Who gets Anandgarh water project?
Tussle between Public Health Dept, PUDA
By Rajmeet Singh
Tribune News Service

SAS NAGAR, Sept 2 — Planning for the water supply scheme of Punjab Government’s dream project — Anandgarh city — is likely to become a cause of showdown between the Punjab Public Health Department and the Punjab Urban Planning and Development Authority. The project from design stage to execution stage will cost lakhs.

Both government agencies are projecting their own expertise in bringing canal water from the Bhakara mainline through the Kajauli water works. What has led to the controversy is the proposal of a Chief Engineer of the Public Health Department based at Patiala. In his proposal, the technocrat sought setting up of a public health wing in the PUDA, headed by a Chief Engineer of the Public Health Department, a move being strongly opposed by engineers of the PUDA.

The PUDA engineers say overstaffing of the authority with public health engineers will put financial burden on it. The PUDA, in a note to the government, has stated that it is adequately equipped to handle the Anandgarh water supply scheme on its own and there is no need to bring a Chief Engineer( Public Health) to the PUDA. .

Sources in the government said the issue was discussed recently in a meeting chaired by the Chief Secretary, Punjab. The proposal by the Chief Engineer, Public Health (RWS- South), Mr SK Gupta, was then tabled in a meeting chaired by the Principal Secretary, Housing and Urban Development, Punjab. The Chief Administrator, Mr Vinni Mahajan, and Additional Chief Administrator, Mr Rakesh Verma, both of the New Town Planning and Development Authority, Anandgarh, also attended the meeting.

Sources said the Chief Engineer (Public Health), in his proposal, stressed on the need for creating an independent cell of public health engineers to prepare the project. Harping on strengthening the engineering cell of PUDA with public health engineers at all levels, Mr Gupta, in his note, said the independent cell would look after the water supply of SAS Nagar and Anandgarh.

The proposal envisages having two Superintendent Engineers, four Executive Engineers, and required number of Subdivisional Engineers- which PUDA technocrats say will invariably bring engineers on deputation. Of these, at least one Superintendent Engineer, two Executive Engineers, two Subdivisional Engineers and the supporting specialised staff will be required for the Anandgarh project. Mr Gupta reportedly studied a similar project being carried out in an- other part of the country.

Sources said the PUDA, in its note to the Chief Secretary, contented that there was no need to create an engineering body for Anandgarh city in view of the financial crunch being faced by the state government. Citing the availability of public health engineers, the PUDA officials said a team of its existing engineers, headed by a Superintendent Engineer would be sufficient to design the new project.

The PUDA engineers say in view of the financial constraints, the augmentation of water supply scheme can proceed in four phases of 20 mgd each, each line of 48” diameter. For the next eight years, around 20 mgd of water is adequate for SAS Nagar and Anandgarh city , says the PUDA note. At present, SAS Nagar is getting 7.5 mgd water from Kajauli.

PUDA demolishes 14 structures
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Sept 2 — The enforcement wing of the Punjab Urban Planning and Development Authority (PUDA) today demolished unauthorised structures in Behlolpur village near here today. At least 14 structures including shops and houses, were razed to the ground by the demolition squad, with the help of a bulldozer.

Soon after the demolition drive, which lasted for about two hours, residents of the area gathered at the site and started pelting stones at the PUDA staff, resulting in minor injuries to some of the workers. The police force accompanying the enforcement staff had to resort to a canecharge to disperse the mob.

The Additional Chief Administrator, SAS Nagar, Mr Dipinder Singh, and the General Manager (Regulatory), Mr Hardev Singh, led the demolition drive. Mr Dipinder Singh said two recently constructed double-story shopping complexes were also demolished. He said all the houses had come up after the December 1998 deadline set by the Punjab Government regarding constructions in the Periphery.

When the demolition staff left the area, residents of the area alleged that no notice had been served to them. Mr Swaran Singh, a resident of the area, alleged that one of the demolished houses had been constructed prior to December 19998. He said he, along with his wife were injured in the mild canecharge. The affected residents alleged that they were not allowed to remove their belongings before the drive.

The PUDA had earlier carried out demolitions in Kansal village and Nayagaon in the past two months and the structures raised in violation of the December 1998 deadline were targeted. The PUDA officials said the drive would continue in the coming days.

Jewellery worth Rs 2 lakh stolen from house
Tribune News Service

PANCHKULA, Sept 2 — Jewellery worth Rs 2 lakh, a couple of cameras and some cash were stolen from a house in Sector 4 here last evening while the occupants of the house were away to Chandigarh. The thieves also reportedly took away a .32 bore Colt, the personal weapon of Group Captain A.C. Mathur (retd) and his presentations and mementoes of silver, taking the value of theft up to nearly Rs 5 lakh. The police, however, puts the value at Rs 2 lakh.

