R E G I O N A L   B R I E F S

PUNJAB

AMRITSAR
INAUGURATED: Mr Brij Mohan Kapur, Mayor, inaugurated the work of laying mix-seal at the Yasin road, here on Sunday. Dr Baldev Raj Chawla, Health Minister, Punjab, and Mr Om Parkash Kalia, president, BJP (Urban), were also present.

EX-SERVICEMEN ASSOCIATION: The Punjab Government has decided to grant membership to ex-servicemen in the District Planning Boards and District Grievances Committees. Besides, state-level special cells headed by PCS officers will be constituted to look into problems faced by them. This was announced by Capt Kanwaljit Singh, Finance Minister, while addressing at a function of Ex-Servicemen Welfare Association at Jandiala Guru. He also announced a grant of Rs 10 lakh for the Nagar Panchayat of the area and Rs 50,000 for the welfare fund of the ex-servicemen.

SAINIK WELFARE: Mr J.S.Mann, Deputy Director, Sainik Welfare, has said that the kin of martyrs of the Kargil operation are being provided maximum facilities by the Punjab Government. He said the Sainik Welfare Board would start computer classes and stenography courses for the widows and children of the martyrs.

DORAHA
ARRESTED: The Payal police on Monday claimed to have arrested the murderers of Sehajpal Singh, a 22-year- old youth of Dhamot Kalan village who was killed on Thursday evening. Those arrested are Gona Khan, his sons, Sher Khan and Bali Khan, his grandson, Butta Khan, and one Najjar Khan. A case was registered against them under Sections 302, 324, 323, 148 and 149 of IPC.

MEETING: A police-public meeting was held under the command of the ASP, Mr Shiv Kumar (IPS), at Tibba village on Saturday. Panches and sarpanches of surrounding villages highlighted their problems as regards the Police Department. Mr Balwinder Singh Jhaj of Tibba, along with the sarpanch, urged the authorities to get the bridge of the village widened. It was also alleged that the scooterists and motorcyclists were stopped by the police on the way and harassed. The ASP asserted that strict action would be taken against the erring officials. The ASP said 'thikri pehras' would be organised in various villages. He requested the people to make police-public relations strong.

HOSHIARPUR
EYE DONATION: The family of Narinderjit Joshi donated his eyes after his death to the Eye Donation Association here on Saturday. Dr V.K. Basi performed the operation. The eyes were sent to the PGI Eye Bank, Chandigarh.

TRAFFIC SEMINAR: The local Sud Sabha organised a traffic safety seminar at Sarav Hitkari Vidya mandir here on Saturday. Mr Krishan Kant Sud and Mr Moti Lal Sud, president and senior vice-president, respectively, of the sabha, Mr Manjit Singh, ASI, Mr S.S. Bhatti, SP, (Operation) emphasised the need for strictly following the traffic rules. Ms Lalita Sharma, Principal of the school stressed on the use of helmets.

JAGRAON
CAMP: The International Council of Ayurveda at the instructions of the Punjab State Social Welfare Advisory Board, Chandigarh, started a camp at Cheemna village, 3 km from here, on woman empowerment. The camp was inaugurated by Dr Raj Kumar Garg, CMO. In the deliberations made on this occasion by Dr R.K. Garg, Mr Satish Bhardwaj (Advocate), Dr Dilbagh Singh, and same senior advocates, urges the women to know about their rights and duties and to face the world boldly. Dr Ashok Sharma, general secretary of the International Council of Ayurveda, said the camp would continue up to Thursday at the community centre of the village. A large number of women attended the camp.

KILLED: A tractor trailer carrying pilgrims to Nanaksar was hit by a truck (PB-10AK-9765) at a bridge near Dholan village resulting in the death of Darshan Singh, driver of the tractor, on the spot and injuring 15 others. Mandeep Kaur and Sukhvir Kaur succumbed to injuries while being taken to the hospital. Eight injured persons have been admitted to the Kalyani Hospital while five to the Civil Hospital. All the persons belong to Burj Hari Singh village and were going to attend barsi of Baba Nand Singh Ji.

