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| Monday, June 26, 2000, Chandigarh, India |
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Has UPSC corrigendum violated
rules? CHANDIGARH June 25 — Usually the corrigenda are published to clear the confusion but a recent corrigendum, published by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) regarding the recruitment of 19 lecturers in the local colleges, seems to have added to the confusion, besides “violating” the recruitment rules framed by the Central Government. The June 10 corrigendum was published to add the words “good academic record” in the essential qualifications column of the original advertisements published on April 10 and 24 last year as per the UGC guidelines. If any of the applicants did not furnish the proof of good academic record, he can submit the documents in the UPSC office by June 29, it added. This would mean that scores of candidates, who had become eligible in the gap period of 14 months would not be able to apply for the posts. The UGC conducts the eligibility test twice every year. It may be mentioned here that the 19 posts, 15 of them reserved for SCs, STs and OBCs, were notified under the January 1,1998, recruitment rules of the Chandigarh Administration. Since both the advertisements and recruitments rules were violative of the educational qualifications laid down by the UGC, they were quashed to that extent on May 5,1999, by a Chandigarh Bench of the Central Administrative Tribunal(CAT). The new recruitment rules of the administration came into force on February 1, 2000. And it was under the new rules that the corrigendum was published. Surprisingly the corrigendum was issued as per the new rules while the vacancies were notified under the old rules of January 1,1998 thus leaving the applicants, who had cleared the eligibility test in the period of 14 months, in the lurch. Moreover, the new rules are “violating” the Central Government’s order on the upper age limit for the fresh recruitments. The order, which came into effect on April 1 last year, increased upper age limit for fresh recruitments by two years. The two-year increase in
the age limit was neither incorporated in the new rules
nor published in the corrigendum and the earlier two
advertisements. Thus the candidates, who were overage in
April,1999, might be eligible as per the new notification
of the Central Government. |
Captivating performance by dancers CHANDIGARH June 25 — Dance seems to drive the city youngsters quite a bit. That is perhaps the reason why today’s dance contest organised by the Chandigarh Institute of Performing Arts (CIPA) saw nothing less than 43 entries. Whatever the numbers, one thing that was laudable about the evening was that the contest was too close and the five judges really must have had a tough time deciding who was the best. CIPA is organising a western, film and folk dance competition of this level for the first time and the objective of the organisation is to feed the newly-launched Tara channel (a STAR TV branch) with fresh talent. Press secretary of CIPA said that response to the competition was tremendous, as was clear by the number of entries as well. In order to accommodate the huge participation, the contest was conducted in three categories: 5 to 10 years (which had 15 contestants), 11 to 15 years (had 10 contestants) and 16 to 25 years (had 14 participants). The fourth category was reserved for group performance on dance numbers and it saw four groups fighting for the winning title. As for the performance, it was largely good and kept the audience hooked on for quite long. The hottest numbers seemed to be nimbura nimbura on which Ms World Aishwarya Rai sways like a swan in Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam. Other dance numbers were — the legendary piya tose naina laage re, mukka la mukabla laila, chal chaiyan, and the latest Hans Raj Hans and Shweta Shetty number Dil tote tote ho gaya. The judgement was based broadly on the manner in which the participant entered and departed, what he or she wore, how he presented the song, the rhythm and coherence of his or her steps with music. In the judgement panel sat Mr Balkar Sidhu, Ms Kulwinder Kaur, Mr A.P.S. Noorpuri, Mr Madan Gupta and Mr Jitesh Gandhi. The programme was
compered by Ms Deepa John and Mr Kapil. |
Cop sets
mother,
bhabhi on fire; kills himself CHANDIGARH June 25 — In a bizarre incident here today, Bahadur Singh, a Head Constable posted at Bassi, near Banur, committed suicide after trying to allegedly kill his own mother and sister-in-law by pouring kerosene oil on the two and setting them on fire. Later, he also allegedly stabbed his brother Darshan Singh who tried to rescue his burning relatives. The deceased, who was declared dead in a local Banur hospital on account of having consumed sulphose tablets, had reportedly been suffering from grave mental illness for about a year and he had also not been attending duty. The incident happened this morning around 9.30 a.m. when Bhajan Kaur (mother of deceased) and Roopinder Kaur (his sister-in-law) were cooking food at a chullah in the courtyard of their house. Bahadur Singh, who was resting, came out of his room and poured kerosene on the two. He then set them on fire. The two ran out towards the gate which was at a distance of about 40 yards from the place of the incident, and they were spotted by Darshan Singh, who tried to rescue them. Bahadur Singh, however, allegedly stabbed him also. All three victims have been admitted to the PGI emergency and a case under Section 307 IPC (attempting suicide), has also been registered.
