R E G I O N A L   B R I E F S

PUNJAB

GARHSHANKAR
APPOINTED: The State Youth Congress President, Mr Davinder Babboo, and the District President, Mr Arun Dogra, has appointed Mr Narinder Mohan Nindi, as president and Mr Rajesh Kumar Raja as vice-president of the Mahilpur block of the Youth Congress.

TWO KILLED: A motorcyclist collided with a truck on the Garhshankar-Anandpur Sahib road near Singhpur. Amandeep, a resident of Elgran and Jagtar Singh of Darangah village were killed on the spot. A case has been registered.

TUBEWELL REPAIR: The Public Health Department has refused to repair the Kukarmajra tubewell which has been out of order for the past 12 days. The department do not have funds for repair work. Mr Charanjit Singh Channi, MP, has given Rs 15,000 out of his discretionary fund for its repair.

TELEPHONE EXCHANGE: The Telephone Exchange of Binewal and Hebbowal has been non-functional since June 12. About 22 villages are connected with this exchange. This has caused lot of inconvenience to the people.

POWER CUTS: Unannounced power cuts by Chandpur-Rurki feeder which supplies electricity to the Kandi and Beet area is causing lot of inconvenience to the people.

GURDASPUR
ARRESTED: The local police on Tuesday arrested Gajja Singh and Parshotam Lal of Kathua district in Jammu and Kashmir and seized 10 kg of charas from their possession. Mr Varinder Kumar, SSP said in a press note that the accused were apprehended by the police near Kharal village, 3 km from here, on Tuesday.

KAPURTHALA
NEW SESSIONS JUDGE: Mr Gurdev Singh, District and Sessions Judge, on transfer from Gurdaspur district has taken over as the District and Sessions Judge in place of Mr Nirmal Singh, who has been elevated as Judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

JUDICIAL REMAND: Mrs Bhardwaj, Duty Magistrate, on Monday remanded Ashok Sabharwal, a local lawyer, to judicial custody till July 3. The lawyer was arrested by the Kotwali police on the charge of committing fraud of Rs 14 lakh with a woman.

LUDHIANA
TRAINING CENTRE: The government has reportedly approved the Indian Institute of Paramedical Training Centre in Raikot. The Managing Director of this centre, Dr Arvindam Kant Banerjee, informed that there will be ten different courses, including medical laboratory technology, X-ray, E.E.G. Technology. He said students after matriculation could apply for the course up to July 31 for the first session.

OFFICE-BEARERS: The District Bar Young Lawyers Welfare Association has nominated Mr Harish Narang as chairman and Mr Harpreet Sandhu as senior vice-president of the association. The executive members include Mr Gurnam Singh, Mr H.S. Bhatti and Mr Kamalpreet Singh, according to the president of the association, Mr Harish Dhanda.

MALERKOTLA
MURDERED: A 22-year-old woman, Mrs Manorama, wife of Mr Munshi Ram, was allegedly murdered at her residence here on Monday. She was attacked with a sharp-edged weapon. The motive behind the killing is not known. The police has registered a case.

AMBULANCE SERVICE: An ambulance has been pressed into service to help accidents victims on the Ludhiana road. The van has been donated by Mr Simranjit Singh Mann, MP, Sangrur, out of his discretionary quota. The van will ply under the supervision of Kup-Kalan police station. Dr Satish Kapoor and Mr Ashok Joshi, president and senior vice-president of the council, respectively, appreciated the gesture.

COURSE STARTED: An art excel course began on Sunday at the Malerkotla Club for an overall development of the children. As many as 60 children ( 8 to 18 years) were participating under the guidance of Mrs Neera Grover from Chandigarh. The course will end on June 23.

MOGA
CHETNA MANCH: The Khatri Chetna Manch, a new social organisation, was formed here on Sunday. A five-member committee was constituted at its meeting. Ms V.K. Kaur and Mr Rajinder Sehgal have been appointed as its convenors and Mr Inderkumar Dania, Yash Paul Swahny and Mr Som Parkash Kaura as its members. The manch has decided to start various schemes for the benefit of the needy.

