHB) in Sector 61 here, who have been living with problems galore for the past sometime, now have another problem on their hand. This time it is the problem of daylight thefts. Porous border with SAS Nagar, coupled with the absence of a police post in smallest sector of the Union Territory, have given an impetus to thefts . Though minor thefts had been a routine affair, the number of major thefts was on the increase in the sector in the recent past. As a number of couples were working, it makes sector vulnerable to thefts in day time. In a major daylight theft, valuable goods, including colour TV and jewellery were stolen from a House No 444-B on January 14 when the the occupants were not in the house. Similarly, a scooter, belonging to Ms Manjit Kaur (House No 447-B) was stolen in broad daylight on January 11. With hardly any regular police patrolling, the residents are a worried lot. We are terrified at the increase in number, theft cases, particularly during the day time, said Mr Rajpal Sharma, while demanding the setting up of a police post in the area. The former Adviser, Mr Jagdish Sagar, during his visit to the complex, had assured the residents that the police post would be set up but nothing had been done in this regard so far, alleged Mr Sharma. Moreover, due to unscheduled and frequent power cuts, the water supply, particularly during the morning hours, was disrupted as water supply was linked to electricity. Though the complex had its separate tubewell, it was linked to electricity, and in the absence of power it stops functioning. The residents had
demanded that a generator should be installed so that
regular water supply could be ensured in case of power
failure. |
Encroachers
having a field day SAS NAGAR, Jan 16 — Haphazard growth of the rehri market in Phase 3B 1 here has brought things to such a pass that encroachers are having a field day, with the authorities turning a blind eye. Over the years the number of “khokhas” has swelled unchecked. Today the situation is such that the parking area in front of the market has been totally eaten by the encroachers in the market. People visiting the market have to park their vehicles on the road thereby creating a major traffic hazard. Sources in the Punjab Urban Planning and Development Authority (PUDA) said there was a proposal to construct pucca booths for the shopkeepers in the market and paper work on it was being done. A survey conducted by PUDA had revealed that around 400 temporary shops exist in the market. The delay in the construction of ‘pucca’ booths is reported to be a dispute between the Municipal Council and PUDA over the charging lease fee from the shopkeepers in different rehri markets of the township. The encroachment by two
religious institutions on both sides of the market had
further added to the traffic chaos in front of the
market. The Sub-divisional Magistrate (SDM), Mr O.P.
Popli, said he had talked to the officials of the
Municipal Council regarding provision of additional
parking space in front of the market. |
Cop suspended on rape
charge CHANDIGARH, Jan 16 — In a new development to the alleged rape of a minor girl of Kharar by a Chandigarh police constable, a re-examination by a board of three doctors has reversed the findings of the earlier medical examination. According to sources at the Sector 16 hospital, the new panel of doctors said that the victim had been raped. Meanwhile, the
constable, Sarandeep has been suspended and sent to the
police lines. The victim in a statement before the duty
magistrate corroborated the sequence of events leading to
her rape. |
Booked for
theft CHANDIGARH, Jan 16 — The police has registered a case against Panch Lal Jha of Bhawanipur village in Bhagalpur district of Bihar on the charge of stealing Rs 23,000. In a complaint lodged with the police, Mr Police Yadav of Gobindpura Mohalla, Mani Majra, alleged that Jha, his roommate, had stolen the amount. One injured: Mr Ram Mehar of Indira Colony in Mani Majra alleged that he was assaulted by Kala, Babu Lal and Kalu Ram, all residents of same colony. A case has been registered. Truck recovered: A truck (HR-01-GA-0344), stolen from Phase 1, Industrial Area, has been recovered by the Dera Bassi police. According to the police,, the truck was stopped during a routine naka and the driver and cleaner fled, leaving the truck behind. Pickpocket held:
A pickpocket, Daljit from Ropar, was arrested by
the police from a CTU bus-stop near the railway traffic
point. |
Shopkeepers oppose
scooter bazaar CHANDIGARH, Jan 16 — There is a strong resentment among shopkeepers of Sector 21-C over grant of permission to certain agents to run a scooter bazaar from the parking area of the shopping centre. The agitated shopkeepers reportedly contacted the Deputy Commissioner-cum-Estate Officer to protest against the running of “scooter bazaar illegally from the parking area of a shopping centre”. One of the sweetmeat shopkeeper maintains that his business is adversely affected on Sundays as the entire parking area is occupied by the scooter bazaar, leaving no space for his customers to bring their vehicles anywhere near his shop. Similar views were expressed by a number of other booth-owners who especially deal in confectionary, eggs, fish, mutton and chicken products. “Our business continues all seven days a week and as such complete taking over of the entire parking area of the centre by scooter bazaar is a direct interference with our business,” remarked a booth owner. The shopkeepers maintained that even otherwise also, the entire market had been overtaken by auto mechanics, especially those dealing in repair of two-wheelers. “We work in highly polluting environment. The petrol vapours and fumes, the noise of scooters and motor-cycles under repair and other related activity makes us sick. Now they have added to our woes by allowing scooter bazaar,” lament the shopkeepers. “These commission agents come, make quick money, pay some to the staff of the Estate Office and Municipal Corporation and leave a trail of devastation and frustration for us all,” remarked an agitated shopkeeper, who alleged that none of the authorities concerned were even prepared to visit the spot and listen to the genuine grievances of shopkeepers. If no action is taken on our demand, we may be forced to resort to an agitation, the responsibility of which would entirely lie on the administration, cautioned the shopkeepers. The Sector 21-C market is also faced with another problem. In the mornings, a large number of milk vendors from the periphery of the city come and park their vehicles in an open space in front of the market after finishing their morning delivery. This is also being
resented by shoppers and even shopkeepers not only
because of blockage of passage but also for certain other
unforeseen problems.
Hindi weekly launched CHANDIGARH, Jan 16 — Chandigarh Charcha, a Hindi weekly for the city, was launched here this morning. Mr Abhijit Chatterjee, President, Chandigarh Press Club, released the inaugural eight-page issue. Brought out by Mr Subash
Narang, a social worker and businessman, the weekly will
be apolitical and cater to various sections of society |
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