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Cancellation of FIR ordered in
missing baby case SAS NAGAR June 25 — The Judicial Magistrate, Kharar, Ms Neelam Arora, has ordered cancellation of a First Information Report (FIR) registered by the local police in connection with the case of a nine-month old child, Sahib Singh, who has been missing from the township since June, 19. The child had been recovered yesterday by the police from Ludhiana. The magistrate gave the orders to the police after the recovered child, along with his father and mother, was produced before her. After listening to the couple, she gave the custody of the child to the couple. A police official said the child was found at a Radha Sahib gurdwara in Ludhiana. As per the statement given by the woman, Ms Amarjeet Kaur, her child went missing after she became unconscious. It was contradicted when the police, following the trail of the child, reached Ludhiana and found that she had herself left the child there. From the gurdwara, the child was adopted by a farmer of Kubb village, Malkiat Singh, who had no child. The police swung into
action after efforts by the family of the child that a
child had been seen at the Ludhiana gurdwara. A case
under Section 363-A of the IPC had been registered by the
police. The woman living with her husband in Delhi, had
come to visit her parents in Phase XI here. A police
official said there was tension between the couple over
some issue. |
Unlevelled road hazard for drivers PANCHKULA June 25 — A road dug up for the purpose of laying storm water pipes has become a traffic hazard for those on two-wheeler and a source of inconvenience for motorists frequenting Sector 19. One of the roads leading to Sector 19 through the Industrial Area, work on this road began a couple of weeks back. After laying of pipes, the labourers put the earth back into the opening and left the surface unlevelled unlike roads which were put back into motorable condition in other sectors. Consequently, the unlevelled surface has led to an increased number of accidents and the rains have made matters worse. Residing in Sector 19, Mrs Sushma Suresh, says: “Initially, I had quite a few falls from my scooter since there was no indication of any work in progress. The department concerned should have put up some barriers or board indicating that the road was not motorable.’’ An employee in the Industrial Area, Mr Joginder Singh, says: “Owing to the uneven surface, one cyclist fell right in front of my car while trying to pedal through the patch. Since then I am extra careful and avoid taking this route whenever possible. At night, the situation gets worse in the absence of indication especially for those not using the route regularly.” An official of the department informed that the work of laying these storm water pipes had been undertaken to avoid the problem of flooding in the houses of Sector 19 which has been a chronic problem. He added that after the laying of pipes, it takes over 10 days to ensure that the binding material dries up after which the road is repaired. He informed that this work would be undertaken in the coming week. Similar work had been undertaken on the other road leading to Sector 19. This was taken up earlier to ensure the residents could use the alternative route, while one road was under repair.
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Residents block traffic CHANDIGARH June 25 — Members of the Government Employees Residents Welfare Association, Sector 46-D, today blocked traffic on the road separating Sectors 45 and 46 to protest against the failure of the Municipal Corporation of Chandigarh (MCC) in providing basic amenities in the area. Shouting slogans against the MCC authorities and the area councillor, Mr Gian Chand Gupta, the protesters assembled at one place and then trooped to the road and held up traffic much to the inconvenience of the general public. The association president, Mr Ramesh Kumar Chandolia, alleged that besides the non-carpeting of the roads, there were hardly any streetlights in the area. Apart from this, congress grass abounded the area. Covering of the manholes and provision of power and water connections to new allottees were the other demands of the residents. Despite repeated representations to the authorities, nothing had been done, he alleged. In the rainy season the residents find it difficult to venture out of their houses, he added. If the demands of the association were not met a effigy of Gupta will be burnt after 15 days, he warned.
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52
children
get grooming lessons CHANDIGARH June 25 — About 52 participants who attended the one-month summer workshop organised by Career and Education Alliance (CEA) were awarded participation certificates yesterday on the occasion of the concluding function at Bhargava Auditorium. The certificates were awarded by Dr S.K. Sharma, PGI Director, who also addressed the children. The CEA had roped in Institute of Creative Arts and Media Presentation, which offered training in arts-related activities. Mr Rahul Prashar, Director, CEA, informed that the personality grooming part of the workshop was handled by Learning Edge. The training was imparted by Ms Smita and Ms Shikha from ICAM and Ms Varinder Kaur and Mr Kuldeep Singh from Learning Edge.