Relating the sequence of events, Group Captain Mathur said that they left their house to visit his brother staying in Chandigarh at around 11:30 am yesterday, leaving two dalmatians in the enclosure near the main gate of the house.

On their return in the evening, while he was still parking the car, his wife informed him that the door was bolted from inside and would not open. Group Captain Mathur peeped through the window to discover that the light in the dressing room was on and their belongings were lying scattered in the room. He later went to the balcony and found the back door ajar. Later, they informed the police, which arrived on the scene.

With the house situated on the dividing road of sectors 2 and 4, the thieves scaled the rear wall and gained entry through the kitchen mesh door, unlocked the dining room, drawing room doors to gain access to the dressing rooms. Once inside, they ransacked the unlocked cupboard where they lay their hands on the jewellery.

“We had brought home our jewellery from the locker for a few functions which have been on for almost a month. Unfortunately, all of it was lying at the house in the unlocked cupboard and was taken away,’’ he informed.

In the bedroom, they broke open Grp Capt Mathur’s cupboard, from where they took away his personal weapon and scattered documents in his briefcase on the bed while rummaging through them for cash. Later, they followed the same route to leave the house with the booty. He lamented that the thieves had taken away his entire life’s earnings.

“There are no suspects in the case and I have no permanent domestic help. In the vicinity also, maids come and go, which makes it difficult to put a finger on any particular person. However, the culprits actually knew the house well from what I have gathered. Also, they did a very neat job of unlocking the doors,’’ added.

Interestingly, though the incident happened during daytime none of the neighbours noticed anything unusual in the house. The thieves managed to escape without a clue since the house has a thick undergrowth behind the wall on the backside of the house.

There was hectic activity at the residence of the Mathurs today with the dog squad being brought in to provide a lead and pick up clues to the identity of the thieves. Later, the CIA staff and the forensic team also visited the scene of crime. A case has been registered.

Hackers have a field day; police helpless
By Binny Sharma

CHANDIGARH, Sept 2 — Think twice about your e-intelligence if you do not know about hacking. Your neighbour may be more intelligent than you. You may have been curious why your internet bills have been rising. Net subscribers are multiplying in the city, but many of them are not aware of what computer hacking is and how a hacker can cheat them.

There was a time when records were kept in locked almirahs, but now all types of data are available on computers. Password hacking has affected about 70 per cent of Net subscribers in the city and they are not able to detect it because of their ignorance about hacking. If your Net hours are used up and you doubt that you did not used these, it is possible that your facility is being used by a password hacker right under your nose.

Mr Aashish Singla, a contractor says,’’ Recently, I bought 200 hours on the Net and one day I came to know that I had already used 160 hours. When I enquired about it, I got a list of telephone numbers from my Internet service provider (ISP). I was shocked that my facility was used by some unknown persons.’’ A similar case came to light when Mr Saurabh Mehreja, a Panjab University student, came to know that his 100 hours had expired, whereas he had used only 30 to 40 hours. “I am sure that somebody used them, but without proof I cannot do anything about it.’’ Ms Namrita Bains, a student of computers, faces the problem that her e-mails are read by some one who knows her password. Mr Aakash Garg says, ‘’Whenever I am suspicious about the use of my Net hours, I go to my ISP and ask for my account to check the various telephone numbers. I am a stockist by profession; so I can not risk the secrecy of my password.”

According to Mr Neeraj Chaudhary, an advocate, “The police is not in a position to offer assistance to a victim of cyber crime as their is no such Act, but according to the provisions of the Information Technology Bill hacking is punishable with three years’ imprisonment and a fine up to Rs 2 lakh. The Bill has recommended certain amendments to Section 463 of the IPC to include hacking under definition of forgery.’’

“The easiest method of hacking is to get an e-mail account along with a password and the user’s name. Ane e-mail account has a user’s name followed by the ISP’s name. Once a password hacker is acquainted with an e-mail account or a user’s name, the information or the Internet facility can be used.’’says an IT professional.

Hacking may range from breaking into an e-mail account to e-commerce transactions besides service denial attacks, unauthorised intrusions , data transfer etc. Hacking may not be a serious problem in the city as yet, but complaints like loss of Internet hours are increasing day by day.

Hackers generally are good programmers and trace their history to the first time-sharing mini computers.

Although the problem is being faced all over the world, some people think that changes in the software code is the only answer to solving this problem. In cyber security, ‘protected’ software is often countered by creation of a software that can break through the new code. There are around 14 lakh Internet subscribers in India. The Corporate world is a major victim of hacking. An IT professional, who claims to do hacking often, says, “I always choose multinational companies as my targets; nobody bothers about Internet hours there.’’

