ABOHAR
OPIUM SEIZED: The police intercepted a motor cycle and seized 2 kg of opium from Dulichand of Sanfgria and Shubhkaran of Sikar in Rajasthan here on Sunday. They have been booked under the NDPS Act.

AMRITSAR
ELECTED: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Missionary Educational Society: president — Dr J.S. Arora; sr vice-president — Mr Davinder Singh; vice-presidents — Mr Vipul Arora and Mr Anish Arora; honorary secretary — Mr Kirpal Singh; finance secretary — Mr Barinder Pal Singh; and secretaries — Mr Harinder Pal Singh and Mr Bakshish Singh.

OFFICE-BEARERS: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Pollution Control Committee: president — Mr Muktiar Singh Mahal; vice-president — Mr Milkha Singh Bath; and general secretary — Mr Prabdyal Singh Randhawa.

Voter cards: The Block Congress president, Mr Happy Arora, has demanded that the voter identity cards carrying wrong information be replaced and new cards issued in view of the forthcoming Vidhan Sabha elections in Punjab.

BARNALA
MASS MARRIAGE: Mass marriage of poor girls was performed at the local new grain market complex by the Punjab Palledar Mazdoor Union on Friday. Mr Madan Mohan Mittal, Punjab Food and Civil Supplies Minister, who was the guest of honour, congratulated and presented shagun to the couples.

MAHAKUMBH MELA: A 70-member team of the Bharatiya Sanatam Dharam Mahavir Dal and the Shakti Dal (women’s wing of the Mahavir Dal) will go to Allahabad to serve pilgrims at the Mahakumbh Mela on January 16. This was stated by Mr Tarsem Jain, chief of the dal, in a press note issued here on Sunday.

DISTRIBUTED: Mr Malikit Singh Keetu, MLA, distributed 280 cheques amounting to Rs 15 lakh among the Dalit and poor families in the district on Sunday. This was done under the Shagun Scheme of the state government.

FATEHGARH SAHIB
ACTION DEMANDED: The District Beopar Mandal in a complaint to the Chief Minister has demanded action against Mr Jaspal Garg, ETO, for allegedly making forcible collections from traders and industrialists. It alleged that in spite of repeated complaints no action had been taken against him. This was stated in a press note issued here on Tuesday by Mr Varinder Rattan, general secretary of the mandal.

ROAD SAFETY WEEK: A road safety week concluded here on Tuesday in which vehicle check-up camps were organised in all major towns of the district. According to Mr M.S. Jaggi, DTO, special seminars for drivers, particularly truck drivers, were organised at Sirhind, Mandi Gobindgarh and Khamanon towns.

GURDASPUR
ARRESTED: The police arrested Symen Masih of Kila Darshan Singh and seized 120 pirated audio cassettes from his possession here on Monday. According to Mr Varinder Kumar, SSP, a case has been registered.

HOSHIARPUR
SUICIDE: Rajesh Kumar, a gunman of the Additional Director General of Police (Vigilance) Punjab, allegedly committed suicide by consuming poison pills here on Monday. He was taken to hospital by his father Amar Nath where he was declared dead.

KHANNA
ONE Held: The Payal police claimed to have arrest one person having nine bottles of country liquor without permit. The accused was identified as Gurmukh Singh of Pandher Kheri village. According to the SSP, Mr R.N. Dhoke, a case under Sections 61, 1 and 14 of the Excise Act has been registered against him. 

THEFT: Goods worth Rs 1.5 lakh were stolen from a shop on the railway road here on Monday night. According to information, thieves entered a boutique shop owned by Gudu Mehta by breaking open the locks and stole all cloths and readymade garments lying in the shop. 

Ludhiana
pension distributed: The 41st widow pension distribution function of the Gyan Sthal Temple was held here on Monday under the guidance of its President, Mr Jagdish Bajaj. More that 350 widows were given ration on the occasion. Meanwhile, a free cooking course for girls was started at the Gyan Sthal Temple on Monday. Ms Roma Kapil and Ms Rajni Gupta will train the girls in Indian and continental recipes. More than 50 girls have registered their names for the 15-day course. 