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In search
of better
education and steady jobs CHANDIGARH June 25 — Whatever may be the circumstances, their undying spirit to get their children educated in a good stream as well as a good institution cannot be dominated. They are the residents of far flung areas like Leh in Jammu and Kashmir who throng the city every year to get their children admitted to local Shivalik School—the only school which offers boarding facility. It’s the militancy in Kashmir that forces them to send their children to far-flung areas. A parent’s indomitable spirit and his commitment towards his children makes them travel thousands of kilometres in search of better options and a comfortable life for their children. They come all the way travelling from there seeking admission for their children. Dr Ramzan Ali is an anaesthetist in a hospital in Leh. He was in the city to get his daughter admitted to Shivalik School. “There is no provision for science subjects in Leh. We can’t send our children to Jammu or Kashmir because of militancy. The environment is not peaceful there. Moreover, good teachers come from the valley and due to the present scenario they don’t want to go to remote areas. So the education standards are worsening day by day.” said Dr Ali. To get their children educated in city schools they have to spend a fortune as the children require a hostel and they have to be provided with all kinds of monetary help for school charges and pocket money. Moreover, they visit Leh in vacations twice a year to see their parents and have to be provided with air fare as travelling by other means is not so feasible. The chances of getting admission for these students in city schools are scant as they usually don’t get more than 50% marks in their matric exam because of the low education standard. Their counterparts in the city aggregate more than 90% marks. “We can’t help it. Its not the fault of our children. They don’t get an opportunity to do well. Our coming to Chandigarh for their admission more than speaks for it. And now if the Principal doesn’t give us admission he should tell us where should we go?”said Dr Dorje, a Ph.D in geology from Panjab University. He had come to get his sister admitted in the school. The students from Leh find it very difficult to adapt here as the temperature in Leh falls to -20 to -30°. Here they have to bear the sweating and scorching heat of summers right after coming to a strange city. The thought of staying thousands of kilometres away makes them miserable and pulls them all the more down. But all the hardships and emotional upheavals are not enough to deter their unshakeable spirit. Every year many of them come to study further and this itself speaks for their courage and will-power. “My daughter wants to become a doctor. So she wants to take up science subjects for further studies. But she has scored only 50% in matric. It is very difficult to get admission here but in my opinion I should not be shirking away to try my level best. At least they should not be deprived of the opportunities. Rest all depends on them and their luck,”said Dr Ali. They have all come here
with a hope. In no case they want to go back
empty-handed. They have a common dream — to get good
education and go back to their homeland and search for a
good job. |
Work on community centre in
progress SAS NAGAR June 25 — Work on a community centre is in progress in Phase V here, meeting a long-standing demand of residents. The community centre, to be built at an estimated cost of Rs 60 lakh by PUDA, will be on the pattern adopted at Patiala. Work is now in progress on the boundary wall and the foundation. The entire premises will be spread over an area of 48,500 sq ft and the building will be double-storeyed. The constructed area of the ground floor will be 1.796 sq ft. and that of the first floor 2,097 sq ft. The facilities on the ground floor will include a reception, the manager and caretaker’s rooms, a multipurpose hall, a room for indoor games, including billiards, a kitchen and pantry and a lounge. In keeping with the residents’ demand there will also be room for senior citizens on the ground floor. The first floor will have two rooms, a dormitory, a reading room and a storeroom. There will be two toilets on each floor. According to PUDA
officials, the work on the project is likely to be over
by January next year. |
Residents sore with licencing wing Time: 11.45 a.m. Place: Licencing wing in the office of the Subdivisional Magistrate (SDM). Problem: Harassment faced by people in completing the formalities to procure a new driving licence or renew an old driving licence or get a registration certificate of a vehicle. Background: Though the number of vehicles registered with the local licencing authority have increased manifold, the system of processing the documents continues to be outdated and tiresome. One has to run between different places to compete all formalities. After purchasing the relevant documents from a form seller at the SDM office, one has to go to bank branch in Phase 7, which is opened till 1.30 p.m on all working days. After this starts the harassment of applicants as the licencing authority has fixed just two days — Tuesday and Thursday — in a week for accepting the forms and the time is till 12 noon. Then one has to wait for Friday when an official from the State Transport Authority comes to take the test at 10 a.m. at the main bus stand in Phase 8, located 3 km away from the SDM office. Then he has to rush back to the SDM office to submit the forms. A similar harassment is faced by people who have to procure a registration certificate (RC) or get an old RC renewed. Investigations by The Tribune revealed that the shortage of staff at the SDM office had forced the officials to divide the days for different works. As compared to the Chandigarh’s licencing wing where all formalities from buying forms to paying fee to giving the driving test to submit forms is all at one place or near the vicinity of each other, here the applicants have to face a lot of harassment. The applicants complain that a few days had been fixed for the making