The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Tuesday, March 6, 2001,
Chandigarh, India

THE TRIBUNE SPECIALS

50 YEARS OF INDEPENDENCE

TERCENTENARY CELEBRATIONS

R E G I O N A L B R I E F S

PUNJAB

ANANDPUR SAHIB
OFFICE-BEARERS: The following have been elected office-bearers of Khalsa College, Anandpur Sahib, wing of the Punjab College Teachers Union: president — Mr Shivinder Singh Sidhu; secretary — Mr Avtar Singh and treasurer — Mr Tarlochan Singh.

BATHINDA
EYE CAMP: The Divine Eye Research Foundation (DREF) held an eye check-up and eye donation awareness camp at the Hazoora Kapoora Basti in the city on Sunday. Mr Rakesh Narula, president, DREF, said in a press note issued here on Sunday that the camp was held in association with the Ekta Welfare Society. A total of 112 patients were examined.

OFFICE-BEARERS: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Bhai Kanhaiya Vikas Club: president — Mr Amrik Singh; senior vice-president — Mr Parminder Singh; secretary — Mr Paramjit Singh; treasurer — Mr Makhan Singh; and general secretary — Mr Malkit Singh.

PWD UNION: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Bathinda unit of the PWD Field and Workers Union: president — Mr Ranjit Singh Jeeti; senior vice-president — Mr Harmail Singh; vice-presidents — Mr Sukhwinder Singh and Mr Mahinder Singh; general secretary —Mr Pritam Singh; and treasurer — Mr Gurbaksh Singh.

DORAHA
GROUPS CLASH: Three members of a family received minor injuries as a result of an attack from another party in Gidri village on Sunday. According to an FIR registered at Payal Police Station on the statement of Amrik Singh of Gidri village, Kehar Singh, Ranjit Singh, Sukhdev Singh, Dhalbinder Singh, Kulwinder Singh, Malkit Singh, Harpal Singh and Hardeep Singh attacked the complainant and his family with sharp weapons, two loaded guns, pistol, kirpan, hockey and sticks. It is all began when Amrik Singh was asked by one of them to remove his tractor from the street and Amrik Singh refused saying that the place was not their personal property. The accused are alleged to have fired, too, but in the meantime, Harbans Singh, sarpanch of the village and Ajit Singh, reached the spot. All the miscreants thus left the place and absconded after that. A case under Sections 323, 324, 452, 336, 506, 148, 149, 25, 27 and 54 of Arms Act, has been registered.

FEROZEPORE
REHABILITATION CAMP: A handicapped rehabilitation camp was organised here by the Dev Raj group in assistance with various social and religious organisations in which 52 tricycles, 9 wheelchairs, 19 sets of crutches, 60 hearing-aid machines and artificial limbs were distributed.

BEREAVED: Balwinder Singh Brar, elder brother of former MLA and senior Congress leader Gurnaib Singh Brar, died here at the age of 62 following a heart failure. Congress leaders expressed their condolences to Mr Brar and members of the family.

JAGRAON
NRI MURDERED: Malkit Singh, an NRI, who was repeatedly attacked by four persons and was injured seriously, succumbed to his injuries on Monday. A case has been registered.

LUDHIANA
SUSPENDED: Dr S.S. Sandhu, Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, has placed Mr Rai Singh, a beldar in the MC, under suspension for remaining absent from duty without informing his superiors. Dr Sandhu has warned employees of the MC to perform their duty with care and diligence, failing which, disciplinary action would be taken against them.

WIDOW PENSION: The 43rd widow pension distribution function was organised on Monday at Gyan Sthal Temple under the guidance of Mr Jagdish Bajaj, president and Mr Arun Jain, senior vice-president. About 351 widows were given ration items and a langar was also arranged on the occasion by Mata Chintpurni Sewa Society. It may be mentioned that the temple authorities have been organising the widow pension scheme for the past 43 months. Three new courses were also started for needy girls. The cooking classes, English-speaking classes and soft-toy classes will be taken by Roma Kapila. Computer training is being given at the temple premises by Mr Chandan Mishra and Ms Monica. Mr Surinder Dabar, president, District Congress Committee, the chief guest on the occasion appreciated the efforts made by the temple authorities to serve the noble cause.

MANDI GOBINDGARH
CYCLIST KILLED: Himat Singh, 19, resident of Dadheri village who was run over by a truck (number PB 23-B-6357) near Arya School here on Monday, died on the spot. In another accident, a Maruti car (HR 24-C-5417) collided with a Jeep (HR 01-A-8144) on Amloh road on Sunday. Balwinder Singh, who was in the car with his son, Hardeep Singh, 11 and daughter Manpreet Kaur, 7, were injured. The Civil Hospital Mandi Gobindgarh referred their case to Rajindera Hospital, Patiala. Balwinder Singh was serving in the Punjab police at Shambhu Border as Havildar.