Inter-school test: Nearly 80 students from 16 CBSE schools of the city participated in a maths test held at Guru Nanak International Public School, Gujarkhan Campus, here on Tuesday. Each school was represented by five students of Class X. The test was based on the pattern of CBSE question paper. The students had to answer 30 questions in three hours. Ms G.K. Arora, maths teacher of the school, conducted the test. She said that cash awards would be given to the students who would secure top three positions. The results will be declared within a week. 

exhibition concluded: The four-day exhibition of knitwear and allied industry machinery concluded at Maharaja Palace here on Monday. The best three exhibitors were given prizes by the IGP, Punjab, Mr Chandershekhar. Mr Chandershekhar appreciated the role of Knitworld in hosting the exhibition and spreading awareness about the technological development taking place the worldover in the knitwear and allied industry. Mr Vinod Thaper, President, Knitwear Club, was the guest of honour.

NAWANSHAHR
MEDICAL CAMP: The local Doaba Social Welfare Society organised a medical check-up camp at Government High School, Hiala, on Monday in which 430 schoolchildren were examined. Mr Balkar Singh Sandhu, SP, inaugurated the camp.

PATHANKOT
FUND RELEASED: Mr Vinod Khanna, MP, has released Rs 2 lakh from the development fund allocated to him for the preparation of boards and sign boards to be displayed along roadsides and at important public places to acquaint people about traffic rules.

OCTROI WORK: Mr Vinay Mahajan, president of the Sujanpur Municipal Council, has claimed that no irregularity was committed during the auction of the octroi collection work on contract and the proceedings of the auction were endorsed by the Congress councillors.

PATIALA
resent selection: Employees of the Punjab State Electricity Board have resented the decision regarding 30 per cent selections of MBA candidates for the post of Superintendent/Grade-1. In a press release issued by the employees on Tuesday, Mr Magar Singh said the chances of promotion are already miniscule with the ministerial employees and employing of the young candidates directly to high posts has disheartened them further. He added that even the pay scale of the appointed staff was more than that of the existing senior staff. 

rally: The Punjab and UT Employees Joint Action Committee has decided to stage a rally on January 10 to protest against the privatisation of central and state government bodies and other agencies. Mr Darshan Singh, general secretary, in a press release, opined on Tuesday that it was wrong to quote that 72 per cent of the employees’ income and budget was being spent on useless activities. 

demanded: The Punjab Home Guards Association has demanded allotment of permanent seats for its men from the government. The Badal government has proved a failure by not fulfilling their demands, it adds. The members have decided to organise a meeting on January 14 at Rose Garden Park here in order to take a stand on the issue. 

PHAGWARA
APPOINTED: The following have been appointed office-bearers of the Phagwara unit of the All-India Anti-Terrorist Front: president — Mr Krishan Kumar Goldy; vice-president — Mr Kamal Kanojia; and general secretary — Mr Adarsh Pahwa. Mr Vikram Jalota has been appointed press secretary of the state unit of the front.

FINED: Fortyfive ticketless travellers and track jumpers were fined Rs 10,000 at the local railway station on Monday during a special check that continued for about three hours, railway sources said.

ARRESTED: The local police arrested Harbans Singh from the nakodar road on Monday and recovered from his possession two stereos stolen from a car and a bus.

PHILLAUR
KISAN MORCHA: The following have been appointed office-bearers of the Bharatiya Janta Party Kisan Morcha, Punjab: vice-presidents — Mr Dhanantar Singh (Mansa), Ms Santosh Kumari Salaria (Mukerian), Mr Vinod Sharma (Jalandhar), and Mr Kuldip Singh Budhabudh; general secretary — Mr Paramjit Singh Ranu; secretaries — Mr Satwant Singh (Sangrur), Mr Chiranjiv Singh Fauji (Kapurthala), Mr Gurmail Singh Sarhan (Moga), and Mr Lakhmir Singh Chhinna (Abohar); and treasurer — Mr Ajaybir Singh Sodhi (Ferozepore).

SAHNEWAL
elected: Mr Gurdeep Singh Deep has been elected as the president of All India Anti-Terrorist Front of Sahnewal Circle. The election was finalised in a meeting that was held under the presidentship of Mr Dilshar Singh ‘Pappy’ at Government Primary School, Sahnewal yesterday. Apart from others the meeting was attended by Mr Rajkumar Vinayak, Mr Jasminder Sandhu, Mr Ramnath and Mr Dev Singh Rajguru.