of driving licence. At times the official fail to turn up and the applicants have to wait for another one week. Investigations reveal that in the last financial year, nearly 4999 learning driving licences and 1000 permanent licences were issued. Besides, 3537 new RCs and 1000 old Registration Certificates were renewed. But there is just one clerk each to handle the work of the RCs and the licences. Official version: Officials say that due to shortage of staff the work of making the licences and RCs had been divided. They say that the computerisation of the licencing wing had also been planned but it would take time. Citizens’ viewpoint: The applicants want that all formalities should be completed under one roof or at least near each other. They want that the days of submitting and accepting the forms should be extended keeping in view the harassment faced by the working couples or students who had to leave their classes. Some suggested that move
by the government to appoint agents to get the
formalities completed should be done at the earliest. |
‘Aviation poised for
breakthrough’ CHANDIGARH June 25 — The aviation industry is poised for a major breakthrough in the next two decades, both in passenger and cargo sectors, says Mr Rajinder Kumar, Station Manager, Indian Airlines. The air transport sector, he said, would continue to be one of the fastest growing sectors. Presently, there are 227 major airlines and 132 cargo operators in the world, excluding the CIS countries. Demand for growth of passenger traffic is expected to be five per cent and of cargo 5.9 per cent, while the fleet capacity is expected to be doubled from the present 1.8 million to 4.2 million in next 20 years. All these developments would throw up a wide range of jobs in the civil aviation industry. Mr Rajinder Kumar was
speaking at the passing out function of the airlines
management course organised by the Institute of Tourism
and Future Management Trends yesterday. Earlier, Dr
Gulshan Sharma, Director of the institute, in his address
of welcome, talked about details of the airlines
management course. Mr Vikas Malhotra of Air France and Ms
Lakshmi Gupta of Jet Airways were also present. |
High
rates
of eatables in cinemas deplored CHANDIGARH June 25, — The Chandigarh Parents Association in its weekly meeting organised today strongly deplored the ‘organised loot in the city cinema halls let loose by canteen contractors in connivance with the management of the cinemas’. In a press release after the meeting the association alleged that the cold drinks and eatables in cinemas cost one-and-a-half times more than the actual price. The eatables were below the standard of hygiene. The association also alleged that airconditioners in the halls were not switched on and the parking fee was charged at exorbitant rates. The water coolers were
dirty. The association further urged the administration
to take effective steps to check the menace. |
Punwire staff rally tomorrow CHANDIGARH June 25 — The Punwire Employees Coordination Committee has threatened to intensify its agitation if the management of the Punjab State Industrial Development Corporation (PSIDC) failed to release Rs 50 crore for Punwire. The committee has
announced to hold a mass rally on June 28. |
Tree
plantation campaign by bank CHANDIGARH June 25 — The Sector 32 branch of the State Bank of Patiala will launch a tree plantation campaign from July 1. Stating this here today, the manager of the bank branch, Mr S.C. Dhall, said in collaboration with social organisations, the bank would plant 1000 saplings in religious and educational institutions under its Community Banking Programme.
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Another purse snatcher held CHANDIGARH June 25 — The police arrested a purse snatcher-Dinesh, alias Sheely, from near the Sector 22 Poly Clinic here today. According to police sources, a police party, headed by in charge of the Sector 61 police post, Mr Pargat Singh, arrested Dinesh, a resident of Sector 22. It may be recalled that the police has arrested his accomplice, Deepak Gupta, a couple of days back from Sector 35. Dinesh had given the police a slip that day. A purse belonging to Ms Balpreet Kaur, a resident of Sector 41, was recovered from him. A case has been registered. Three cars stolen: Mr Sanjeev Gupta, a resident of Sector 46, reported that his car( CH03-7393) has been stolen from the Sector 34 market. In another incident, Ms Gurpreet Kaur, alias Lilli, of Sector 15 reported that her car ( CHK 3432) was stolen from Sector 17. Mr Harvinder Singh Bajwa reported that his car (CH01-C-6983) has been stolen from Sector 17. Cases have been registered. Two hurt: Two cyclists—Nabib and Ganesh Kumar—were injured when they were hit by a car near the Sector 29-30 light point on Saturday. They have been admitted to the GMCH, Sector 32. A case has been registered. Liquor seized: The police has arrested Om Parkash, a resident of Kumhar Colony, and seized 30 pouches of whisky from him A case under the Excise Act has been registered. Eve-teaser held: The police arrested Sandeep Kumar, a resident of Khanna, on the charge of eve-teasing from near Neelam Cinema on Saturday. Theft: Mr Satya Kant, a resident of Sector 42, reported that someone has stolen jewellery, some important documents and cash amounting to Rs 700 from his residence on Saturday. A case has been
registered. |
Cash, jewellery stolen CHANDIGARH June 25 — A case under Sections 457 and 380 IPC was registered by the Sector 5 police station following a complaint by Mrs Kusum Jain, a resident of Sector 16, Panchkula. In her complaint she
alleged that while she was out of town miscreants broke
into her house and took away cash and jewellery. |
Woman
killed, 4 injured SAS NAGAR June 25 — A woman was killed and four others were seriously injured when the car in which were travelling was hit by a truck Mundi Kharar, near here, this evening. The woman died on the spot. The Matiz car bearing a registration number of Delhi, was coming from Kharar side. The truck coming from the Chandigarh side was carrying sand. The identity of the
deceased and injured persons could not be ascertained.