JALANDHAR
IT CAMP: The National Council of Teacher Education, New Delhi, organised an information technology camp at the M.G.N. College of Education here on Sunday. Prof R.D. Meena, Regional Director, NRC, Jaipur, inaugurated the camp. Ten principals of various colleges and district institutes participated along with senior teachers. Prof D.S. Mangat, Principal of the college, welcomed Prof Meena and other participants.

KHANNA
ELECTION: Election to the AS High School Management Committee and Trust which controls AS College for Boys, AS College for Women, AS Senior Secondary School and AS Modern Senior Secondary School will be held on September 16. Nominations will be received till Thursday.

LUDHIANA
AWARD: Narinderjit Kaur, a class XII student of Guru Nanak Senior Secondary School, Janta Nagar, has been selected by the Central Scientific Instruments Organisation (CSIO), Chandigarh, for the CSIR cash award this year. Narinderjit has been invited by the CSIO authorities to Chandigarh on August 15 for receiving a cash award of Rs 3,000, which will be presented to her by the director of the organisation. It may be mentioned that the award is given to the bright SC, ST students to motivate them to take up science study at plus-two level.

VANAMAHOTSAVA: The Rotary Club, Ludhiana North, and the Inner Wheel Club, North, jointly celebrated vanamahotsava here at Rajguru Nagar on Sunday. Mr Bhagwant Singh who was the chief guest inaugurated the project by planting a sapling. A large number of residents of the area, Rotarians and Inner Wheel members participated in the project. More than 500 saplings were planted on the occasion. OC

QUIZ CONTEST: The Love Dale Club organised a quiz contest at Students’ Home of the Punjab Agricultural University here on Sunday. The contest was divided into five sections. Among the students of LKG and UKG, Kunal stood first, followed by Vasu and Abhinav. Muskan, Gurjot and Ambika got consolation prizes. In the second section comprising students of Class I, Sambhav stood first, Shubham got second prize and third prize went to Aashni. Mansi, Harveen and Anukirat were given consolation prizes. Among Class II students, Vibhu clinched the first prize, Bhavya was declared second and Tamanna stood third. Consolation prize went to Simarjeet. Among Class III students, Vanipreet bagged the first prize, Manik stood second and Jaspreet was declared third. Divyajot and Jasleen were given consolation prizes. Among the students of Class IV and V, Soumya clinched the first prize, Ahsas stood second, Timanshu was declared third. Children presented a cultural programme in which they presented dances, poems, speeches and folk songs. Ms Sikand and Ms Rajni Behl were the judges. Ms Pritima Behl, Principal, appreciated the efforts of the members of the club.

TRAVEL CONCESSION: The Punjab Finance Department has decided that in the case of employees who had retired before July 12, 2000, travel concession payments falling due in January 2001, 2002 and 2003 may be made to them as per the instructions contained in FD letter dated August 31, 1989. Thereafter their entitlement may be determined in accordance with the instructions contained in FD letter dated July 12, 2000. In case of employees who retired during the period from January 1 to June 30 of any year, their entitlement to travel concession would be from July of the previous calendar year. Payments thereafter will be made after an interval of two years. The Government Pensioners Association has hailed the decision. It will benefit about one lakh pensioners.

BRIDGE: The proposed bridge over the Sutlej on the Jagraon-Nakodar road will be a boon for the people of the area as it will reduce the distance from Jagraon to Jalandhar by 50 km and save nearly two hours. According to a press note issued by the constructing company here on Monday, the project would include construction of a bridge costing about Rs 3980 lakh and upgrading of the 37-km road between Nakodar and Jagraon. The whole project would be completed by August next year, the press note stated.

MACHHIWARA
LIONS CLUB: The following have been elected office-bearers of the newly formed Lions Club here: president — Mr Satwinder Mohan Singh (Advocate); secretary — Mr Rupinder Singh Benipal (Advocate); vice-president — Mr Hartej Paul Singh Aujla; joint secretary — Mr Gurdeep Singh Kooner; cashier — Mr Jarnail Singh Saini; and public relation officer — Mr Gurnam Singh Nagra. Mr Nagra, PRO of the club, said club would launch a plantation drive this week.

