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| Tuesday,
December 5, 2000, Chandigarh, India |
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New Dy Conservator of Forests for UT CHANDIGARH, Dec 4 — A new Deputy Conservator of Forests has been appointed to replace Mr H.S. Sohal. Mr Ishwar Singh, a 1988 batch Indian Forest Service (IFS) official, has joined the Chandigarh Administration, however, Mr Sohal is yet to be relieved of his charge. Already, the Administration has written to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests, seeking an additional post of an IFS officer for its botanical gardens. That case is still pending. Meanwhile Mr H.K. Nagpal and Mr Prithi Chand, both PCS officers, on deputation with the Chandigarh Administration, have been given one year of extension each.
CHANDIGARH, Dec 4 — The Municipal Corporation of Chandigarh (MCC) is considering afresh the proposal of starting day markets in various parts of the city on a rotational basis to rehabilitate rehri/phariwalas, it is reliably learnt. However, the new scheme will be formulated with certain modifications in the existing proposal so that it is acceptable to the agitating phariwalas this time. Sources reveal that the day markets are likely to come up on the pattern of apni mandis, where phari vendors will be given space for a day or two to sell their wares. Following the agitation by shopkeepers of Sector 40, who protested the Administration’s decision to allow the phariwalas to squat in a ground near the market on a day-to-day basis, the MC is now thinking in terms of starting these day markets once a week at different venues in the city. Officials maintain that the modalities of the same are being formulated to put to rest the trouble that has been brewing for the last few days on this issue. The sites for the same will be identified accordingly as they will not be allowed to sit permanently at one place since they then start staking their claims to that place. Moreover, the authorities do not want more and more rehri markets to come up in the city. Source maintain that the concept of day markets is being favoured on the ground that they would be beneficial for the middle and lower class residents as most of the vendors here sold items at comparatively cheaper rates. It may be recalled that a similar plan two years ago had fallen through due to poor response from phari vendors. A delegation of phari vendors led by the president of Old Phari Market Association, Mr Partap Singh, met senior officials of MC, including the Commissioner and Senior Deputy Mayor, and urged them to make some place available to them so that they can carry out their day-to-day business. They have demanded that they should be alloted one place even though it is for a few hours and they are also prepared to close it once a week. Mr Singh said that setting up day markets at different venues will also harass the consumers who will have to wait for a week to get the thing exchanged. Mr Dileep Singh lamented that ever since they have been removed from Sector 22, they have not been able to sell their wares. “We are finding it hard to make both ends meet even though we are qualified and engaged in this small time occupation for the last several years, he said. For the third consecutive day, the police force deputed at the Sector 40 venue, which was recently allotted to them, did not let them sit there. The same had happened in Sector 22 when a piece was earmarked for them and they were removed within a day. Hence, a permanent solution should be found to their problem. The members further said that they are prepared to pay ground rent if MC allots land at a particular place to them. Even in 1998, they were jobless for five-six months. They have appealed to the authorities to consider their demand as it is a matter of livelihood for them. They are also planning to submit a memorandum of their demands to the Deputy Commissioner. Meanwhile, Mohammed Salim, chairman of the Sector 41 Rehri market association, while supporting their cause said that MC or the Administration should allot a piece of land to them in those sectors where there are no rehri markets or other backward areas in newly developing sectors. “For we are not ready to accept them at the cost of spoiling our own business,” he said. He pointed out that there are three rehri markets in Sectors 40 and 41 and setting up the phari market would have adversely affected their business. |
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TRAIN MISHAP CHANDIGARH,
Dec 4 — A team of Northern Railway officials is facing a tough task regarding on-the-spot ex-gratia claims being made by persons injured in the train accident near Fatehgarh Sahib. An official disbursing payments at the special emergency counter of the PGI said cases of more than a couple of false claims had been detected. Cases of people posing as relatives and friends of the injured, and even members of an NGO were repoted. As per rules and regulations, following any accident, the Railway authorities disburse an on-the-spot ex-gratia payment of Rs 5, 000 to the injured admitted in hospitals to meet exigency expenditure. Most of those admitted in the PGI are poor migrants from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh working in Punjab. Taking advantage of this situation and armed with the names of the injured from newspapers, many persons approached the assistance counter set up by the Railway authorities in the PGI. The ex-gratia payment to meet the daily needs has already been disbursed to the victims. Since for most, Rs 5,000 in itself is a big sum of money, a patient refused having received the amount. He agreed, but only after he was shown the proof of his thumb imprint against the amount received. A reason enough for the members of the team of Railway officials to take all precaution and care while dealing with individual cases. Today four accident victims out of 23 admitted to the PGI were discharged. While three went home accompanied by their relatives, Ramesh Yadav from Rai Barreilli in UP was escorted by an inspector from the Railway Police to his native village to ward off the possibility of his being cheated by unscrupulous elements on the way. Meanwhile, an accident victim, Ram Avtar, was admitted to the PGI after he was referred to the institute by Rajindra Hospital in, Patiala. today. Also three bodies, after a post-mortem, were sent to Patiala for identification and other formalities. The three had succumbed to their injuries yesterday.
