HEALTH

Medical centre opened
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH July 16 — A private liver, gastroenterology and endoscopy centre was inaugurated in Sector 16 by the PGI Director, Dr S.K. Sharma, today.

Persons suffering from diseases of the liver, pancreas and intestines can visit the centre for treatment. The upper GI endoscopy, colonoscopy and the ERCP procedures can be performed at the centre. The centre has a well-equipped computerised laboratory and vaccination centre.

Dr Sandeep Dhavan, owner of the centre, said it would provide the patients with specialised diagnostic and therapeutic services in gastroenterology and hepatology. Dr Dhavan has more than 10 years of experience in the Departments of Gastroenterology and Hepatology of the PGI.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr S.K. Sharma said though all these facilities were available in the PGI, there was a significant overload on these due to the rush of patients. He said the availability of these facilities in such clinics would reduce the pressure on the PGI to an extent. He said patients who could pay, but not wait, would want to visit these centres.

Walking into fitness
By Sunaina Pandit

CHANDIGARH: A look at the city’s parks in the morning and evening will convince anyone that fitness is not just a fad. It has become a way of life in the City Beautiful. Even if a number of exercising gadgets have hit the market, yet walking continues to be the most preferred mode of exercise among all age groups.

Instruments are available for those who prefer to work out at home. Youngsters usually prefer to go to gymnasiums, a number of which have come up in the city. There also are centres that promise to help shed kilos of weight in a matter of weeks.

But neither the “weight-shedding centres”, nor the gymnasiums and other work-out machines have made a dent in the age-old habit of walking. Mr Sharma, a businessman says, “Of all the exercises, morning walk is the cheapest. All that one has to do is to get out of bed early.”

With some, a walk in the morning and in the evening has become a ritual. Usha, a housewife says: “If I do not go for a walk in the morning, I remain lazy throughout the day and in the evening I go for a walk just to have a break from the household work.”

In the wee hours of the morning one can see a fairly large number of people walking briskly towards the parks. They are seem to be in a hurry to reach somewhere. Ajay, a student, says, “Every morning I go for walk at around 5. Though the lanes look nearly deserted, the parks are full of morning walkers.” The Sukhna Lake in Chandigarh and the Town Park in Panchkula are the special favourites of morning walkers and joggers, though other parks such as the Terraced Garden or the Garden of Fragrance are also gaining popularity.

The morning walk is generally brisk with the main purpose of exercising the body. But the evening walk is generally a leisurely stroll. People generally sit on the grass or on benches. There are fewer youngsters in the parks in the evening than in the morning.

The parks have become a favourite haunt of old people. In the evening they sit in groups, discussing politics or household matters and sometimes just laughing the time away merrily. These old people usually go for an evening walk to meet friends. Remarks Mr Prakash, a retired government official: “ I come out for an evening walk just to meet old friends and escape the loneliness back at home.”

Mega medical camp
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGAR July 16 — Free check up and consultations by leading specialists were provided to the in-house and regular public during the mega medical check-up camp organised by the Vandana Luthra's Curls and Curves (VLCC) here today.

The panel of doctors available included a specialist doctor, an endocrinologists, cardiologists, gynaecologists, orthopaedician, a pediatrician along with a cosmotologist and a nutritionist. In addition to this, dieticians also gave free nutrition and diet counselling depending upon the person and health factor. Free body fat analysis was also done along with a battery of blood tests like blood group, haemoglobin and serum cholesterol check. Patients were warned that obesity was a silent killer. It's correction was not merely a cosmetic need, but a medical necessity.

A cosmotologist conducted free skin and hair analysis and answered beauty-related queries for both men and women.

300 examined at health camp
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH July 16 — Nearly 300 patients were examined at a free medical check-up camp organised by the Lions Club Chandigarh Vishal at the Sri Ram Mandir, Sector 47-D.

A team of 10 doctors examined the patients and distributed free medicines. Free laboratory investigations were also provided. The camp was inaugurated by Mr Satya Pal Jain, former MP.

