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August 17, 2001, Chandigarh, India
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Agitating students lock up PAU
gates Ludhiana, August 16 The students descended on the college before 9 a.m. and locked all the entry gates to the college, throwing functioning of the college out of gear. They also prevented entry to other departments. The students and staff of the college were not allowed to go inside and were seen whiling away time in the lawns of the university. The students sat in groups in front of all the entry gates and raised slogans against the Punjab Government. The Vice-Chancellor, Dr K.S. Aulakh, invited the students to talk to him. A group of students, led by the president of Punjab Agricultural Students Association (PASA), went to meet the Vice-Chancellor. They were demanding that the posts of teacher of agriculture in schools be advertised soon. The students had started the agitation two months back, but had called it off after assurances by the Education Minister, Mr Tota Singh, to advertise the posts by June 30. The students of agriculture had started agitating in favour of their demand to get the vacant posts of teacher of agriculture filled in schools on May 2. They had started a relay fast. After assurances by the minister that the posts would be advertised along with those of B. Ed teachers, they had called off the strike. The students resumed their agitation on August 7 after the government failed to keep its promise. The students had earlier blocked the gates of the university campus and staged a dharna in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office. They had been on a dharna in front of the college since last week and had been boycotting their classes. The meeting between the high-level committee and agitating PAU students failed to produce any result today. The President of PASA, Kanwaljit Singh, in a press statement said in the evening the Vice-Chancellor was not present in the meeting and only some higher officials of the PAU were discussing the matter. The students were not satisfied after the meeting and they had decided to continue their stir. |
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PTU starts 49 technical courses Ludhiana, August 16 Mr Jagdish Singh Garcha, Minister of Technical Education, said this while addressing mediapersons at Government Polyechnic for Women, Rishi Nagar, here today. Refuting allegations of starting courses without permission, Mr Garcha said all new courses had been granted approval by the All-India Council for Technical Education and seats to most of the courses had been filled. He said the new courses included postgraduate diplomas in media technology, fashion designing, interior decoration and computer applications. He added that a postgraduate course in computer teaching had been cancelled due to poor response. |
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Man booked for wrongful confinement of
youth Ludhiana, August 16 There were reports that the family members of the lost boy, Kuldip Singh, alias Khaleefa, alias Raju, were reaching at a
compromise with the family of Darshan Singh, with whom the boy was found. There were also unconfirmed reports that the story narrated by the family of Kuldeep Singh was true. There were allegations that the family knew the boy was with Darshan Singh and had taken some money from him. The Jagraon police, by registering a case against Darshan Singh under Sections 342 and 368 of the IPC, seemed convinced that the boy was kept in illegal confinement for 17 years without the knowledge of his family members. Ms Gurdev Kaur, mother of the Kuldip Singh, had learnt recently that a man in Fatehgarh Sivian village was keeping her son. Now 24 years of age, Kuldip was a mentally challenged boy since his birth. At the age of seven, he had disappeared from a vegetable market in Jagraon. The family had searched for him at every possible place, but his whereabouts remained unknown. According to the police, on August 10, a local mason told Ms Gurdev Kaur that he had seen a boy who looked similar to her two daughters in alleged bondage of a resident of Fatehgarh Sivian village. Joyous at the news, she and some friends and relatives rushed to the village. They recognised the boy, known to them as Khaleefa, but now named Raju. An old wound on the left leg of the boy helped the family in recognising the lost child. Darshan Singh and his family members refused to admit that the boy belonged to Gurdev Kaur. The family later complained to the police that on the basis of their enquiries from villagers, Darshan Singh had found the boy from somewhere and had kept him in bondage since then. The family complained to the police that the boy was treated badly and not given good clothes. They also alleged that the boy had been working as a slave. The police had called a meeting of both the families to solve the matter and handed over the boy to Gurdev Kaur, but at that time, no case had been registered against Darshan Singh. |
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Passport
denied to SGPC staffer Ludhiana, August 16 Mr Talwandi is scheduled to leave for the UK tomorrow
to participate in the bi-centenary celebrations of the coronation of
Maharaja Ranjit Singh in London. Mr Talwandi has been invited by the
Sikhs of the UK as the chief of the SGPC to participate in the
