R E G I O N A L   B R I E F S

PUNJAB

BATHINDA
Centre to give subsidy: The Punjab Science and Technology Minister, Mr Chiranji Lal Garg, on Monday said the Central Government would give a subsidy of 75 per cent to persons who would use non-conventional sources of energy. Addressing a seminar organised by the Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) here, Mr Garg said the Centre would also give interest-free and soft loans for setting up projects in which non-conventional sources would be used.

DHURI
Lawyers boycott court: The members of the local Bar Association observed a strike on Monday in protest against the police action against the "peaceful protest by Delhi lawyers". In a press note, the association members demanded action against the erring officials.

FEROZEPORE
Traffic blocked: The city-based Beopar Mandal and Punjab State Electricity Board employees blocked traffic near Udham Singh Chowk here on Monday in protest against the death of a trader in a road accident. The demonstrators were seeking compensation for the relatives of the deceased, Ramnik Singh, who was knocked down by a jeep here on Sunday night. Since Ramnik’s father is a PSEB employee, his colleagues also joined the demonstration.

Bharat Vikas Parishad: The following have been elected office-bearers of the city unit of the Bharat Vikas Parishad: patron — Mr Sham Lal Kakkar; president — Prof N.K. Dixit; vice-presidents — Mr Roshan Lal Sethi and Mr S.K.Sachdeva; secretary — Mr K.B.Gautam; and joint secretary — Prof R.K.Garg.

HOSHIARPUR
Life term awarded: Mr L.R.Roozam, District and Sessions Judge, Hoshiarpur, has sentenced Parmeshwer Singh, alias Nihang of Wahadpur village under the Garhshanker police station to life imprisonment under Section 302 of IPC in a murder case.

KHANNA
Smuggler held: The police has arrested Ram Singh of Buani allegedly involved in a murder and smuggling cases. The SSP, Khanna , said a case had been registered against him.

LUDHIANA
Manufacturers' association: The following have been elected office-bearers of the local unit of the Small Scale Manufacturers' Association: president — Mr Harish Khanna; senior vice-president — Mr Narinder Setia; general secretary — Mr Parminder Singh; secretary — Mr Jagdishrai Monga; and treasurer — Mr Ajit Chabra.

Painting contest: Mr Satya Parkash, a former Mayor of Ludhiana, presented cash awards and certificates to the winners of a painting contest held by the local People for Animals (PFA) at Kundan Vidya Mandir, Civil Lines, on Sunday. Speaking on the occasion, Dr Sandeep K.Jain, president of the PFA, urged medical students to opt for alternatives of frog dissection which had been recognised by the CBSE.

Pensioners' meeting: At a meeting of the Government Pensioners' Association held here on Sunday, pensioners flayed the "negative attitude" of the Badal administration towards them. They pointed out that two years had passed since the report containing 10 major recommendations relating to pensions and other retirement benefits was submitted to the state government but it had only implemented one recommendation.

Office-bearers: The following have been elected office-bearers of the local unit of the PWD (B and R) Engineers' Forum: conveners — Mr Gurnam Singh Azad, Mr Virinderjit Singh Dhindsa and Mr Pal Jain; and executive members — Mr M.M.Sharma, Mr Joginder Singh, Mr T.S. Chahal, Mr Chaman Lal, Mr Darshan Singh and Mr P.D.Rana.

Kids’ personality: "The parents should become role models in developing the personality of their children". This was stated by Dr D.J. Singh, Deputy Director, Punjab Police Academy, Phillaur, while delivering a lecture on "Role of parents in improving the personality of their children" organised at Roopika Ladies Club here on Monday.

MALERKOTLA
Honour for scholar: Dr Shashi Kant Uppal, an eminent scholar, has been awarded "The Man of the Year 2000" title by the American Biographical Institute, Caroline, USA, for his contribution to literature.

Foundation stones laid: The foundation stones of a new fire station building and a new wing of the local Government Boys High School were laid by Mr Nusrat Ikram Khan, Sports Minister, Punjab, here on Monday. Mr Anirudh Tiwari, Deputy Commissioner, Sangrur, was also present. Dr Maghar Singh, District Education Officer, Sangrur, welcomed the guests at the function organised by the school.