Chickenpox vaccination
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH July 16 — A few children were administered chickenpox vaccinations at a camp organised at the Sector 27 Press Club today.

Dr I.J.S. Bhatia, who had organised the camp, said that to be fully protected against chickenpox one dose was required between one and 12 years and two doses for children above 13 years with an interval of six to10 weeks between the two doses.

The vaccine, which is available in the market for Rs 1,500 per dose, was made available to the club members, their spouses and dependents for Rs 1,120.

Dr Bhatia informed that chickenpox was a highly contagious disease and was characterised by fever and an itchy blistered rash.

Imported health supplements
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH July 16 — For those who want to build up endurance and stay in shape, Body Image India has brought in 100 per cent natural and free from steroids health and dietary supplements. Imported from the USA, they are now available at all the premium retail counters of the city.

The products are Pump Up, Amino Power, Shape-Up and Stamina Plus. While Amino Power and Pump Up meet the specific requirements of sportsmen and body-builders, Shape-Up and Stamina Plus have a special appeal for women, who are looking for fitness and weight loss. Made from natural compounds, these do not require any medical supervision.

Mr Dimple Anand, Managing Director of Body Image India, maintains that internationally, sportspersons have access to the latest discoveries and advances in sport medicine and nutritional supplements, which go a long way in building muscle mass and endurance levels. This becomes a big disadvantage for sportspersons, talented as they might be.

SPORT

Hansraj win roller hockey girls’ titles
By Our Sports Reporter

Results: road race: under-4: girls-Gauri Chawla 1; boys-Abhishek 1, Dhruv 2, Siddhartha 3; 4-6 yrs: girls-Rippanpreet 1, Nupur 2, Salony Bhardwaj 3; boys-Naman 1, Shivam 2, Kunal 3; 6-8 yrs: girls-Mehak 1, Neha 2, Kanishka 3; boys-Mayank 1, Amarjot 2, Aseem 3; 8-10 yrs (girls)-Neha 1, Shipra 2, Liza Malhotra 3; boys-Bhuvan 1,Gulrajan 2, Manjeet 3; 10-12 yrs (girls)-Harjapjiv 1, Geetika 2, Akshi 3; boys-Arjun 1, Anwar Yuvraj 2, Sahajpreet 3; 12-14 yrs (girls)-Heena 1, Rubia 2, Meera 3; 12-14 yrs (boys)-Ravi 1, Surindera 2, Ankit 3; above-14: Pallavi 1, Sonia Yadav 2, Ritu 3. girls-Harkiran 1, Varun 2, Amit 3; rink race I- under-4 (girls): Ashi Goyal 1, Gauri Chawla 2; boys: Abhishek Duggal 1, Siddharth Gupta 2, Naman Hurria 3; 4-6 years (girls)—Nupur Arora 1, Alisha Monga 2, Ayushi Tokhi 3; boys: Shivam Thakur 1, Jatin Rana 2, Shaijveer 3; 6-8 years:girls-Mehak Paul 1, Neha Singh 2, Naurin 3; boys: Shubham Narang 1, Saurabh 2, Mayank 3; 8-10 years (girls)—Neha Narwal 1, Renuka Sharma 2, Naveeta Anand 3; boys-Darpan Singh 1, Salil Tripathi 2, Nirbhay Singh 2,Gaurang Gupta 3; 10-12 yrs (girls)—Geetika 1, Shakun 2, Akshi Bhargava 3; boys—Gurdeep 1, Jaspreet 2, Rajbeer 3; 12-14 yrs (girls)—Heena 1, Roopam 2, Rima 3; boys: Harkirat 1, Ankit Vij 2, Naginder 3; above-14 yrs (girls): Sonia Yadav 1, Heena 2, Harvinder Kaur 3; boys: Amit 1, Harkiran 2, Varun 3.

Handball probables

The Handball Federation of India has named 32 junior men probables for the national junior camp at DAV Senior Secondary School, Sector 8. Mr Ashok Pathik, Assistant Director, Northern Centre, SAI told that after rowing, handball was another discipline where Indian camps were being held in the city. Mukesh was the lone player from Chandigarh called for this camp.