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Kamov choppers to be overhauled in
city CHANDIGARH, Dec 4 — The task of overhauling engines of the Navy's Kamov helicopters, presently being undertaken by Russian agencies abroad, will now be done at the IAF's No.3 Base Repair Depot here, thereby saving the country Rs 45 to 50 lakh per engine. The Indian Navy is reported to operate five Ka-25 and eight Ka-27 choppers. Armed with torpedoes and depth charges, these twin-engined choppers are deployed for anti-submarine warfare and are based on guided missile destroyers as well as the naval air station, INS Hansa near Goa. The IAF sources revealed that the Navy has agreed in principle to send Kamov engines to 3 BRD for repair and overhaul. "The Navy has already sent two Kamov engines here as a pilot project. These will be studied and examined by us to work out appropriate technical measures before it becomes a regular feature," a senior officer commented. The engines powering the Kamov helicopters is very similar to those fitted on the IAF's Mi-8 and Mi-17 choppers. While the Mi-8's TV-2 engines are being overhauled here since the past two years, a new overhaul line for the Mi-17's TV-3 engine has been established recently and the first locally overhauled TV-3 engine is scheduled to roll out this month. "The project has been in the backdrop of the government's policy of avoiding duplication of infrastructure and capabilities to reduce extra expenditure and the fact that we already have the requisite technical expertise," an officer remarked, adding that sending equipment to Russia has now become expensive. Chopper engines are stated to have a total technical life of 3,000 flying hours and are required to be overhauled after 1,000 hours. However, operations in coastal areas and on sea can require overhaul after 750 hours as engine parts get corroded due to high salinity and humidity. However, the airframe of the Kamov choppers, which is radically different from the MI-8/17 airframe will not be overhauled here. Given the small numbers of Kamov series in service with the Navy, a section of officers feel that it is not economically feasible to set up an overhaul line for the choppers' airframes. "Sending airframes to Russia for overhaul of the airframes is a cheaper option," an officer commented. The Indian Navy operates four types of choppers, the Ka-25, the Ka-28, the British Seaking and the locally produced Chetak. The Seakings are sent to the United Kingdom for overhaul, while the Chetaks are taken care of by their manufacturer, the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. The indigenously designed and developed Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) is also undergoing user trials with the Navy, while negotiations are under way to acquire at least three Ka-31 armed surveillance choppers. Overhauling Navy aircraft engines is not new to 3 BRD. It is already engaged in overhauling engines of the Il-38 turbo-prop aircraft, which are similar to the engines fitted on the IAF's An-32 transporters. |
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Dead mistaken for
drunkard CHANDIGARH, Dec 4 — Mistaking him for a drunkard, indifferent passersby to Sector 17 walked past the body of a clerk with the Sales Tax Department nonchalantly in the morning today. It was only later that someone discovered that Suresh Kumar was actually dead. Suresh Kumar was reportedly walking his way home in Sector 18 after returning from a visit to his brother-in-law at Karnal when he died behind the Punjab Accountant General’s office early in the morning today. It was at about 11.30 a.m. that a passerby realised that Suresh was dead. Ruling out the possibility of foul play, a senior police officer said, “Suresh probably died due to natural reasons”. He added that no marks of external injury were found. “Suresh, moreover, had no enemies”, he added. The officer added that the body had been sent for post-mortem and the exact cause of the death would be ascertained only after receiving the report. However, the officer confirmed that Suresh had consumed liquor. According to a relative, Suresh had left his house at about 10.30 a.m. His brother-in-law came to see him off at the Karnal Bus Stand. That was the last time Suresh was seen alive. |
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SPEAKING