Some tips to avoid password hacking.

—Frequent changing of passwords.
—Regular visits to your internet service provider (ISP) to check your account and telephone numbers.
—Those who are fond of surfing for long hours should keep a record of the hours used.
—Visit websites like wwwhackerslearnpage.com or wwwhackers.com to know about hacking and what a hacker can do.
—Never share secrets on chatting sites because a hacker can easily guess about your password.
—Avoid filling forms having columns asking about your ID or e-mail account.
—Never share your password — not even with your best friend. 

COMMUNITY

Stress on oil conservation
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Sept 2 — The Indian Oil Corporation, in collaboration with the Petroleum Conservation Research Association, organised an action group meet here today to take effective decisions to promote conservation of petroleum products in the transport sector.

Mr G.C. Daga , General Manager, IOC, informed that 92 per cent of total diesel consumption is in the transport sector only. He exhorted members to come forward in adopting fuel-efficient vehicles and technologies, to ensure competitive service.

Mr P.K. Motwani, regional co-ordinator PCRA (NR), apprised members during his presentation on a pollution study at Jalandhar and Delhi which said ground 3 lakh litre of diesel and 1 lakh litre of petrol can be saved in a single day, by switching off the engines at some selective traffic intersections only in Delhi.

Representatives from oil companies, state transport departments, private fleet operators, automobile and components manufacturing companies, traffic police, pollution department and other agencies concerned with transport sector participated in the meeting.

Members were informed about various technological upgradation projects taken up by PCRA, in association with R&D organisations, engineering colleges and IITs throughout the country. The design modification in distributor of Maruti Car taken at IIT Delhi is expected to save fuel to the tune of 8 per cent in running a car, a press release of the association said.

Army residential complex opened
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Sept 2 — A 304-unit residential complex constructed by the Army Welfare Housing Organisation (AWHO) at Mani Majra was inaugurated today. The complex has been named Rajeev Vihar in the memory of Second-Lieutenant Rajeev Sandhu who was posthumously awarded Maha Vir Chakra for gallantry in operations conducted by the Indian Peace Keeping Force in Jaffna.

Belonging to 7 Assam, Second-Lieutenant Sandhu had been on patrol duty on July 19, 1989, when they were attacked by the LTTE. A direct hit by a rocket mutilated both his legs, but he tumbled out of his jeep and despite being wounded, took a position and prevented LTTE men from coming near his comrades. Among those who fell to his bullets was Kumaran, an LTTE commander.

His parents as well as some personnel from his unit, who had come from Tangdhar in Jammu and Kashmir, were also present on the occasion.

Inaugurating the complex, the Adjutant General, Lieut-Gen S.S. Grewal, said that the AWHO has already constructed over 12,000 dwelling units at 14 different stations, while construction of another 7,600 units is underway.

The project was initiated in February 1998, with the scheduled date of completion being July 28 this year. A total of 10 acres of land was acquired at a cost of Rs 31 crore.

An effective finance control in the execution of the project has resulted in saving of Rs 30 lakhs, thereby lowering the cost of dwelling units. There are four categories of dwelling units — deluxe, economy, utility and thrifty.

Facilities available in the complex include a community centre, fountain-cum fire hydrant, society office, clinic, a place for indoor games and a canteen.

Liquor vends to remain closed for 2 days
Tribune News Service

SAS NAGAR, Sept 2 — The State Excise and Taxation authorities today ordered the closure of all liquor vends in SAS Nagar and Kharar sub-divisions for two days. In the recent past, the liquor vends had remained open on dry days.

The immediate cause of orders for the closure was that the liquor vends remained open on the Independence Day. The liquor vends in the town also remained open during the recent elections to the civic body.

An official of the Excise and Taxation Department said the orders of closure were issued by the District Excise and Taxation Commissioner. Sources in the department said that a senior official of the department happened to be in the town on a dry day and saw the liquor vends open. An excise inspector had been suspended but was later reinstated in connection with the issue. However, some of the liquor vends in the town were open late this evening.

‘Make women representation mandatory at all levels’
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Sept 2 — “The decline of political culture in post-independent India had discouraged decent men to participate in electoral politics and it is no wonder that women have been virtually excluded from politics,” said Madhu Kishwar, talking on the ‘Marginality of Indian women on the political scene’ a talk show organized by the Press Club, Chandigarh today.

Madhu Kishwar pointed out that it would be virtually impossible for women to think of organising a gang of criminals and thugs to capture booths for winning an election. But since this criminalisation of electoral politics was not the norm during the freedom struggle, in response to Mahatma Gandhi’s call, a large number of women had came out in the open to confront the British empire and collectively participated in the freedom struggle. Though women had been excluded from electoral politics, they continue to remain active in various other reformist social movements with full strength and effectiveness.