The seriously injured have been admitted to the PGI in
Chandigarh. |
Most
dowry
cases are not truly so CHANDIGARH June 25 — The number of cases registered by the Crime Against Women (CAW) cell of the Chandigarh police have (almost doubled in the past five years. Social workers say that although most of these are registered as dowry cases, more than 50 per cent are fabricated. According to the Senior Superintendent of Police (Operations and CAW), Mr Asad Farooqui, in 1995, 348 cases were registered by the cell. This figure rose to 600 cases in 1999. “This year itself, we have received 245 cases so far.” The CAW cell deals only with dowry and marriage discord related matters. According to Mr Farooqui, “Sections 498-A and 406 of the IPC are the only two provisions with the CAW cell. Cases like rape, molestation, prostitution are dealt with at the respective police stations. Based on the data which we have, I can safely say that dowry and related cases are on a rise in the city.” The Chandigarh Chapter of the Indian Council of Social Welfare, in a report based on a study conducted over the past five years (1995-2000), also says that number of cases relating to marital discords, dowry and maladjustment with the spouse is on a rise. Ms Shresta Mehta, General Secretary of the organisation, however, says that not every dowry case, is truly so. “Dowry is not always the real reason for a girl to file her complaint. The reason could be anything from personal differences to ego problems.” More often than not, it is always the family and the lawyer which guides the girl to register her case under Sections 498 A and 406 of the IPC. “ The motive behind it is that an offence registered under Section 498-A is non-bailable,” she says. Ms Amrita Kohli, a counsellor in the CAW cell and President of the Mahila Dakshia Samiti, says, “I can safely say that 50 per cent of the cases registered under Section 498-A are fabricated. Most of the applications are stereotyped. Each has exactly the same allegations in a similar format, drafted by the lawyer.” Mr Farooqui, too, is of a similar opinion. “My experience makes it easy for me to detect a genuine problem when there is one. It is when we feel that the problem lies elsewhere that we try to solve the case by counselling. Figures prove that every year, a number of cases are disposed of by counselling and mutual compromise.” He also says that it is when the family and the lawyer steps in that it becomes a case of dowry harassment.” Girl’s actual problem is relegated to the background and she is the one who actually suffers. As far as the girl is concerned, the actual culprit is the husband, but eventually, the entire family gets involved. Mr Farooqui says that usually such cases stretch for long in courts. “Neither the boy nor the girl can get married again in the mean time. The girl’s property or the istri dhan continues to be with the CAW cell till some final decision is taken.” Observers of the social trends feel that usually middle and upper-class families are responsible for the increase in such cases. “There are more splits in these classes than earlier. Nowadays, girls are more independent. Studies have become more career-oriented,” says Ms Mehta. She says that the answer lies in marriage counselling, but it has to be done before marriage. “The expectations of both sides have increased tremendously. It is important to be career-oriented, but, not at the cost of your happiness.” Social workers say that
the disintegration of joint families is another reason
for a sharp rise in marriage-disputes and dowry cases. |
Invest in Punjab, NRIs told CHANDIGARH June 25 — The Punjab Information and Public Relations Minister, Mr Natha Singh Dalam, yesterday exhorted Non-Resident Indians of Punjabi origin to make investments in their motherland in order to further give a fillip to the economy of Punjab. Speaking after inaugurating the office of Malhi and Basra Worldwide Immigration and Allied Services here, the Punjab Minister said Punjabi NRIs had brought laurels in every sphere, including medicine, healthcare, information technology and environment. Appreciating the enterprising skills of Punjabi NRIs, he said they could contribute immensely in strengthening the economic base of their motherland as the Punjab Government would always welcome them and extend all possible help to them. Mr Natha Singh Dalam
talked about some major projects being undertaken in the
state during the past three years. Mr Sam Basra, Managing
Director of the company, assured the minister and those
present that the company would work with full dedication
and honesty to serve Punjabis here and abroad. |
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