OUT CHANDIGARH, Dec 4 — Legal luminaries of the city are of the opinion that the Director General of Police (DGP), Haryana, Mr S.P.S. Rathore, should resign or proceed on long leave on moral grounds. It has been 18 days since the DGP was chargesheeted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on the grounds of molesting Ruchika, a 14-year-old girl, who reportedly committed suicide later on. Commenting on the issue Justice J.V. Gupta, said the charges levelled against Mr Rathore were serious in nature and call for appropriate action. The comment of the Chief Minister that action against the officer would be taken only if he was convicted are a far call from the days when officers or even politicians resigned owning moral responsibility for any wrong doing. He said the law was silent on his continuation in office as there was nothing illegal in continuing in office but it would be graceful on his part if he himself ask the authorities to relieve him. It would be also in the larger interest of the society, he added. Mr G.S. Grewal, a former Advocate General of Punjab, was of the view that the DGP should ask for a transfer or proceed on long leave till the matter is sorted out. It would also set a good precedent for the people holding high public offices. He recalled on how ministers used to own moral responsibility for any lapses and resigned. There are hardly such examples in the present day and the resignation of the Union Railway Minister, Ms Mamata Banerjee, over the Fatehgarh Sahib rail incident is a step in the right direction. . The charges against the officer are serious and if convicted could attract the life sentence. His decision to continue as the police chief was very undesirable and has no place in a civilized society. It is sad that the elders who drafted the law did not foresee that officers and politicians would continue to hold office when they had been charged with a crime. It is an irony that the very person stands charged with a crime who is supposed to initiate action against a culprit and bring him to book, he remarked. Other legal luminaries, who did not wish to be quoted, said they too felt that the officer should seek a transfer or go on a long leave till the matter is sorted out. It is a reflection of the changing times that such incidents do not generate a debate in the society and people just take such serious lapses in their stride. In a materialistic world it is each man for himself and in this process even the moral standards have taken a beating. Such a matter would have been unpardonable two decades ago. It is a matter of concern that the officer has gone ahead and courted controversy while he should have ideally proceeded on long leave or sought a transfer to another department, they opined. |
Police and public seek relief at
Khula Darbar PANCHKULA, Dec 4 — The Khula Darbar of the Director General of Police, Haryana, was no different from any other held every month to redress grievances of the public against the police. With almost 150 complaints being put before him, the DGP carried on with his routine of marking complaints to police officers concerned for inquiries, facilitating justice to the aggrieved parties and for quick disposal of cases. However, time and again, he stated that he would function within the set of rules laid down for the police force and that these would not be relaxed for anybody. “We will do whatever we can, within our power. If you are seeking anything beyond that, you will have to go to court,’’ he said while attending to a complaint. All through the day’s proceedings, Mr Rathore took special care that women were heard first. Attending to a complaint of a resident of Chandigarh, who alleged that the Haryana police was harassing her at odd hours, Mr Rathore’s firm reply was, “The Haryana police does not misbehave with anybody. However, we will look into this,” he stated. Public complaints were primarily concerned with ex-gratia to next of kin, land disputes, those of laxity on the part of the police or their partisan role in some cases. Police personnel seeking mutual transfers were present in large numbers. At the end of the day, 70 such postings were effected and five personnel were given promotions due for some time. |
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CHRONIC PROBLEMS CHANDIGARH,
Dec 4 — It was the same old story of long queues at several cash collection centres in the city, on the last day of depositing water and electricity bills here today. A large number of consumers thronged cash collection centres to deposit the bill today to avoid the penalty, as a visit to a number of cash collection centres, including in Sectors 20,32 and 23, by a Tribune team revealed. A majority of them had to stand in queues for over one hour to pay bills. The queues were longer this time, as the cash collection centres opened after three days. While they were closed on Saturday and Sunday, on Friday they were closed on account of the martyrdom day of Guru Teg Bahadur. Mr Swaran Singh, a senior citizen, who had come to deposit a bill on behalf of his friend, said that he had been standing in the queue for take about 45 minutes and it would still about half-an-hour before