The boys are Rasheed Khan, Jain Prasad, Susheel Kumar, Faisal Khan, Imran Khan, Akar Akhtar, Shiabaur Singh, Pawan Kumar, Baljit Singh, Kulwinder Singh, Mukhtiar Singh, Sukhdev, NP Singh, Ritish Kumar Pandey, Harvinder Singh, Murli, Jaswinder Singh, Dhanraj, Mukesh, Varun Dev Singh, Amandeep Singh, Nadeem Ahmed, Krishan, Sunil Kumar, Vipan, Girish Kumar, Jean Persee, Prasnvatam, Kuldeep, Feroze Ahmed Khan, Mohd. Sohail Ali and Ashok Kumar. The coaches are S. Mustfa (National Handball Academy, Bhilai), Arun Kumar (J&K), Manjit Singh ( SAI) and Raj Pal — SAI (conditioning expert for boys and women).

The women are Jancy Chackoo, Bina, Usha Nandini, Mini R, Deepa M, Sheeba Joseph, Indu Bala, Gurpreet Kaur, Harpreet Kaur, Harvinder Kaur, Sunita, Dama, Kamali, Sanoli, Banita, Santhoi Devi, Ratna Mali, Chitraphal, Kalyani Pande, Mukta, Jullet Lawrence, Amita Dahli, Anita Yadav, Neeti, Kavita, Aarti, Jyoti, Suman, Renu Rattan, Sebastain, B. Parida and Manju. The coaches are Mohinder Lal and Uma Dass (both SAI), and Vivek (J&K).

Cricket tourney

Munish Arora scored unbeaten 36 runs and Parveen, Amandeep and Vikram claimed three wickets each to help Industrial Cricket Club beat Godrej Cricket Club by four wickets to enter the final round of the Samsung league cricket tournament for Samuel Banerjee trophy at Government Senior Secondary School, Sector 19. The winner will take on Kelvinator XI.

Brief scores: Godrej CC- 119 all out (Vaneet Soni 22, Harpal Singh 21, Navdeep Singh 15, Parveen Sharma 3 for 19, Amandeep Singh 3 for 15, Vikram Sharma 3 for 28); ICC-121 for six in 23.5 overs (Munish Arora 36 n.o., Jagjeet Saini 22, Ravinder Nain 21, Aman Kumar 15, Sanjay Dhull 4 for 20, Mohan Singh 2 for 9).

Devi Cricket Club outplayed Krishna XI by 115 runs in the second summer league cricket match played at CRPF grounds. Devi XI scored 224 runs for 8 wickets while Krishna XI were all out for 109 runs in 22.3 overs.

Jr nationals in badminton from Dec 19 in city
By Our Sports Reporter

CHANDIGARH July 16 — The Chandigarh Badminton Association has finalised December 19 to 26 as the possible dates for the Junior National Badminton Championship, which will be hosted by the CBA for the first time in the city after getting direct affiliation with the Badminton Association of India about 12 years back. This was stated by Mr Gian Chand Gupta, president of the CBA.

He said the dates would be sent to the BAI for its final approval. He told that city players would be given exposure. Chandigarh would be given two additional entries. The all-India major ranking tournament at Lucknow would end on December 17.

He said they would make all-out efforts to make this nationals the best ever organised. He said Doordarshan would give live coverage for semi-finals and finals, and getting sponsors would not be difficult. The budget of Rs 20 lakh was targeted for the nationals and they would try to rope in at least two sponsors. The BAI was tying up with separate sponsor for senior and juniors and they had decided not to have much share in the proceeds from the nationals. He said for the nationals, an organising committee would be formed, which would have nominees from BAI and members of the host association.

The state championship would be held from August 24 to 27. The inter-state zonal championship would be held in Delhi in the last week of September. The CBA would like to have control over the Sector 42 badminton hall, but only after it became self-dependent for expenses. He appreciated the efforts made by CBA members in keeping the association alive despite financial shortcomings. 