MANSA
GRANTS: Mr Sukhwinder Singh Aulakh, local MLA, on Monday addressed, ward meetings of the town and announced grants amounting to Rs 50,000 each to wards numbers 12 and 17 and Rs 25,000 to ward number 20 for repair of dharamshalas. He also announced a grant of Rs 51,000 to Ravidaas Mandir Committee. He also presented cheques for Rs 10,000 each to seven women belonging to the scheduled tribes for self-employment.

DEVELOPMENT WORKS: Ms Raji P Shrivastava, Deputy Commissioner, on Monday said Mr Bhan Singh Bhaura, member of Lok Sabha, had given Rs 1.13 crore for 249 development works in 149 villages. Mr Balwinder Singh Bhunder, member of Rajya Sabha, gave Rs 2.02 crore for development works.

FOUNDATION STONE: The RSS national chief, Mr K.C. Sudarshan, will on March 10 lay the foundation stone of Sri Narain Sikshan Kendra, a teachers’ training centre for Vidya Bharti schools in northern India, here.

LOK ADALAT: The next state-level lok adalat will be held on March 24, according to an official report of the District Legal Services Authority.

MOGA
COMPLAINT: Residents here complain that the forms used for taking loans from banks and cooperative societies from the Block Development Office here in the district were issued at higher rates than fixed by the government. The complainants told mediapersons here on Monday that these forms were available in the black market. They have demanded inquiry into it.

NANGAL
DONATION: An organisation formed by the wives of the NFL workers, Surubi Mahilla Milan, donated Rs 1 lakh for Gujarat quake victims. The cheque was presented to the Deputy Commissioner, Ropar, Mr G.S. Grewal. The Red Cross unit of the NFL and the schools of the company also contributed to the donation. The NFL employees have also given Rs 8 lakh in the form of one-day salary for victims.

NAWANSHAHR
POPPY HUSK SEIZED: The police arrested Nimma and Tari of Langroya village and seized seven bags of poppy husk from their possession here on Friday. A case under Sections 15/61/85 of the NDPS Act has been registered.

PATHANKOT
CHARAS SEIZED: Kishan Lal of Sutrar village in Himachal Pradesh has been arrested and 1 kg of charas seized from his possession. The police said the accused used to smuggle narcotics from Himachal Pradesh. He was caught on a tip-off. CONVICTED: Naresh Kumar (24), resident of Assa Bano village in this tehsil, was convicted for one year for outraging the modesty of and causing criminal intimidation to Ms Trishla Devi of the same village by Mr Karnail Singh, Judicial Magistrate (Ist Class), Pathankot, on Saturday.

PATIALA
NOISE POLLUTION: The Patiala District Police has claimed to have achieved the target under the Noise Control Act, 1956 by registering 100 cases against the offenders of this act for the period between February 1 to 17 this year. The cases have been registered following directions of the High Court and Supreme Court to curb this menance. The district police has also urged the residents of the city to keep noise levels under the desired levels otherwise strict action will be taken against the offenders.

LECTURE: The first Giani Lal Singh Memorial Lecture was organised by the Department of Punjabi Development of Punjabi University, at Senate Hall on Friday. In his presidential address, Dr Jasbir Singh Ahluwalia, Vice-Chancellor of the university, described Giani Lal Singh’s contribution towards development of Punjabi language, literature, culture and particularly towards the introduction of Punjabi as medium of instruction and administration.

PHILLAUR
TRANSFERRED: Mr C.R. Kataria, Principal General Manager (Telephones), Jalandhar, has been transferred to Chandigarh as Principal General Manager (Operation). Mr K.C. Zindal, Principal General Manager, Amritsar, has been given additional charge of Jalandhar. Mr Kataria was relieved on Monday as Mr Zindal took over the charge.

SAMRALA
SCOOTERIST KILLED: Tejinder Singh (27), resident of Bondal Road, Samrala, was killed in a road accident, on Monday night while his friend, Kuldeep Singh, had a narrow escape near the Samrala police station. Tejinder Singh, along with his friend, was coming from Ghulal village, when their scooter banged into a tea kiosk in front of the local police station, because Tejinder, was momentarily blinded by lights of a coming vehicle and he lost control. The police registered a case and the body was handed over to the legal heirs.