his turn came. Since there was rush on the last day of depositing the bills, the authorities concerned should extend the time for accepting the bills. Another resident was of the view that as a majority of the consumers were employees, bills should be accepted on the weekends. This will not only facilitate timely depositing of the bill, but also help in increasing the revenue of the administration. Certain consumers were of the view that the authorities could follow the experiment being implemented by Department of Posts, which had authorised the postmen to accept the telephone bills.”I would not mind paying some extra money if the bill was collected from my house, as I stand to save my precious time,” added another consumer. Meanwhile, official sources said that to a certain extent, consumers were also to blame, since they came to deposit the bill on the last day. If they deposited the bill without waiting for the last day, their problems could be mitigated to a large extent, the sources added. |
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NAVY DAY CHANDIGARH,
Dec 4 — A traditional cake-cutting ceremony and a photo exhibition on naval activities marked the celebrations of Navy Day, by Naval Liaison Cell at the No 3 Base Repair Depot here today. The theme of Navy Day — 2000 was, “Building Bridges of Friendship”. Navy Day is observed on December 4 each year, to mark the highly successful missile raid by the Indian Navy’s ‘Osa Class’ boats on Karachi harbour and oil refinery during the 1971 Indo-Pak war. A large number of serving and retired officers attended the function. Among them were the Air Officer Commanding, 3 BRD, Air Cmde Arvinda Agrawal. AOC, 12 Wing Air Cmde, S.K. Banerjee and president of the Chandigarh Chapter of the Naval Foundation, Cdr R.N. Dasgupta (Retd). Felicitating officers and sailors of the Naval Liaison Cell (NLC), Air Cmde Agrawal, who was the chief guest on the occasion, said that 3 BRD had been providing repair and overhaul facilities to some of the aircraft in Naval service and would soon be expanding the scope of their co-operation. Welcoming guests, the Officer-in-Charge,
NLC, Commander R.P.S. Josen, said that Indian Navy’s unique contribution towards national security stems from the advantages of operating on, under, above and from the sea, leading to power projection from sea to influence events ashore, across operational spectrums of peace, crisis and war. Stating that unlike the two other armed forces, the Navy has been designed to fulfil three major roles — military, constabulary or policing and diplomacy, he added that the Indian Navy would be hosting the first ever International Fleet Review at Mumbai in February, where the President would review 80 ships from 21 countries. The message of the Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Sushil Kumar was also read out on the occasion. The Naval Liaison Cell
(NLC), established in 1982, is the link between Naval Headquarters and the Air Force as far as maintenance, repair and overhaul of aircraft engines of Soviet origin aircraft in the Navy’s service is concerned. Besides, the NLC is also responsible for the routing of electrical, electronic and certain communication equipment for repair at 3
BRD. The depot has also provided the Navy with commendable support in indigenisation of aero-spares. |
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Russia’s natural splendour on
display CHANDIGARH, Dec 4 — The Punjab Lalit Kala Akademi has invited world-renowned film maker and photo artist from Kazakhstan, Vyacheslav
Izraztsov, to exhibit his works in Chandigarh and also screen his video films on nature for four days beginning from today. Izraztsov, who is more famous as the president of International Creative Studio Rainbow, is in town and has thrown open his photographic prints on five parts of his region for view of the general public. The photo exhibition, titled My Russia, captures the natural grandeur of Ural, Altai, Siberia, Baikal and Sayany, and will remain open till December 8 at Punjab Kala Bhavan. The 57 prints by the artist show natural beauty of his region. Talking to TNS here today, the artist, who is credited with about 50 photography exhibitions so far, said, “When all forces fail, and there no longer remains any inspiration for creative activity, I resolve to turn to Nature which is an eternal source of peace and energy. I focus my camera on the small flower, the biting insect, the flowing pond and the majestic mountains. It gives me a great high”. The interesting part of Izraztsov’s works is that he has given a fair insight into what the five regions are all about. The works were developed while he was on an expedition to various places. “These expeditions came by as projects under Rainbow which is a place of creative activity,” he said, adding that the purpose of this creative studio production of works pf art regarding beauty of nature by means of photo and video images incorporated by classical music. After retiring from service in 1991, Izraztsov decided to become a traveller. About his very first expedition to Altai, he says, “It enriched me so much that I started burning with the idea of conveying the feel of nature and sharing the same with others. It was then that I began making films, my first one being, The First Steps which was shot in