SAMRALA
Academy was instituted: A Sports and Cultural Academy was instituted here on Monday in the memory of a terrorist victim, Mr Nirmal Singh Nimma, an international kabaddi player. The office was inaugurated by Mr Satinder Pal Singh, a transporter of Sahnewal. On this occasion Mr Amrik Singh, Inspector, and brother of the victim, Mr Darshan Singh Manki and Mr Avtar Singh, both coaches were present. Nineteen acres of land has been donated by the village panchayat. A kabaddi match was also played on this occasion in which the team of Manupur Academy defeated Nimma Academy. 

De-addiction camp: An de-addiction camp was organised by the workers of Bharti Kisan Union at Ghungrali Sikhan village, 5 km from here, on Monday. Nine famous doctors of Bhatinda, Chandigarh and Samrala gave their valuable suggestions to more than 200 patients, according to Mr Balbir Singh Rajewal, general secretary of the Bharti Kisan Union. 

condemned: The PSEB Employees Federation, AITCU Samrala and the TSU has condemned the PSEB decision by transferring Samrala division from Khanna circle to Ropar circle. The leaders have said that with this decision the people of the area will have to face many difficulties and inconvenience as Ropar is 100 km away from Samrala and Khanna is only at a distance of 15 km. The leaders demanded that the decision should be reverted in the interest of the general public. 

strike: On the second day of their five-day strike, members of the Federation of Medical and Sales Representatives working in various pharmaceutical companies in Punjab and Haryana demonstrated in Sector 17 here on Tuesday. The medical representatives are on strike till January 12 in pursuance of their 27 points charter of demands. The speakers, while addressing the rally spoke about drug policies of the state and the Central Government. The union also submitted a memorandum to the management of a pharmaceutical company, demanding reinstatement of three medical representatives whose services had been terminated. 

Lecture: Prof Ian Hutchinson of the University of Manchester, England, delivered a lecture on ‘Genes and immunity’ at the IMTECH, Sector 39, here on Tuesday. The lecture was attended by scientists from the PGI, the NIPER and Panjab University along with those from the IMTECH. 

panel FORMED: Representatives of doctors, STD operators and jobless youths running business from their houses in different sectors on Monday formed an action committee with Mr Harish Kapur as president. In a press note, Mr Kapur said they had decided to launch their struggle against the Chandigarh Housing Board. He appealed to all political parties in Chandigarh to come forward against the “anti-people” decision of the Administration. 

workshop HELD: With a view to promote entrepreneurship among women, the Sector 34-A branch of Canara Bank commenced a two-day workshop on the art of applying mehndi at Kajehri village on Monday. The Assistant General Manager of the bank, Mr M.L. Samaddar, stressed the importance of women on self reliance. 

ELECTED: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Sanatan Dharam Adhyan Kendra: chief patron — Mr C.L. Gupta; president — Mr R.P. Sarin, vice-presidents — Mr P.C. Asdhir, Mr V.R. Gupta, Mr Lekh Raj and Mrs Swadesh Sharma; secretary — Mr Manmohan Sood; general secretaries — Mr G.K. Bhalla; Mr M.L. Kochhar; cashier — Mr R.K. Tangri; joint cashier — Mr K.L. Chopra; and prachar secretaries — Mr Ashok Khanna and Mrs Asha Chauhan. 

rally HELD: Terminated employees of the Chandigarh Super Bazaar held a rally in front of Government Press Medicine Store, Sector 8, on Monday. A press note issued by the Super Bazaar Employees Joint Action Committee said the rally was addressed among others by Mr Bhanu Partap, a former president of the Federation of UT Employees, and Mr Kuldip Singh, general secretary, Super Bazaar Employees Committee. 

Phalguni Pathak: Singer Phalguni Pathak will perform at Aerizzona, Sector 9, from 1 pm to 6 pm on Friday. She is known for her dandia numbers and her hit album Chunar Ud Ud Jaye. 

LALRU
Two thieves held: The police caught two thieves on Monday while they were riding a stolen scooter (CH-01-W-4965) and carrying electronics goods. The police claims to have recovered a colour television, a tape recorder, two speakers and other items from their possession. In a press statement, Mr H.S. Bhullar, DSP, Dera Bassi, said the duo, Harish Kumar and Kumar Thapa, hailing from Nepal, were arrested at a naka while they were riding the scooter without documents. The police claims that the accused have confessed to have stolen the goods from a house in Sector 37 of Chandigarh. A case under Sections 379 and 411 of the IPC has been registered. 