NAWANSHAHR
Civic amenities: The SAD-BJP government will dedicate the next two years to provide basic civic amenities to the people. This was stated by the Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, while presiding over a prize distribution function of a "Khed Mela" organised at Bharo Mazara village, 18 km from here, on Monday.

CHANDIGARH

Inter-college quiz: An inter-college quiz on “Indian aviation and tourism industry” will be organised by the National Institute of Professional Techniques at Tagore Theatre here on March 7. According to Mr J.K. Sadana, Chief Executive of the institute, teams from 25 colleges have confirmed their participation in the quiz. Major attractions of the competition will be AD Zap, Dumb Charades, what’s the Good Word, Jam Session and a written quiz.

Colony No 4: A deputation of the local unit of the BJP, led by Mr Gian Chand Gupta, met the Adviser to the Administrator, Mrs Vineeta Rai, to demand rehabilitation of the residents of Colony No 4. The residents told the Adviser that their colony was the oldest and was still devoid of basic civic amenities, as the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation was not prepared to spend any money for the provision of basic civic amenities there. The deputation wanted that the entire colony should be rehabilitated.

Workshop: As part of the golden jubilee celebrations of the official language, the Punjab and Sind Bank Staff Training College organised a two-day workshop, which concluded on Monday. The workshop focussed on providing working knowledge of Hindi in routine work.

Welfare association: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Welfare Association of Sector 44-D: Advisers — Dr C.K. Kaushal, Mr B.D. Bassi and Mr KNS Sodhi; President — Mr F.S. Parwana; Senior Vice-President — Mr C.S. Gujral; Vice-President — Mr Harmesh Sharma; General Secretary — Mr T.L. Sharma; Joint Secretary — Mr C.R. Panesar; Press Secretary — Mr Ashok Nirdosh; and Treasurer — Mr Kuldeep Singh Jangla.

PANCHKULA

INLD Press Secretary: At a meeting of executives of the INLD, Panchkula, held on February 27 here, Mr Bhanu Datt Sharma was elected Press Secretary of the INLD, Panchkula district. Mr Surinder Garg, President, INLD (Panchkula), along with all executives, felicitated, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, on his success in recent Assembly elections.

HARYANA

AMBALA
Suicide: A teenaged girl of Barara village reportedly committed suicide after she was allegedly molested by a youth of the village. According to police report, Swarn Singh, a close relative of the girl, filed a complaint against Partap Singh, a resident of the same village in this regard. The girl died after consuming some poisonous substance. The girl was brought to Army Hospital in a serious condition where she succumbed to her injuries. The police registered a case against Partap Singh under Sections 354/306, IPC.

1 killed: Deepak, a resident of Jagadhri, was killed in a road accident on Monday night near Baldev Nagar Chowk in Ambala city. According to information, Deepak was hit by an unidentified vehicle. The police registered a case in this regard. In another incident, Nidhan Singh was killed in a road accident near Mulana. — FOC

FARIDABAD
Plea to MLA: An emergency meeting of representatives of 24 panchayats was held at Ballabhgarh on Monday. They unanimously passed a resolution asking Mr Rajinder Bisla, an Independent MLA from Ballabhgarh, to support the Indian National Lok Dal, headed by Mr Om Prakash Chautala, in forming the government in Haryana. Mr Bisla contested the election from the Ballabhgarh Assembly constituency as an Independent after he was denied the Congress ticket.

FATEHABAD
Lawyers' strike: Members of the District Bar Association went on a strike here on Monday against the move of the Central Government to bring an amendment to the Advocates Act and the lathi charge on the striking lawyers in Delhi. According to a spokesman of the association , the members expressed resentment over the move and the lathi charge and demanded strict action against the guilty officials.

KALKA
Road mishap: Three persons were seriously injured when a Maruti car collided with a truck on the Kalka-Chandigarh road, 3 km from here on Monday. The three persons have been admitted to the PGI, Chandigarh. The injured persons are Ravinder, Yash and Sunder.