Ust-Kamenogorsk.” Later he also made movies on Altai and Primorye, and on Baikal and Sayany in 1997. |
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Gang of LPG cylinder thieves active CHANDIGARH,
Dec 4 — Residents beware! If you have kept the additional gas cylinder in the open veranda or the lobby of your house, chances are it will be stolen. For, an organised gang of cylinder thieves is active in the city. The lifting of eight cylinders, six from a house, in just two days is a testimony to this effect. Though the cops are still trying to work out a pattern, a look at the first information reports registered with the police reveal that the pilferers are operating mostly in the southern parts of the city. Admitting a sudden spurt in the cases of cylinder thefts, a senior police official says that the “hard-to-detect nature of the crime is encouraging the thieves”. “All cylinders look alike making it impossible for anyone to recognise the stolen property,” he asserts. “And once you get it refilled, the prosecution cannot connect you with the offence. In all probability, even if you are booked for the crime, you will be acquitted due to the failure of the prosecution to make the recovery”. Another senior officer further discloses that the lifting of cylinders from tractors and horse-carts by scooterists, while the agency staff was inside the residences making deliveries, had been reported to the police earlier also, but their theft from houses is “not so common”. He, however, believes that the thefts are being carried out by individuals in isolation, not by an organised outfit. “In a substantial number of the cases, the cylinders are being picked up for personal use by slum dwellers, not by members of any gang” he asserts. “They conveniently purchase the burners from the market and get the stolen cylinder refilled, even without a connection, by pulling out Rs 10 to Rs 20 extra from their purse”. He claims that a Bapu Dham Colony resident, Mansoor Ahmed Bhatt, caught “red-handed” while trying to escape with a gas cylinder on his cycle, was not a member of any group. The cops also insist that the connivance of certain gas agency officials with the “bad elements” could not be ruled out. “The police is keeping a close tab on the activities of suspicious delivery men in order to catch them red-handed,” they reveal. In a complaint before the police, Sector 45 resident Jai Narain had earlier alleged that six gas cylinders were stolen from his house on the night of November 28. Another complaint alleging the theft of a cylinder was submitted to the police by Dadu Majra school teacher Manjit Kaur. Safety tips * Jot down the number printed on the cylinder every time you get it refilled. * Do not store the extra cylinder in open lobbies or verandas. If possible chain lock the cylinders. * If the in-use cylinder is kept outside the kitchen like in the case of newly built houses, get an enclosure constructed and remember to lock its door. * Get a burglar alarm installed in your house. The simple ones are inexpensive. Or else, keep dogs. Mongrels are better guards, cops insist. |
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New computer centre SAS NAGAR, Dec 4 — Punjab is all set to become a premier information technology (IT) destination, said the Governor of Punjab, Lieut Gen J.F.R. Jacob, at the inauguration of a branch of the ATEC Computer Education here today. He said that Indian software engineers were in demand throughout the world and Punjab was contributing its share to the pool of educated talent with over 40 engineering colleges. ‘‘When it came to channelising the creative talent, the role of computer education centres was important’’, he said, adding that invention of computer and the development of Internet services were two landmark activities in human history which had made the world a global village. Earlier, Mr Sabodh Saggi, managing director of the AETC , said the USA based company had set up 20 franchise centres in the northern India and this centre was the latest addition to it. Brig S.S. Ahluwalia, director of the local ATEC centre, also spoke on the occasion. The Deputy Commissioner of Ropar and senior police officials were also present on the occasion.