celebrations due on August 18 and 19. Sikhs from all over the world
will participate in the celebrations. Meanwhile, Mr Tarlochan Singh,
Vice-Chairman, National Commission for Minorities today lodged a
protest with the Union Home Minister, Mr L K Advani, against the
refusal of the passport to an employee of the SGPC who was to
accompany Mr Talwandi. In a letter to Mr Advani, Mr Tarlochan Singh
has stated that under instructions from the Home Ministry, the
employees of the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee are not being
issued passports in a routine from Jalandhar passport office. Their
case is forwarded to the Delhi office for clearance. He said SGPC was
the only religious body elected under an act and there should not be
any ban on any of its employees such as ragis, pracharaks or priests
because they were in great demand by lakhs of the sikhs who were
settled abroad.’ Mr Tarlochan Singh urged upon the Home Minister to
issue instructions to withdraw these restrictions. These restrictions
are infringement on the rights of the employees to have passport in a
normal way, he added. Mr Singh said even Mr Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa,
Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers, had intervened in the
matter and sought passport for the employee but his request was also
turned down. Mr Jagdev Singh Talwandi regretted the attitude of the
Home Ministry and the External Affairs Ministry. He said this was an
act of discrimination against the Sikhs. |
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Construction
material washed away Machhiwara, August 16 According to sources, the river water reached the level of 1.75 lakh cusecs and its current carried away cement, concrete and sand with it. Mr Ashwani Sood, under whose supervision the bridge is being built, put the total loss to be around Rs 20 to 25 lakh. He termed the rise in the water level to be an unexpected development and claimed that water from Sisvan, Budhki, Saran, Sisrsa, Charan Ganga and Devti rivers had merged into the Sutlej. He said the construction work would remain suspended for two months, but each of the 250 labourers working at the site would be paid Rs 100 everyday during this period. He added that now the completion of bridge would take six months more than what was estimated earlier. Interestingly, the police personnel deployed at Sahnsowal and Dhulewal villages denied any knowledge about the incident. They claimed that till late evening on Tuesday, the water level was only 70,000 cusecs. The people of Ghumana village, which is quite near to the site, have also expressed surprise at the claim of the construction company. They argued that if the water level had reached 1.75 lakh cusecs, every thing would have been swept away. |
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Samaritans
come to the rescue of heart patient Ludhiana, August 16 Not belonging to a well-to-do family, she was disillusioned as she could never be able to get well as she had no money. Fate had willed something else for her. Today she is recovering from surgery and looking forward to have a healthy life, thanks to some institutions and good Samaritans who arranged for her surgery and helped her having a new lease of life. Talking to Ludhiana Tribune, Ms Tripta said this was a noble gesture of some persons who helped her to get operated upon. Today her three daughters, who are of marriageable age, are more than happy for their mother and grateful to the helping hands. Ms Tripta had a problem with her mitral valve, which had not only shrunk, but had started leaking. She needed a double valve replacement. The entire operation was to cost Rs 1.20 lakh. Her husband, a tailor by profession, tried to arrange for the money, but to no avail. Then he somehow told this problem to one of his clients. Ms Sarvarinder Grewal donated a substantial amount to him. She also requested the members of the Inner Wheel Club to help with the finances. Ms Manjula Jain, president of the club, on behalf of the club, donated money and urged the Red Cross to help. When help started pouring in, Ms Parveen Narang and Ms Harinder Dhillon, Principal of Khalsa College for Women, also came forward and donated money. As a result, Rs 92,000 was collected. Ms Ruby Fernandas, Principal of New High School, urged the doctors of CMC to give some concession, saying all money came as donations. The CMC also came forward to help the poor woman. The chairman of the advisory committee, Mr S.N. Saini, waived off the rest of the payment. Dr Verghese, the chief cardiac surgeon, along with Dr Miachel Deodhar and Dr Allen Joseph, performed the double valve replacement surgery that lasted six hours. The operation took place on August 6. Ms Tripta will be discharged tomorrow. |