SEWERAGE WORK: The sewerage digging work has started after the state government allocated Rs 15 crore for the project. Work on the road linking Akalsar with the Joginder Singh Chowk has already started and is likely to be completed by the end of this year. Stating this here on Monday, President of the Moga Municipal Committee, Dr K.S. Gill, said that the sewerage work would be completed in a phased manner and was likely to be completed by the end of 2001.

BODY RECOVERED: The body of a middle-aged person was recovered by the police from fields of Nathewala village in this district on Sunday. The police has sent the body for the post-mortem examination.

WATER SHORTAGE: Farmers of various villages in the district have been unable to sow paddy due to shortage of canal water. This was stated here on Monday by Mr Gurbachan Singh and Mr Lachhman Singh, both residents of Bhekha village. They urged that Kingwan canal passing through their village should be made perennial so that farmers in their respective villages could get the canal water.

NAWANSHAHR
PROTEST MARCH: The district unit of the Punjab Khet Mazdoor Union on Monday held a dharna in front of the office of the SDM in protest against the rise in prices of the essential commodities. Mr Ram Singh (50), Mr Balbir Singh Jaddla, Mr Rakesh Nayyar, vice-presidents of the state units of the Punjab Khet Mazdoor Union, Punjab Kisan Sabha and the DYFI, respectively, and Mr Bishan Jhinger, secretary of the district unit of the union, condemned the economic policies of the SAD-BJP Government. The union also submitted a memorandum to the SDM regarding their demands which included free power supply to farm labourers.

PATIALA
DONATIONS: The Red Cross Society, Patiala, on Tuesday disclosed that Patiala Sanatan Dharam Kumar Sabha donated Rs 11,000 to the society for the victims of drought-hit states of India.The staff of Atma Ram Kumar Sabha Senior Secondary School contributed Rs 3,600, staff of S.D.K.S. Shakuntla Girls Senior Secondary School contributed Rs 3,100, Mr Mohan Lal Gupta, an advocate, donated Rs 2,100 and Seth Sham Lal Navyug, Navyug Saree Kendra, and Navyug Bastralaya donated Rs 1,100 each.

OFFICE-BEARERS: The following have been elected office-bearers of Mohalla Sudhar Committee Street 1, Tripuri: Chairman — Ms Surinder Kaur Gill; President — Mr Surinder Kaur Hundal Vice-President — Mr Jagjit Singh Subedar; Secretary — Mr Jai Karan Singh; and Joint Secretary — Mr Jaspal Singh.

TARN TARAN
DIVISIONS CREATED: The Forest and Wildlife Department, Punjab, has created three divisions in Punjab for smooth conduct of the department. According to the information available the newly created divisions are Patiala, Hoshiarpur and Amritsar with head quarters at Harike. Previously, the department had only one state-level division at Chandigarh.

EFFIGY BURNT: An effigy of the Punjab State Electricity Board chairman was burnt by workers of the Action Committee Employees Federation at Patti, 25 km from here on Monday. They were protesting against the indifferent attitude of the PSEB toward their demands. The employees leaders Mr Tara Singh Khehra and others warned that the employees would not allow the PSEB to be privatised.

AFGHAN NATIONAL HELD: The 191th battalion of BSF company apprehended an Afghan national from the border outpost of the Khemkaran barriers. He was later identified as Abhi Eshmudda, son of Abhi Abdul Eman. The police said on Monday that a case had been registered at Khemkaran police station.

CHANDIGARH

CHILD FALLS: Eight-year-old Satya Partap was admitted to the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research on Tuesday with injuries after he fell from the roof of his house in Palsora Colony. According to sources, Satya Partap’s condition is stable.

DEMONSTRATION: Members of the State Bank of India, Zonal Office, Haryana, Sector 8, held a demonstration on Tuesday in protest against the suspension of a bank employee. The Deputy General Secretary, Haryana, Mr H.B.S. Batra, threatened to intensify the agitation in case the suspension was not revoked. He claimed nearly 400 employees participated in the protest.