MALERKOTLA
THEFT: Some unidentified persons entered a karyana shop located at Talab Bazar here on Saturday night and decamped with thousands of rupees in cash, 12 bags of sugar and other valuable items. The police has registered a case in this regard.

ELECTED: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Guru Nanak Samaj Sudhar and Sports Club: president — Mr Sukhdev Singh; vice-president — Mr Kulwant Singh; general secretary — Mr Jagtar Singh; press secretary — Mr Buta Khan and cashier — Mr Major Singh

APPOINTED: Mr Kamlesh Kumar Longowalia has been appointed president of Shri Sanantan Dharam Sabha here and Mr Madan Madhosh has been appointed president of the local Shri Ram Leela Committee unanimously.

NAWANSHAHR
MEETING HELD: The district unit of the Beopar Mandal (BJP) organised a meeting here on Sunday. The local MLA, Mr Jatinder Singh Kariha, presided over the meeting. It demanded immediate abolition of octroi. Mr Chamkaur Singh Kauri, President, MC, Ms Varinder Kaur Thandi, Dr Shiv Kumar Tejpal, president and general secretary, respectively, of the district unit of the BJP, Mr Surinder Kundra, president of the Beopar Mandal, Mr Ashwani Pappu, mandal president of the Beopar Mandal, were among others who addressed the meeting.

TRADERS’ MEETING: The local branch of State Bank of India organised a traders meet here on Saturday. Mr Pankaj Verma, AGM, and Mr K.C. Sharma, chief manager, while addressing the meeting gave a detailed account of the various loan schemes launched by the bank for small traders.

RICKSHAW-PULLERS STRIKE: The local rickshaw-pullers observed a one-day strike here on Sunday to press their demands. They also held a rally on Government Senior Secondary School grounds here. They were demanding an appropriate space for a rickshaw stand and that the licences to rickshaw-pullers should be issued after police verification.

BANKERS MEETING: The district unit of the Punjab Bank Employees Federation organised a meeting at Punjab Mata Vidhyawati Bhawan here on Saturday. Mr N.K. Gaur, general secretary of the federation, while addressing the meeting criticised the policies of privatisation being adopted by the NDA government.

WEB SITE LAUNCHED: Mr Jagjit Singh, Deputy Commissioner and Mr Ishwar Singh, SSP, jointly inaugurated “nawanshahronline.com” a web site launched by New Tech Infosystem and NIDS, here on Friday. Mr Ashutosh Dhiman, executive engineer, New Tech Infosystem and Mr Jatinder Chauhan, centre head, NIDS, while giving this information here on Saturday said the web site would provide information about the district. A direct e-mail service to the DC and the SSP would also be provided, they added.

OFFICE-BEARERS: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Nawanshahr Merchants Association: president — Mr Rajnish Jain; vice-presidents — Mr Gurcharan Arora, Mr Surinder Arora and Mr Darshan Lal Sahni; secretaries — Mr Deepak Kumar and Mr Sandeep Kumar Pathak and treasurer — Mr Ashok Kumar.

SAMRALA
ELECTION: The election of the vice-president of the Municipal Council of Samrala has been suspended as per orders of the Deputy Commissioner, Ludhiana. The orders dated August 24, were received through fax by the executive officer, Municipal Council, Samrala, on Monday. According to the reports, Mr Krishan Bharti was elected vice-president on August 17 vide resolution No 93 by the councillors, in a meeting held under the chairmanship of Mr Bhajan Singh, President of the Municipal Council. BJP and Akali Councillors had remained absent. Orders of the Deputy Commissioners, say there was no officer present in the said meeting duly authorised by their office as per Rule 3 of the Punjab Municipal, therefore the said resolution has been suspended. Now the elections will be held on September 14 at 10 am in the office of the Municipal Council, Samrala, and the SDM, Samrala, will be the observer for the said elections.

CHANDIGARH

SAS NAGAR
EYE CAMP: An eye camp was organised at Gurdwara Nabha Sahib here on Sunday. As many as 405 patients were examined at the camp and 67 patients were operated upon for cataract and other eye ailments by a team of doctors led by Dr Jatinder Singh.