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Failed student admitted for consideration Ludhiana, August 16 Satinder Rana is one such aggrieved student, who was admitted to Maharaj Senior Secondary School, Basti Jodhewal, in 1999. According to his father, Mr Kewal Krishen Rana, who presented his complaint before the Additional Deputy Commissioner, Mr S.R. Kaler at the weekly ‘sangat darshan’ programme, Satinder had been a student of SDP Senior Secondary School, Basti Jodhewal, from where he appeared in his matric examination and failed. Later, Mr Tarsem Lal, principal of the School accused approached them and offered admission in his school in plus one. Besides, he reportedly assured them that he would manage to get Satinder clear his matric examination. Mr Rana said in his written complaint that they were given to understand that the boy had passed the matric exam, after an exam was conducted by the school. But no certificate was issued to him. When Mr Rana approached the principal for the certificate he was asked not to worry as his son had already been admitted in plus one. He was “made to appear in the exam also” and told that he had also passed the plus two exam. When Satinder and his father approached the principal for the certificate, he reportedly tried to avoid them and instead asked them to approach the Camp Office of Punjab School Education Board (PSEB) at Punjabi Bhavan. When they approached the Punjabi Bhavan everything was found to be fake. Even the Roll No “ 361541” given to him proved to be fictitious. Mr Rana alleged that for three years the principal kept him and his son in the dark and cheated them of about Rs 40,000 during the period. When the matter was brought to the principals notice he assured to procure the certificate and also refund the money. He reportedly gave this assurance before the mohalla panchayat also. However, Mr Rana urged the ADC that stern action be taken against the said principal as he was continuing with the practise and allegedly cheating other students in the same way. Mr Rana said while the school was reportedly affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education upto primary level only, the students were being admitted upto plus two. He demanded that the entire issue be investigated and action taken against the principal. The ADC, Mr Kaler has referred the matter to the police. Mr Kaler assured that the investigation would be completed at the earliest. Quality of work in various development projects and also the proper utilisation of funds granted to the
villages must be checked by officers of the Development Department, Mr Kaler emphasised at the 'sangat darshan' programme. Taking note of the complaint by the panchayat of Lalheri village regarding unauthorised possession of 'shamlat' land, Mr Kaler directed the Tehsildar concerned to get the demarcation of land done by August 18 and submit the report. Mr Dharamvir of Badodo village complained that construction of periphery of the village was faulty. The ADC asked the Block Development and Panchayat Officer (BDPO) to visit the spot and after checking the work get the required changes made. The issue of a faulty construction of a drain by village panchayat of Silowani village was raised by Mr Hari Singh, he pointed out that the drain along his farm was one foot above the level of road and his farm. The ADC directed the BDPO to visit the spot and submit his report. Mr Gurmit Ram of Khazuri Bagh of Bhattian village complained of the illegal cutting of trees from the panchayat land by Amrik Singh. Mr Kaler asked the BDPO to take necessary action and findings compliance within one week. Responding to the complaint of Mr Ram Rattan, a resident of Sewakpura locality in the city, regarding the possession of a house, the SP (City) said that the case had already been registered and investigations were in progress. The complaint by Ms Gurdial Kaur of Dhulkot village was filed as the panchayat had agreed to drain the waste water of the village to an alternative site. In all, 50 complaints were received in the function of which 33 were settled on the spot and the rest were fixed to be settled within next two weeks. Among others who attended the programme were Mr A.K. Sinha, ADC (Development) and Ms Anita Darshi, Assistant Commissioner (Grievances), besides all SDMs of the district. |
Unsung INA hero awaits
pension Bhaini Arora
(Ludhiana), August 16 Reminiscing his glorious yet painful past, the 102-year-old Gulzar Singh, a bedridden man cleans a ‘Tamra Patra’ presented to him by the late Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, during the silver jubilee of the Independence in 1972 in New Delhi. The patra is his only prized possession, which hangs in a corner of his house, as a testimony to his services he rendered to the INA. Since then, no one has bothered to call him at the Independence Day function or to honour him. Even the state government has not even obliged him by giving him a promised pension. Mr Gulzar Singh, incidentally, is the neighbour of Ms Surjit Kaur, another INA veteran, who has also been awaiting recognition and pension since Independence. Ludhiana Tribune had earlier highlighted her plight. He becomes nostalgic while recalling his days when he was with Subhas Chander Bose, the INA supremo. Though bitter about the treatment given to him, the man, despite his physical debility and lost vision, is high in spirits. Unlike most of the veteran freedom fighters he is not disgusted with the freedom and still offers to fight against the enemy if the country needs him. Claiming that he had not fought for the pension or recognition, he said when he see or hear government’s claims of giving facilities to freedom fighters, he felt pained. Recalling his days with the INA supremo, Mr Gulzar Singh said he had a chance to stay with Netaji in Singapore for a few days in a house. He said Netaji was a very intelligent and sharp man who was always busy in reading books during free time. He said he had always seen him changing his attire to visit various areas of operation as people had started recognising him and he wanted to hide himself from the British Army. |