Knowledge park SAS NAGAR,
Dec 4 — The Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, will lay the foundation stone of Mahindra Knowledge Park in Sector 67 here tomorrow. The park, jointly developed by the Punjab Government and the Mahindra Group, would come up in an area of 15 acre adjoining the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) and would have world -level facilities for e-governance. Recreational facilities would also be available in the park.
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Divers fail to
locate body CHANDIGARH,
Dec 4 — The mysterious “suicide” at Sukhna Lake continued to haunt the police today also as the divers failed to locate the body of an unidentified person who had reportedly leaped into the water on December 1. The police, according to sources, was waiting for 96 hours to lapse — the time taken for a body to surface in winters. The information regarding the suicide was given to the police by an evening stroller. Mr Rameshwar, a PWD employee, had reportedly told the police that the person had simply descended the stairs before going down into the water. Soon after receiving the information two divers were directed to search the depths of the Sukhna Lake. Rag-pickers
decamp with shagun money CHANDIGARH,
Dec 4 — Marriage celebrations in a Sector 36 house were ‘somewhat marred’ late in the evening yesterday, after two rag-pickers took away the shagun money. In a complaint to the police, Mr G.S. Lehri, working with a bank here, alleged that ‘two young girls’ took away Rs 12,000 after pulling out the currency from the envelopes kept in a purse. They had entered the house while marriage celebrations were on, he said. The purse, he added, belonged to his sister Savinder Kaur. The duo, he further claimed, could be recognised by the caretaker as he had seen them entering. The police has registered a case under Section 379 of the Indian Penal Code. A senior police officer said that further investigations into the allegation were on. He added that all efforts to trace the two were on. 8 arrested
under special drive CHANDIGARH,
Dec 4 — Hotels, pubs, discos, eating joints, guest houses and other public places at different parts of the city were raided by the police under a two-day special drive to check the presence of anti-social elements, here on Sunday. Eight persons were arrested under various provisions of the law besides 17 persons were also challaned under the Motor Vehicles Act. Stranger rolls were issued to 156 persons found roaming under suspicious conditions. According to a senior police official, the idea behind the drive was to improve the law and order situation in the area. The raids were conducted in accordance with intelligence reports. The police had been carrying such raids for last the few weeks. The raids was taken under the supervision of Mr Hargobinder Singh Dhaliwal, Assistant Superintendent of Police (central). Talking to Chandigarh Tribune, the ASP said that such raids would continue in the near future also. ‘‘We are all set to check the activities of anti-social elements’’, said the ASP. Elaborating upon the plan he said the police was preparing sector vise blue prints of the problems pertaining to law and order. Mr Dhaliwal said, ‘‘Every sector is gripped with different law and order problems, for example, in Sector 10 the youngsters violate traffic rules on the so called geri route while the eve teasing is a problem in Sector 11’’. According to police sources, the increase in incidents like drinking at public places and gambling has become a cause of serious concern and the police want to deal with the violators with a heavy hand. Among those who were arrested, Vijay Kumar, Sat Pal and Surinder Singh were arrested under the Police Act, Sukhdev Singh and Rajesh Sharma were arrested under the Excise Act and Jagir Singh, Jagdambe and Satwant were arrested for driving vehicle allegedly under the influence of liquor.
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