EDUCATION

Competitions for school kids
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 4
Various competitions for school children and books exhibitions will be held at the State Library, Sector 34, from February 9 to 12, 2002, to celebrate the Year of Books. Registration for participation will be done up to February 6, 2002.

Competitions will be held in slogan writing, reference or book hunting and G.K. (quiz), according to Mr J.K. Kataria, in charge Librarian, State Library, Sector 34.

COURTS

HIGH COURT
Hear Bansi Lal’s plea within six months
Tribune News Service

In his petition, taken up by the Bench, comprising Mr Justice Jawahar Lal Gupta and Mr Justice N.K. Sud, the former CM also sought the quashing of a show cause notice issued to him on May 2 last year. He claimed that the commission, under political pressure exerted by Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala and son, Ajay, manipulated affidavits and statements of rival party activists from Bhiwani, Mahendragarh and Gurgaon. His counsel claimed that in most of the cases the deponents were not even aware of the purpose behind procuring the affidavits and had simply penned down their signatures or thump impressions on blank paper.

Daily wagers’ plea allowed

Allowing a writ petition filed by 15 daily wagers, a Division Bench of the High Court today directed the state of Haryana to consider regularising their services.

In a ruling the Bench, comprising Mr Justice Swatanter Kumar and Mr Justice Mehtab Singh Gill, directed that the move to regularise their services should be considered from the date mentioned in the government policy. Jai Pal and 14 others had sought the quashing of orders passed by the Executive Engineer in the Horticulture Department on March 29 last year by which the regularisation of their services was not done.

FC told to probe workmen’s cases

Taking serious note of attempts by the departmental witnesses to mislead the Industrial Tribunal in favour of workmen by not producing the relevant record and other practices, a Division Bench of the High Court today directed Haryana’s Financial Commissioner and Secretary to hold an appropriate inquiry into the matter and pass orders in accordance with the law.

Delivering the verdict, the Bench, headed by Mr Justice Swatanter Kumar, also directed the officers to ensure the issuance of directions for the proper conduct of cases on behalf of the state before the labour court after consulting the department concerned. The Bench added that all dues payable to the worker could also be recovered from the defaulting officer’s salary if he was found guilty after inquiry.

In their detailed order, the Judges observed that in a large number of cases pertaining to references being decided in favour of the workmen, the departmental witnesses were deposing in favour of the department during the examination-in-chief but were conceding the workman’s claim during cross examination. The witnesses were not producing the relevant record.

DISTRICT COURTS
Defamation suit against PPCC
Our Correspondent

Chandigarh, February 4
A defamation complaint filed against the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee through its President, Captain Amarinder Singh, by a local unit of the Shiromani Akali Dal came up for hearing before a local court today. The statement of the complainant, Mr N.S. Minhas, General Secretary the local unit of the Shiromani Akali Dal, was recorded before the UT Judicial Magistrate. The Magistrate adjourned the hearing of the case for February 11.

Mr Minhas had filed a complaint under Sections 499 and 500 of the IPC against the PPCC for publishing a poster in various national and regional newspapers against the party President, Mr Parkash Singh Badal.

One-year RI

A resident of Moga, Roshan Lal, was today sentenced to one-year rigorous imprisonment in a case of bounced cheque by a local court. The accused was also directed to pay a compensation of Rs 50,000 to the complainant.

The complainant, Mr K.K. Sahani, had stated in the complaint that the accused had taken 1728 wheat bags worth Rs 4,36,000 from him. Later the accused had issued two cheques for Rs 4 lakh in March 1999 in favour of the complainant and had paid Rs 36,000 in cash to him. The complainant had further alleged that the cheques by the accused had bounced due to insufficient funds.

CULTURE

‘Jhankar’ begins today
Our Correspondent

Prof Nirmal Singh, Dean Students Welfare, said the visiting teams would be provided board and lodging at various hostels on the campus while teachers accompanying them will be staying at the faculty house. The events will be held at the Student's Centre, grounds adjacent to the Gandhi Bhavan besides in the university, English, mathematics and evening auditoriums.

Andhra’s crafts revive nostalgic charm
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 4
The ready-to-wear section will take ages before it can match the charm of hand-crafted products. Far from the glitter and sparkle of showrooms which house mechanised stuff, Panchayat Bhavan today made a very nostalgic statement. The beauty of Andhra Pradesh villages came alive in the exquisite range of handicrafts and handlooms which formed a part of the Andhra Crafts fair being sponsored by the Development Commissioner (Handicrafts), Ministry of Textiles.

The worth of products on display was further confirmed by the way the chief guest to the inaugural function, the Adviser to the UT Administrator, Ms Neeru Nanda, went about praising handloom woven by the artisans. So smitten she was with the south cotton and khadi collection of Andhra that she promised complete support to organisers if they would care to promote khadi in this part of the region. She selected a whole range of khadi and suggested the organisers to take their artisans to the best stitching houses so that they could learn the latest techniques of adorning khadi.

The exhibition attracted maximum visitation at the pure silk counters. Pochampalli, Kathan,Gadwal, Narayanpet, Madanpalli, Dharamvaram silk, Mangalgiri and Ikkat were some of the varieties on display at the fair, being held under the tutelage of Lepakshi, Andhra government’s handicraft emporium in New Delhi. The organisers are offering 20 per cent discount on textiles and 10 per cent discount on handicrafts.

Another eye-catching entry was the gold-embossing work on marble. Informed Geeta Verma, senior manager, Lepakshi, “While we mostly have Telegu craftsmen, there are some who supply material to Lepakshi.” Jaipur-based Suraj Sharma stands out in this category with his exquisite gold-embossing on marble. He also displayed finely carved antique jewellery pieces in the form of decorative items. There were paintings which carried pure gold paint strokes.

The range of textiles was immense. There were over 10 varieties of bedcovers, cushion covers and rugs. Apart from that there was a whole range of cotton products to choose from. The finesse of master weavers found a reflection in each piece on display. The handicrafts done up with banjara mirror work were especially impressive.

In the decorative section, there was a whole range of products — from leather puppets, lamp shades, brass metal ware and Hyderabadi pearls to kundans, Nirmal paintings, wood carving and Kamalkari hand paintings. While the artisans were encouraged by the way they were greeted by the Adviser, they expected better visitation from tomorrow. Most of them were, however, hopeful, going by the strong sales proceeds earned from the earlier exhibitions sponsored by the Textile Ministry.

Speaking to Chandigarh Tribune, Geeta Verma said, “We have largely succeeded in our objective of eliminating middlemen who eat away a major chunk of artisans’ profits. At Lepakshi, most of the counters are run by rural craftsmen who have a strong base in traditional art. This show is also meant to promote tradition.” The exhibition can be viewed till February 18 between 9 am and 8 pm at Panchayat Bhavan, Sector 18.