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Grants given to soldiers’
families Ludhiana, August 16 At a function held at the 103 Infantry Battalion (Territorial Army), here today, financial assistance was given to families of retired soldiers from the regimental fund. The help was provided to them for their children’s studies and daughters’ marriage. Speaking on the occasion, the Commanding Officer, Col G.R. Titerwal, said most of the soldiers in the Territorial Army get retired before completing 15 years of service. So these soldiers are not eligible for pension. Most of them have to face financial problems. To make the future of their families secure the Army wanted to help them. Anyone who seeks help can apply to the Territorial Army Directorate. Colonel Rai said seven families were provided financial assistance at today’s function. It is an appreciative step to encourage the soldiers. Colonel Rai said Rs 5,000 would be given for children’s studies and Rs 15,000 for daughters’ marriage. Wives and other relatives of soldiers were invited on the occasion. The wife of soldier Kuldip Kumar said her husband’s leg was amputated in an accident. Today she received Rs 5,000 from the Commanding Officer. Mrs Daljit Kaur, widow of Lance Naik Gajjan Singh, received Rs 15,000 for the marriage of her daughter. The wife of soldier Darshan Singh, who died in the 1971 war, also received Rs 5,000. |
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Petrol pumps to remain closed on Aug 20 Ludhiana, August 16 Mr Raju Shram, a spokesman for the association, said the traders wanted an increase in their commission. They had also been demanding the supply of quality checking equipment, so as to ensure better quality control. The traders, he said, were also angry over the non-uniformity in the prices of petroleum products in Punjab, Haryana, Himachal and J&K. Petrol was available at lower rates in Chandigarh which affected business here. Petrol supply would actually stop on August 18. |
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AT THE CROSSROADS THE college goers in 1947 were expecting a revolution to coincide with Independence, but their hopes were belied when the country was divided on communal lines. Thereafter, loot, arson and bloodshed took place at a large scale. I was a third-year student at that time. In a disgruntled manner, I sought relief in the idea that the corpse of communal hatred had been buried once and for all. During the past 54 years, the situation has taken a turn from bad to worse. Hatred and acrimony have raised their head once again. The political game, as in Jammu and Kashmir, is being played on the international chess board. It is not possible to put the clock back. Terrorists are trying to plunge the modern world into mediaeval times. They have been brainwashed in such a manner that they cannot differentiate between right and wrong. They have been fed on illusions and have lost contact with reality. Mercenaries and fanatics are a misguided lot. Their efforts to muffle the voice of the people, to coerce them to toe their line and to prescribe dress code for women are reprehensible. To equate their death toll with that of our soldiers and citizens is deviation from our dignified path. It was not the war of the people that had created Pakistan. All communities were living peacefully in Punjab shortly before Partition. In the first week of March 1947, the poetic - religious combine in Lahore and Amritsar ignited the communal fire that engulfed the whole country. Even now the people of Jammu and Kashmir want to live in peace and with dignity, but the marauders do not allow them to do so. |
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Nine file papers for MC poll Fatehgarh Sahib, August 16 Those who filed their papers today, included Mr Rohit Sharma, Mr Sunil Bector, Mr Shamsher Singh, Mr Vineet Sharma, Mr Rakesh Kumar, Ms Nirmal Kumari, Mr Varinder Kumar, Mr Ashoak Kumar and Mr Sunil Kumar. |
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Minister
gives away prizes Ludhiana, August 16 Mr Jagdish Singh Garcha, Minister of Technical Education, gave best student prizes to Manveen from Government Polytechnic for Women; Parminder Deep from ITI, Gill Road, here; Balraj Singh from ITI, Gujjarwal; Navjeet Kaur, ITI, Samrala; and Kirandeep Kaur, ITI, Jagraon. |
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Need for more such
ashrams Ludhiana, August 16 Ms Dubey lauded the efforts of the ashram. She also distributed clothes among the women employees of the day-care centre. Addressing students Ms Dubey stressed the importance of selfless service. Later she visited Nishkam Vridh Campus at Daad where more than forty senior citizens are staying. Four Vidya Mandir schools are also being run in slum areas of Ludhiana city by the organisation. More than 2,300 children are getting quality education here. The computer training centre has 70 students on its rolls. Most of them hail from rural areas around the centre. The ashram’s head quarters is located at Daad village. A dental hospital and eye hospital also function on the premises of its headquarters. Another hospital run by the ashram is serving the people of Jujhar Nagar area. |