PANCHKULA
OFFICE-BEARERS: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Shivalik Foundation: Patron — Mr Gian Chand Goel; President — Mr M.R. Chawla; Vice-Presidents — Mr O.D. Sharma and Mr R.S. Jain; and Press Secretary — Mr Ram Narayan.

HARYANA

AMBALA
FOUND DEAD: The body of a youth was found in Shahpur village, 10 km from here, on Tuesday. It was identified as Kamli, alias Kamal, a resident of the same village, who had been missing for the past two days. According to the report lodged by the father of the deceased, Kamli was taken away by some persons two days back. The body of Kamli was found in the field. The police has registered a case of murder. No arrest has been made so far.

WORKSHOP: The Small Industry Service Institute, Karnal, has started a fashion designing training programme at Ambala which will be continued for one month. In this workship, designing of garments would be taught to the students through computer. The Deputy Commissioner, Mr Ram Niwas, said on this occasion that after the completion of the training the students could get loans under the self-employment scheme to start their own business.

SONEPAT
BODIES FOUND: The local police recovered the bodies of two elderly persons lying on the roadside at Gohana town, 35 km from here, on Monday. According to a report reaching here, the bodies have not been identified so far and the police has sent them for the post-mortem examination. It is stated that they were suffering from various diseases and they had stopped there to take rest. Thereafter, they were found dead.

RESENTMENT: Resentment prevails among residents of Gohana town against the forcible collection of Rs 50 per driving licence for the Red Cross fund from them. Residents alleged that the licensing branch of the SDO(C) office had become a den of corruption and all their complaints to the authorities in this regard have fallen on deaf ears.

ENCROACHMENTS REMOVED: The demolishing squad of the Kharkhauda civic body, headed by Mr Sultan Singh, SDO(C) along with the police, removed the encroachments from the main roads of Kharkhauda town, 19 km from here, on Monday.

TWO HELD: The Ganaur police on Tuesday claims to have solved two cases of robbery with the arrival of two youths. Mr K.P. Singh, SSP, told mediapersons here on Tuesday that the accused had been identified as Sunil and Krishan of Tewri village.

ARRESTED: The Kharkhauda police has arrested Surinder of Murthal village and seized a stolen motor cycle from his possession. The SSP, Mr K.P. Singh, told mediapersons here on Tuesday that Surinder had stolen the motor cycle from Khera Kalan village of Delhi. His accomplices, however, escaped. A hunt is on to apprehend other culprits involved in the theft.

HIMACHAL PRADESH

BILASPUR
LEGAL AID CAMP: The District and Sessions Judge-cum-Chairman of the District Legal Aid Authority, Mr B.S. Chauhan, has urged all intellectuals and professionals in villages to make the backward and illiterate families in district aware of free legal aid being provided by State Legal Aid Authority in Himachal Pradesh. This was stated by him at a Free Legal Aid Camp organised at Namhole, 22 km from here, on Monday.

CHAMBA
KILLED: A tourist was killed and seven others were seriously wounded when their vehicle veered off the road and rolled down a hillock on the Dalhousie-Panjpulla road in the suburbs of Dalhousie on Tuesday.

CASE REGISTERED: The district police on Sunday registered a case against Yash Pal, a resident of Kasakra who allegedly tried to rape his daughter. The SP, Mr R.M. Sharma, said that a medical examination of the girl was done. The police is conducting raid at places to arrest the culprit.

NAHAN
CONSUMER PROBLEM: The Superintending Engineer (Electricity), Mr S.C. Prabhakar, disclosed that "bijli adalat", for solving problems of those residing in Paonta, Shillai and Renuka tehsils would be held at SFDA hall "Kissan Bhavan", Paonta Sahib, on Friday.

NURPUR
CAMP ORGANISED: The Kangra District Legal Services Authority organised a free legal aid literacy camp here at Bachat Bhavan on Monday. Mr V.K. Ahuja, District and Sessions Judge-cum-Chairman of the District Legal Services Authority presided over the camp. He pointed out that the government had allocated funds to those who had an annual income of Rs 25,000.