Madhu Kishwar also referred to the battle between genders in the western hemisphere, where women had to struggle for centuries to find an entry into the political space. In contrast, such a negative attitude did not exist in India and the right to vote, to equal pay for equal work and other human rights were granted in the Indian Constitution without any resistance or opposition from men. With such a background, it was intriguing to see the strong opposition against the bill for women representation during the last decade in the Parliament.

Interestingly, the idea of such a bill had not been initiated by women but had come from men like Rajiv Gandhi, Ramkrishan Hegde and others but today this bill is being seen as a bill of the women, for the women and to be opposed by men. This will neither help the cause of women nor help in the improvement in the democratic polity which needs a serious review. She suggested that constitutional amendments were not necessary and only reforms in the People’s Representation Act were sufficient for directing the political parties to put atleast 33 per cent candidates in the election fray.

Continuing the issues and arguments raised by Madhu Kishwar, Dr Satya Pal Gautam of the Department of Philosophy, Panjab University, Chandigarh, recalled that some years ago during a discussion organised by the Women Studies Centre at Panjab University, Chandigarh, he had suggested that instead of reserving seats in the Parliament and Vidhan Sabhas, it would be more appropriate that amendments in the People’s Representation Act are made to make it mandatory for all political parties, that their various cells and committees at the local, state and national level are required to have 33 per cent representation by women. In case any political party failed to follow this mandate they should be derecognised from the electoral process. For this, the election commission was competent to take the initiative and the cumbersome process of constitutional reform was not necessary. This was evident from the fact that Dr Gautam’s earlier suggestion for making it mandatory for the political parties to hold their organisation’s elections on time or face derecognition had been effectively implemented by the then CEC, Mr Seshan.

He emphasised that unless representational democracy is replaced by participatory democracy at the local, state, regional and national level no electoral reforms could contribute much to restore the decency. For this the intelligentsia and the media has great responsibility which they have been escaping from, for the last half a century.

In her presidential remarks, Ms Vineeta Rai, Adviser to the Administrator, UT Chandigarh, narrated her experiences and complimented both the speakers for providing a comprehensive analysis and criticism of the flaws in the Women’s Bill. She was of the view that despite various shortcomings, the Indian political system had made considerable achievements when compared to the track record of many third world countries.

President Jagtar Singh proposed a vote of thanks. He said that the General Body of the Press Club was meeting to amend the constitution to make place for women as the office-bearers of the Chandigarh Press Club.

Tension over demolition of dera
From Our Correspondent

DERA BASSI, Sept 2 — Tension prevailed among residents and members of two groups over the demolition of a dera and some shops, allegedly constructed on a piece of disputed land in Mubarikpur village, 2 km from here.

According to sources, the dera along with some shops were constructed on the land after the consent of Mr Jaswant Singh, who claims to be a partner of the land despite the objection of Mr Mohan Lal, the other partner.

Following this, Mr Mohan Lal got warrants of possession from a court at Rajpura in May 1998. He reportedly found it difficult to get the possession and police help was sought help for this.

Mr Mohan Lal with the help of police personnel demolished the structure on the land and got the possession without any reactions from the side of Jaswant Singh and other persons concerned.

Interestingly, the dera was restored and vacated land was reoccupied by Jaswant Singh’s men.

Four hurt in road mishap
From Our Correspondent

KALKA, Sept 2 — Four persons were injured in an accident involving a bus and a car near Sophia Convent School here this morning.

As per reports, a Haryana Roadways bus no. HR-37-1053 which was going from Kalka to Chandigarh collided with a Corona Toyota car no. DL-4C-A 4524, which was going from Chandigarh to Kasauli. According to eye-witnesses the bus was overtaking another vehicle and lost control and hit the car, dragging it for some distance. All four occupants of the car were injured.

The injured have been identified as Avtar Singh, a resident of Sector 35-D, Chandigarh, Narindar Kaur w/o Avtar Singh, Surinder Kaur from Amritsar, and Aman Preet Kaur from Delhi. Narinder Kaur who was seriously injured, was taken to Chandigarh while the other injured have been admitted in Government Hospital at Kalka. The local police has registered a case under Sections 279 and 337 of IPC. The driver and conductor of the bus fled from the accident site.

CRIME

Man arrested on murder charge
Tribune News Service

Burn injuries : SAS NAGAR: A woman of Phase X, Ms Paramjit Kaur, was admitted with 70 per cent burns at the Sector 16 General Hospital, Chandigarh, here on Saturday morning. A police official said the woman in her statement given before the magistrate had said that her clothes caught fire while working in the kitchen of her house.