AMBALA
MARKET Survey: The Haryana Exporters Association has started an extensive survey to collect a variety of information from small-scale manufacturers. Chairman of the association, Dr N.C. Jain, said the survey-questionnaire seeks to know what they were manufacturing, their manufacturing capacity, their financial and other basic requirements. The Ambala scientific and electronic instrument industry is facing a serious financial crisis for the past one year due to heavy recession in the market,” he said. “In exports, China, Taiwan, Indonesia, Korea and Italy have captured the whole market and they are supplying goods at throwaway prices. Moreover, their governments are supporting manufacturing in all respect and providing updated information for the requirement of their products which Ambala instrument industry is lacking,” he said. 

teachers trained: As part of the efforts of the state government to ensure good education for government school students, 521 JBT teachers have been trained for teaching English. The Deputy Commissioner of Ambala, Mr D.D. Gautam, said that last year the posts which were filled includes 58 JBT, 43 Hindi, 20 PTI, 33 Sanskrit, 15 Arts teachers and posts of Punjabi teacher. He said in a press note that a sum of Rs 8.21 lakh was spent on 17 schools for building maintenance under the matching grant scheme. 

tested for malaria: The Health Department during December last year tested 5158 blood samples for malaria. The Deputy Commissioner of Ambala, Mr D.D. Gautam, said that 29 persons were found to be suffering from malaria. While 28 persons were discharged after treatment, one person was still under treatment. He said last month, 31,397 tablets of chloroquine were distributed. 

Career guidance week: The Additional Deputy Commissioner of Ambala, Mr Mahinder Kumar, inaugurated the career guidance week at DAV Senior Secondary School, Ambala Cantonment, on Monday. He said that these days, it is comparatively easier for the students to make a choice of career. He observed that the students must decide during the school years what they want to become in life and then they must work hard to achieve their aim. The Employment Officer, Mr H.S. Dhull, said that career guidance week was held twice a year, once in January and then in July, where students were given information about the career opportunities, a press note said. 

REWARI
JOURNALISTS: The Haryana Health Minister, Dr M.L. Ranga, has given an assurance that the journalists working at the block level will also be provided with the facility of free bus travel in the state. his assurance was in response to a demand raised by Mr Ashwani Dutta, president of the Haryana Union of Journalists, at a conference held here on Sunday.

ROHTAK
DIED: A 14-year-old girl, Rajni, of the Garhi Mohalla locality died of poisoning at the PGIMS here on Monday. The deceased, a student of class IX, is reported to have mistaken the poisonous pills for medicine.

SONEPAT
ARRESTED: The police has arrested three youths Anil Kumar, Sube Singh and Balwan, alias Baloo, on the charge of liquor smuggling and seized 16 bottles of country-made liquor and 30 liquor pouches from their possession. Cases under the Excise Act have also been registered. This was stated by Mr Paramjit Singh Ahlawat, SP, while talking to mediapersons here on Tuesday.

DOWRY CASE: The Ganaur police has arrested three persons in a dowry and harassment case following a complaint by Mrs Sudesh Kumari of Rajlu Garhi village. She has alleged in her complaint that she was being harassed by her husband Anil Kumar and her in-laws for not bringing sufficient dowry.

DHARNA: More than 200 persons of Dodwa village sat on a dharna in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office here on Monday in protest against the alleged discrimination by the officials in demolishing houses in the village. They also submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner and demanded a probe into the matter and a stern action against the erring officials.

KILLED: Roop Singh, an aged man, killed his wife at Rindhana village, about 40 km from here, on Monday. A case has been registered.

BODY RECOVERED: The Kharkhauda police recovered the decomposed body of an unidentified man from the canal near Sisana village, about 25 km from here, on Monday. The police believe it to be a murder case. A case has been registered.

SHIMLA
ROHRU SAMITI: Mrs kanta Thakur and Mr Bhopal Sharma have been elected president and vice-president, respectively, of the Block Development Samiti, Rohru. This was stated in a press note issued here on Monday by the Deputy Commissioner, Mr P.C. Katoch.

COMPANY SECRETARIES: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Shimla Chapter of the Northern India Regional Council of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India: chairman — Mr P.S.R. Murthi; vice-chairman — Mr Rameshwar Sharma; secretary — Mr kanwal Arora; and treasurer — Mr Sudershan Sharma.