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A treasure of coins worth
preserving Ludhiana, August 16 And after all these years of painstaking efforts, by collecting 1200 coins of different dynasties and kings since 600 BC, Kamaldeep ‘Dimple’ has indeed succeeded in building one. Today he possesses a coin-collection which might very well be the envy of any antique-collector in the world. He has coins from virtually all dynasties that ruled over India or parts of it from as early as the 600 BC. Among the earliest coins in his collection are the ‘punch-mark’ coins prevalent in the period of King Ashoka and later kings. Then there are coins issued by various generals of Alexander the great, who remained behind to rule over the conquered parts of India. Following in chronological order, there are coins issued by kings of the Ist AD including Kanishka and Huvishka. Hindushahi coins depicting an ox on one side and a horse on the other, which became popular all over the world those days as far as coin designing was concerned, also form part of the coin-treasure. Among the medieval period coins in Dimple’s treasure , there are a whole lot of them. Coins issued by various kings such as Qutubuddin Aibak, Tughlaq, Balban, Akbar the Great, Kanishka, Huvishk, various kings of the Maurya dynasty, Prithvi Raj Chauhan, Razia Sultan, Jehangir, and Maharaja Ranjit Singh, to name only a few. In addition, he has Nanakshahi coins, coins issued by various Sikh missals and the East India Company. And to top it all, there are coins issued by various states of pre-partition India, which include coins of Baroda, Bahawalpur, Hyderabad, Gwalior, Jaipur and Indore. Among the coins of foreign countries, Kamaldeep has coins from most countries of the world. He has stored his treasure in a large number of plastic pouches according to the era and dynasty of the coins Kamaldeep says that goldsmiths who receive ancient gold or silver coins for melting should realise the historical value of the coins and deposit the same with the Numismatics Society of Ludhiana so that these could be preserved for posterity. He also has a word of caution for prospective coin collectors. Some people were preparing fake old coins which are on sale everywhere, he said. An ancient coin has to be authenticated by various tests before being made part of any collection, he added. Talking about his plans to boost his collection, Dimple told this correspondent that he was planning to buy an ancient gold coin though it was expensive. He has paid in the past through the nose for some rare coins, which he thought he must have. He is also planning a visit to the ancient Ajdaam village near Hoshiarpur where coins of Vikramaditya are still found in earth diggings. Besides, he is planning to become a member of the Northern India’s Coin Collectors’ Club. He is anxious to have interaction with other coin collectors and share knowledge of numismatics with them. Indeed, with no financial problems staring him in the face on account of his generator business, Dimple is fully on the way to adding to his treasure of rare coins. Undoubtedly, Dimple’s little treasure, which is growing slowly and steadily, is worth preserving for all times to come. Those interested in seeing him and his collection may contact him on phone 544833 at Ludhiana. |
Illicit liquor seized Jagraon, August 16 Poppy husk seized Dowry case She has alleged that ever since her marriage, about two years ago, her in-laws have been harassing her for dowry. On August 11, they turned her out of house after giving her a beating. She, along with her three-month-old son, came back to the house of her grandparents, who had brought her up. On August 15, her husband, accompanied by his friends, forcibly took her son away, and threatened her not to enter his house without meeting the demand of more dowry, she alleged. |
UNIDO to launch project Ludhiana, August 16 An awareness workshop in this regard was held here today. The workshop was organised by the Punjab Cleaner Production Centre in association with Ludhiana Dyeing Association and UNIDO. Mr Rodeny Stares, a UNIDO expert, elaborated the concept of TBL. He said due to increasing competition in the global and local markets, the consumers in the east and the west were patronising companies having sound environment and social commitments. It was in the interest of the companies that they followed the measures to save limited natural resources. Dr P.K. Gupta, director, National Cleaner Production Centre (NCPC), appreciated the measures taken by the Ludhiana textile industry to develop waste minimisation circles to reduce air pollution in the city. |
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Ludhiana
Stock Exchange turns 18 Ludhiana, August 16 It has completed 18 years of trading today. According to Mr R.C. Singal, president of the exchange, daily turn over of the exchange these days is around Rs 20 crore. It had touched the highest in February, 2001, before the presentation of the central Budget in March to Rs 85 crore daily. |
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BIZ CLIP Launched: Global Weighing India launched a range of super GWT weigh bridges, here on Thursday. Mr Hemant Karandikar, MD of the company, said the bridges would be available in two sizes.
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