TARN TARAN
QUAKE RELIEF: Mr Anil Kumar Joshi, president of the local BJP mandal and working president of Sri Ram Mandir Leprosy Colony, said on Sunday that the lepers of the colony had collected Rs 5,000 for Gujarat earthquake victims. The draft had been sent to the Seva Bharti, Gujarat, he added.

ELECTED: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Village Development Organisation Union, Amritsar: president — Mr Baldev Singh; vice-president — Mr Pawan Kumar, and press secretary — Mr Harinderpal Singh Budhiraja.

CHANDIGARH

EYE OPERATION CAMP: As many as 500 patients were examined during a free eye operation camp at Ganga Devi Dharamshala, Mani Majra, held on Saturday. The camp which will continue till March 6, is being organised by Lions Club, Chandigarh Supreme, in collaboration with Azad Welfare Society, Mani Majra. About 83 major operations were also performed. Medicines were given to patients free of cost. Mr Sat Pal Jain, inaugurated the camp.

APPOINTED: Prof Tara Singh Kamal has been appointed Vice-President of the Institution of Engineers (India), one of the oldest and largest professional body of engineers in the country. Prof Kamal has been a Professor of Electronics and Communication in the Punjab Engineering college, Chandigarh, and is presently teaching in the Sant Longowal Institute of Engineering and Technology, Longowal.

NOMINATED: Mr Ramesh Chander Sharma and Mr Harjinder Singh has been nominated as chairman and president, respectively, of the Chandigarh Subordinate Services Federation (UT) affiliated to the Indian National Trade Union Congress.

STRIKE: The strike by the Haryana Confed Employees Welfare Union against the removal of 311 workers of the Confed entered the 60th day here on Sunday. For the past 38 days the agitating workers of the union have also started a chain hunger strike. This was announced by Mr Jai Ram Kaushik, president of the union in a press note.

OFFICE-BEARERS: During the annual election of Bharat Vikas Parishad for the year 2001 and 2002, following persons have been elected unanimously as office bearers: president — Mr Ashok Goyal; vice-president — Mr Chanda Seth, Mr S.K. Agarwal and Mr A.P. Goyal; secretary — Mr Mahesh Gupta; joint secretary — Mr Y.P. Tiwari; joint secretaries — Mr V.K. Verma and Mr S.P. Goyal; and treasurer — Mr Pawan Sharma.

DURBAL NATH SABHA: The following have been elected officer bearers of the Durbal Nath Sabha; president — Mr Jagan Nath; vice-president — Mr Tejpal Munde, Mr Nand Ram Bagari; general secretary — Mr Ram Avtar Barguar.

APPEAL: During a meeting organised by Chandigarh Colonies Welfare Association, the vice-chairman of the association Mr Ram Raj Verma appealed to the Chandigarh Administration to take prompt action to solve the long-pending problems of the residents which include the unavailability of streetlights, improper drainage system and inadequate supply of drinking water.

IT WORKSHOP: The Chandigarh Regional Chapter (CRC), Punjab, of the Institute of Town Planner India in association with Rolra India organised a workshop on ‘IT solution for planning and Digital Age’ at the seminar hall of the Punjab State Council for Science and Technology here on Friday. The main presentation in the workshop was made by Rolta India which was attended by administrators, town planners, architects, experts from IT field. Speaking on the occasion Mr Sameer Kumar, Additional Secretary in the Irrigation Department of Punjab Stressed upon the need to introduce such solutions especially in the Department of Town Planning to achieve best of solutions within a short span of time.

FAREWELL: The faculty, administrative, engineering and the staff members of other departments of the institute gave farewell to Ms P. Sahi, former Deputy Director Administration (DDA), PGI on her repatriation to her parent department at a function held here on Monday. Ms Sahi had joined the PGI on January 22, 1996 on deputation from the Income Tax Department. Prof S.K. Sharma, Director, Dr A.K. Gupta, Medical Superintendent, other senior members of the faculty and Ms Meeta Rajivlochan, DDA, PGI, spoke highly about Mrs Sahi’s contributions to the institute.

MAHAYAJNA: The Gayatri Parivar, under the aegis of the Shanti Kunj, Hardwar, organised a “Gayatri mahayajna” in Sector 40 here on Sunday. According to a press note, the “yajna” was performed in the memory of the Gujarat earthquake victims.. A nine “kundi” yagna, in which about 300 persons from all walks of life offered their “ahutis”, were also offered for the peace of the departed souls.

