Obscenity unleashed in cinema halls

Ludhiana, March 19 Notwithstanding the claims of the district administration to ensure clean entertainment, several cinema halls in the city continue to screen ‘pornographic’ movies. Though the administration claims to keep an eye on the theatres saying that only movies approved by the Censor Board were allowed to be screened, but the city cinema houses invariably end up showing clips that are from obscene films.

Obscene posters outside a cinema hall in Ludhiana.

Punish the guilty: Left workers
Ludhiana, March 19
Hundreds of activists of Left parties today staged a dharna at Mini-Secretariat here, demanding exemplary punishment to those guilty of taking bribes in the so called defence deals, exposed by tehelka dotcom.

Display contents on labels: PFA
Ludhiana, March 19
The People For Animals have demanded that the contents of food items be displayed on labels itself, keeping in view the sentiments of vegetarians. They have sought issuance of notification by the government on the issue.

Sukhbir Badal denies unity move
Ludhiana, March 19
The general secretary of the Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) and Rajya Sabha Member, Mr Sukhbir Badal, has said that there was no unity move initiated between his party and the All India Shiromani Akali Dal, led by Mr Gurcharan Singh Tohra.

• 6 hurt in road mishap

Man booked on rape charge
Ludhiana, March 19
The city police has registered a case of alleged rape of a minor girl at the Ludhiana Sadar police station. The case has been registered under Sections 342, 376 and 506 of the IPC against Rajesh Kumar, son of Ram Kirtan Yadav, a migrant from Uttar Pradesh on the complaint of Nanmum, alias Badsa, son of Jogu, also a migrant from Uttar Pradesh, now a resident of Ashok Nagar, Salem Tabri.

4 kg of opium seized Ludhiana, March 19 The Dehlon police has arrested a man and a woman with four kg of opium when they were going on foot near Kilaraipur on the kutcha road to Mehmasinghwala village last evening. The smuggler duo was spotted by a police party headed by SHO, Dehlon, when on seeing the police, the man who was walking with a limp while carrying a heavy polythene bag in his right hand, passed it on to the woman accompanying him.  Crushed to death

The Dehlon police party with the opium smugglers appreh - ended near Kila Raipur on Sunday.

Changing role of district industry centres
Ludhiana, March 19
The role of district industry centres, which were set up at the district-level to encourage the industrialisation and regulate the industrial units, has completely changed in view of the economic reforms and the threats of the WTO.

Six textile units seek UNIDO consultancy services
Ludhiana, March 19
Six textile units in Ludhiana have decided to utilise the expertise of Prof J. Govardhan, a technology expert of United Nations Industrial Development Organisation, to upgrade their units with the objective of making these units competitive in the international market.

Bhartiya Kisan Union intensifies stir
Doraha, March 19
The district president and general secretary of Bhartiya Kisan Union stated in a press note that in order to revolt against the wrong policies adopted by the government as regards the farmers, they would be united in going to Chandigarh in 17 tempos and trucks to become a part of the agitation.

EDUCATION

182 students awarded degrees
Doraha, March 19
“Education is a continual process that keeps on enriching the lives of everyone around. In the real sense of the term, for an educated person, classroom interaction is must, “said Dr H.S. Gurm, Vice-Chancellor, Punjab Technical University, Jalandhar, in his convocation address at Guru Nanak National College, Doraha, today.

PAU convocation today
Ludhiana, March 19
The Punjab Agricultural University will honour Dr Rattan Lal, professor, School of Natural Resources, director, Carbon Management and Sequestration Programmes and director of South Asia Initiative of the Ohio State University, USA with a D.Sc. (honouris causa) degree at the annual convocation to be held here tomorrow.

PCCTU meets SGPC chief
Ludhiana, March 19
To discuss the problem of underpayment to teachers in colleges managed by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, the members of the Punjab and Chandigarh College Teachers’ Union held a meeting with Mr Jagdev Singh Talwandi, SGPC chief, at Guru Nanak Engineering College here.

COURTS

Forum quashes PSEB’s demand
Ludhiana, March 19
The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum has quashed a demand of Punjab State Electricity Board of Rs 6,369 on account of sundry charges from Mr Bhushan Kumar, a resident of New Kundanpuri. The forum further directed the board to refund the said amount with interest at the rate of 12 per cent from the date of deposit till the date of refund along with Rs 500 as cost of litigation.

Harbhajan Komal, a versatile poet
Ludhiana, March19
‘Waris Shah wrote with passion about Heer and glorified her, but it is probable that he would not have wanted a Heer to be born to him, for there is always a difference in the truth written in the books and real life,” said Harbhajn Singh Komal, who had come from Karnal to participate in a function organised by the Punjabi Gazal Manch.

HEALTH

Hing — an effective anti-flatulent
Commonly used in majority of Indian homes, hing (Sanskrit-Hingu, English-Asafoetida and Botanical — Ferula narthrex) is also an important ayurvedic medicine. It is a five to eight feet tall plant and grows in the Baltistan range of Kashmir, Afganistan and also in parts of Iran. Hing is a gum-like resin, which is obtained after giving an incision on the lower stem and root of the plant.

Falling female birth rate alarming: UNICEF expert
Ludhiana, March 19
Dr K. Suresh, Project Health Officer, UNICEF, who was in the city to inaugurate Reproductive Child and Health projects, stated that in Punjab, the ratio between males and females was highly in balanced. 

NSS rally against drug abuse
Ludhiana, March 19
As many as 250 volunteers of NSS from various colleges of Punjab Agricultural University staged a rally to create awareness against the ill effects of drug abuse, use of intoxicants, social evils and AIDS at PAU campus here today.