HARYANA

AMBALA
NOTICE: The Superintendent of Police Vigilance, Mr Suraj Pal, issued a notice to former minister, Mr Dharamveer, on Monday to appear in his office in Ambala city on September 10. Notices have reportedly been sent to Mr Dharamveer on earlier occasions too. An inquiry is being conducted by the Vigilance Department against Mr Dharamveer for allegedly having assets disproportionate to his known sources of income. The notice which was sent today is regarding this case.

ELECTED: The general election meeting of social welfare society was held at BD High School under the chairmanship of Mr Randhir Singh. The elected office-bearers are: chairman — Mr D.S. Sarhadi; president — Dr Har Parkash Sharma; senior vice-president — Mr P.R. Bhatia, vice-presidents — Mr R.K. Gulati, Mr G.S. Oberoi and Ms Adarsh Gagneja; general secretary — Mr Vinod Sharma; secretary — Mr Chetan Sethi; organising secretary — Mr Jaspal Singh; office secretary — Mr T.R. Bhola, lady-wing secretary — Ms Charanjeet Kaur; dispensary secretary —Mr Kamal Kishore; project secretary — Mr G.S. Nainiwal; and treasurer — Mr Pawan Sharma.

BHIWANI
FOUND DEAD: A woman was found dead in mysterious circumstances at her house in the CCI Colony at Charkhi Dadri. However, the cause of death could not be ascertained.

IMPOUNDED: The Tosham police has challaned the owners of 8 jeeps for carrying passengers without licence. It had been receiving complaints by Haryana Roadways officials that some vehicles were carrying passengers illegally on various routes.

DOWRY CASE: A court of Charkhi Dadri has ordered the police to register a case of a dowry complaint. Rekha of Dhankan Basti in her writ petition has said she was married to Sanjay of Baroda village in Sonepat district three years ago and her in laws has been harassing her for dowry since then.

PANIPAT
APPOINTED: Mr Rajendra Maurya, Bureau Chief of Amar Ujala Hindi daily at Panipat, has been appointed convener of the Haryana Union of Working Journalists, a state body of the India Federation of Working Journalists. This was stated by Mr Parmanand Pandey, secretary general of the federation, at a meeting of journalists organised here on Sunday.

SONEPAT
4 HURT: Four persons, including a one-year-old child, were seriously injured when a three-wheeler rammed into a motor cycle on the Kharkhauda-Ridhao road, about 25 km from here, on Sunday. All injured persons, who belonged to one family, were going to Ridhao village. The driver of the three-wheeler is absconding. A case has been registered.

YOUTH KILLED: Rajoo, a youth of Rathdhanna village, was killed on the spot when he fell down from a running train at the Haryana Kalan railway station, about 5 km from here, on Sunday.

ANNUAL FUNCTION: The Sarvjatiya Vikas Manch, Haryana, will hold its annual function here on September 9. This was stated by Mr Surinder Kumar Sharma, president of the Manch, here on Monday. The march would honour the representatives of various social and voluntary organisations as well as the brilliant students at the function, he added.

FELICITATED: Dr R.S. Jindal, Principal of Hindu Girls College, was felicitated at a function organised on the occasion of his retirement at the college here on Sunday. Ms Lajja Goel took over as Principal.

OFFICE-BEARERS: The following have been elected office-bearers of the R.K. Colony a branch of the Haryana Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes Uthan Sabha: president — Mr Zile Singh Dhiman; vice-president— Mr Krishan Kumar; secretary — Mr Ram Mehar Antil.

HIMACHAL PRADESH

PARWANOO
PLANTATION: Rs 1.28 crore will be spent on sapling plantation in the Nahan forest division and 970 hectares of land will be utilised in Solan district, said Thakur Roop Singh, Forest Minister of Himachal Pradesh, here in a Vanmahotsava function organised by the Green Parwanoo Society here on Sunday. While addressing the gathering here near State Bank of Patiala, Mr Roop Singh said that Rs 169 crore have already been earmarked for the Kandi Project which was started in 1999 for its third phase.