Amit chosen for CFA
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH July 16 — Amit Negi, a student of Shri Guru Harkrishan Model School, Sector 38, has been selected for the Chandigarh Football Academy which is being established by the Chandigarh Sports Department here.

On the conclusion of the trials which were conducted at various places in the region, Amit was picked for the academy. He is the only player selected for the academy from the Union Territory.

ADMINISTRATION

19 lakh for seweragein Maloya
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH July 16 — For the improvement of the sewerage system, Rs 19 lakh has been sanctioned by the Chandigarh Administration for the UT villages. Speaking at the first rural awareness camp organised by the Consumers Forum and the gram panchayat of Maloya village, the Deputy Commissioner, Mr M. Ramsekhar, said the Administration was aware of various problems faced by the villages. ”We are bringing about some useful changes in issuing registrations and licenses to eradicate corruption at the lower level,” he said.

He appreciated the role of the Consumers Forum in organising such camps for rural masses. He said it was a great movement in protecting the rights of the consumers and giving them necessary awareness. The four camps on consumer awareness, food and supplies, health awareness, AIDS and deaddiction and LPG awareness were organised in the village today.

Speaking on the occasion, the Chairman of the Chandigarh Consumer Forum gave an introduction of the inception and activities of the organisation. Ms Sunita Roy, Executive Secretary of the Consumer Coordination Council, gave details about the Action Plan 2000. This plan has been adopted by the council in collaboration with the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Government of India.

Mr H.S. Ahluwalia, President of the Complaints Cell, explaining the meaning of the word ‘consumer’, highlighted the role of the forum in settling complaints. Giving a detailed outline of the Citizen Charter, the Secretary General of the forum, Lt-Col Sarwan Singh said it was still pending with the Municipal Corporation and the Administration.

Dr Joginder Singh, Director, Health Services, said an illness fund of Rs 50 lakh was available with the department to meet the costly treatment of those having no or inadequate source of income. “ However, the income limit fixed by the government is too low,” he said.

The sarpanch, Ms Surjit Kaur, highlighted the multifarious problems faced by the village. These included sanitation, school upgradation, widow pension and condition of the roads. She asked the Deputy Commissioner for an early redressal to the problems.

Those present on the occasion, including Mr R.K. Kaplash, Vice- Chairman of the forum, took part in the tree plantation programme. It was organised by Mr S.K. Sharma, President of the Environment Study of India.

HUDA to expedite group housing plans
Special meetings to be held twice a month
By Geetanjali Gayatri
Tribune News Service

PANCHKULA July 16 — The Haryana Urban Development Authority will hold special meetings to approve group housing plans on the second and fourth Wednesday of every month for quick disposal of cases which usually gather dust in office from anything between seven months to one year before being approved.

The decision comes after the successful experimentation with the sanction of building plans.

The usual procedure followed in such cases is that the file remains consigned to the office of the senior town planner (STP) for as long as three months and the office of the Superintending Engineer takes one month after which the file is put up to the Administrator where a formal approval is given.

However, under the new system, the plan will be required to be put up before a joint committee comprising the Administrator, the SE and the STP who will check the plan submitted to them a fortnight back and point out any objections and drawbacks at the meeting to the architect and builders. In case the officials find no shortcoming in the plan, it would be approved without delay, thus reducing the time from five months to just about a month.

The Administrator, Mr Sandeep Garg, says, "The idea behind the meetings is to contain the unnecessary harassment the public is put to while pursuing files from one office to another. This also eases the piling of files on the tables of officials since in many cases, it has been observed that the file returns as many times as there are objections. The staff do not make an effort to point out all shortcomings in one go as a result of which the file keeps shuttling.''

Also, sources add that a few cases where it took over six months to clear a file have come to light and reports of misuse of authority and complaints about delay in putting up of files by the junior level have been coming to the officials which necessitated the decision.

Moreover, with the introduction of this new scheme for building plans where all officials met at the community centre in Sector 7 at the scheduled time on two Tuesdays in a month, the residents expressed satisfaction over the prompt disposal of cases.