Girl killed: A 4-year-old girl was killed on Monday in a fire at a plastic goods factory here. A man who tried to save the girl got burn injuries and has been admitted to ESI, hospital, Parwanoo. SDM Solan Rakesh Dhiman announced a help of Rs 25,000 to the family of the deceased.

PANIPAT
Cops' demand: The Haryana Police Association has demanded the withdrawal of a case registered against a security guard of a former minister, Mr Om Prakash Jain, for opening fire in the local police station on February 21. The president of the association, Mr Shyam Singh, has stated that the security guard, Ramesh, had fired to avert an untoward incident.

SONEPAT
Woman arrested: A woman, Guddi, was caught red-handed by Railway Protection Force personnel while stealing coal from the yard of the railway station here on Monday. She was arrested and sent to jail.

Body found: The Baroda police found the body of Jaipal of Garhi Shiva village from a waterworks at Jagsi village, 40 km from here, on Monday. The police suspect it to be a case of murder.

SIRSA
Cops honoured: Several policemen were honoured by the DSP for their exemplary conduct during the recent Vidhan Sabha elections here on Monday. The district police chief, Mr K.K. Mishra, said the purpose of honouring them was to encourage the policemen to behave politely with the public.

Municipal elections: The programme for the municipal council and corporation elections in the district was announced on Monday. The nomination for the election will be filled from March 2 to 6. Scrutiny will take place on March 7 and any appeal in this regard can be made from March 8 to 10. Wherever necessary, elections will be held on April 2.

HIMACHAL PRADESH

CHAMBA
Training programme: A three-day training programme for the officials of the primary agriculture cooperative societies (PACS), organised by the Agriculture Staff Training Institute of HP State Cooperative Bank in collaboration with the Integrated Cooperative Development Project concluded here on Monday in which participants from different blocks of the district took parts. The participants were imparted training on different issues relating to the development of PACS.

NAHAN
Satta agents held: The police has arrested three satta agents in a drive against gambling in the town. Gulshan Kumar and Moti, residents of the Rajnagar area, were arrested on a tip-off while distributing slips for the satta numbers. Another agent, Madan Lal of Himachal, was arrested from the Nangal Dam. Cases under Section 13 A of the Gambling Act have been registered.

INTUC office-bearers: The following have been elected office-bearers of the District Council of INTUC: president — Mr Iqbal Singh; patron — Mr S.K.Parmar; senior vice-presidents — Mr Balraj Dutt Sharma, Mr Kulwant Singh and Mr Rattan Chand Sharma; and vice presidents — Mr Sandhu Singh , Mr Rashpal Singh, Mr Ram Lal and Mr Ashok Kumar Bali.

PARWANOO
Helmet drive: The Parwanoo police has started a drive to challan the drivers not wearing helmets and against those found driving vehicles under the influence of liquor. According to Mr Jagan Nath, SHO, 88 persons have been challaned so far for driving without helmets and 11 for driving under the influence of liquor. The SHO added that the police will launch special drive to curb burglaries in the town.

SHIMLA
Move opposed: The state committee of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) has opposed the government's move to restructure the state electricity board and establish an electricity regulatory commission. Mr Rakesh Singha, chairman of CITU, said the setting up of the commission was a prelude to the privatisation of the power sector. The step would lead to a steep hike in power tariff and was against the interests of the people and the industry.

HVC plea: The Himachal Vikas Congress has urged the government to open a depot of the Himachal Road Transport Corporation to effectively cater to the needs of the upper Shimla region. In a letter to the Chief Minister , the party has also suggested shifting of some regional offices of the corporation from Shimla to Theog to ease congestion in the state capital.

Regulated market: The HP Marketing Board has decided to construct a regulated market in Mandi at a cost of Rs 1.5 crore. According to Mr Virender Kashyap, Chairman of the Board, the complex will have 20 shops for commission agents, 20 godowns, farmers' rest house, dormitory, canteen office accommodation and banking facility.

SOLAN
Employees' rally: Nearly 400 members of the Non-teaching Employees Union and Class IV and Technical Employees Union of Y.S.Parmar University held a rally in front of the Vice-Chancellor's office here on Monday. They were protesting against the withdrawal of house rent allowance on the pattern admissible to similar cadres working in Solan town by the university authorities last month.