PRESIDENT APPOINTED: Ms Kulwant Kaur has been appointed president of the Chandigarh unit of Sarab Hind Shiromani Istri Akali Dal by Prof Prem Singh Chandumajra, general secretary of the Sarab Hind Shiromani Akali Dal.

HARYANA

AMBALA
RALLY: Former MLA and Congress leader, Mr Nirmal Singh has termed the heckling by the crowd of PCC chief Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda in the Bhiwani rally as unfortunate on Monday. Talking to mediapersons here Mr Nirmal Singh said the rally was a good attempt to bring unity within the party. “But the Bhiwani incident is not in the interest of the party. The party top brass must take serious note of the incident,” he said. Mr Nirmal Singh said rallies are not a yardstick for image-building. “But, it is clear that people of Haryana are unhappy with the Chautala government,” he said. “It will not be possible for the Chautala government to complete its full term,” he added.

SC/ST RALLY: All-India Confedera-tion of SC/ST and BC organisation (Haryana) will hold a rally in Ambala on March 11 to press for their various demands. Talking to mediapersons here on Monday the national chairman of the organisation, Mr Ram Raj, said the rally would start from Ambedkar Park and culminate at the Commissioner’s office. “The activists from five districts under Ambala division and Chandigarh will participate in the rally,” he said. Among others, Mr Jaswinder Singh and Mr Jagpal are oganising the rally. He strongly condemned the demolition of Buddha statues in Afghanistan. “In my opinion, it is a pre-planned move which is likely to have an adverse impact on the world peace,” he said.

ID PRAYER TIMINGS: The timings of Id prayer at Ambala City, Jama Masjid Tawakkal Shah, Sabzi Mandi will be 9.45 am and Masjid Lakkhi Shan, Masjid Katcheriwali, Mecca Masjid (Hari Palace) will be at 9 am. In Ambala Cantt, Jama Masjid Chuna Chowk and Masjid Allenby Line (Kali Paltan) prayers will be held at 9.30 am, a release issue by Punjab Wakf Board, Ambala Cantt, said.

VERBAL DUEL: A verbal duel took place between two senior doctors of Civil Hospital of Ambala Cantt on Monday over the transfer of a Class IV employee. CMO Ambala, Dr Patnaik, had to intervene to sort out the matter. The transfer order of the employee was cancelled. The district administration has taken a serious note of the incident. Simmering discontent between the two doctors became evident when a Class IV employee was transferred out. The senior surgeon objected to the transfer and said personnel were being harassed by the hospital administrators. The senior doctor said the transfer of the Class IV employee was a routine matter and there was no need for the surgeon to raise a hue and cry about it.

KAITHAL
KILLED: Niranjan of Cheeka Mandi was killed when the scooter he was driving collided with a truck on the Kaithal-Patiala road near Polar village on Saturday. He was going to Kaithal. The truck driver fled the scene after the mishap. A case has been registered.

SALARY NOT PAID: As many as 62 employees of the dissolved Kalayat and Pundri municipal committees of the district are sore over the non-payment of salaries for the past eight months. In a memorandum submitted to the Chief Minister they have demanded the clearance of their salary bills at the earliest.

SONEPAT
1 KILLED: A woman was killed on the spot and two others injured when the scooter that they were riding hit a road divider on the road between Sector 14 and Sector 15 here on Sunday night. The deceased has been identified as Saroj.

BODY RECOVERED: The Rai police today claimed to have recovered the body of a truck driver Raghbir who was allegedly kidnapped by some persons on the Jatheri road in the district on February 20 last. The police said the body was in a decomposed condition and believed it to be a case of murder. Two persons are reported to have been detained for interrogation.

RUN OVER: A student of Engineering College, Rohtak, was run over by a train while he was crossing the railway track here on Sunday. The victim belonged to Sonepat.

MEDICAL CAMP: The Tehsil Alipur Biradari will organise a medical checkup camp here on April 1 next . Mr Ashok Chandna, senior vice-president of the Biradari, said Dr Harbhajan Arora and Dr Asha Arora would examine the patients and provide medicines free of cost on behalf of the organisation.

YAJANA ENDS: The week-long Rigveda Yajana organised by the local Vedic Yajna Samiti, concluded here on Sunday amidst chanting of mantras. Hundreds of people offered prayers. The programme was followed by a community lunch.

YAMUNANAGAR
BANDH: Following an appeal by the Shiv Sena, the Punjabi Sabha, the Bahujan Samaj Party and others, a bandh was observed till mid-day here on Sunday in protest against the increase in the electricity tariff and the house tax. Mr Inder Kumar Diwana, general secretary of the Punjabi Sabha, urged the state government to withdraw the hike.