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TOP STORIES

Bank staff detects fraud in demand drafts
Ludhiana, February 5
The alertness of employees of the State Bank of India, Civil Lines branch, has unearthed a scandal worth crores of rupees in demand drafts. The bank has warned the public to be cautious while accepting demand drafts from any person without proper verification, as about 7,000 demand drafts worth more than Rs 60 crore, stolen from different branches of the bank, are allegedly in circulation.

When currency notes are sold at a premium
Ludhiana, February 5
Small donations to political parties and candidates have never been so welcome as they are in the present elections. With most people shying away from parting with large sums of hard cash, local politicians are quite content with the small donations received in the form of currency-embedded garlands.

Garlands with currency notes have caused acute shortage of small denomination notes in the region. Photo Rajesh Bhambi

Pre-board exams introduced in govt schools
Ludhiana, February 5
In view of the poor performance of students of government senior secondary schools here in the last annual examinations, the District Education Department has introduced pre-board examination scheme for students of Classes XI and XII.

MC revamps health, sanitation wings
Ludhiana, February 5
The Municipal Corporation will henceforth lay more emphasis on social health and hygiene. To achieve the desired results, it has ordered the separation of health and sanitation wings, with the directions that the health officials would concentrate more on various aspects of social health.

Complainants turn out to be ‘kidnappers’ Ludhiana, February 5 The Jagraon police has rescued a missing man from the clutches of persons who had reported that the man had been kidnapped by his in-laws. Asrail Mohammad, a resident of Dhurkot near Dehlon, had reported that his son Mohammad Safi had been kidnapped by his in-laws in a marital dispute.

POLITICS

Record number of candidates with criminal background
Ludhiana, February 5
The criminalisation of politics is rampant not only in Uttar Pradesh but in parts of Punjab as well. In Ludhiana district only, about 20 candidates, accused of patronising anti-social elements or having a criminal background themselves, are in poll fray.

Tough battle on cards in Ludhiana East, West
Ludhiana, February 5
The continued estrangement of the dissident Akali leader and the vice-president of the SAD-B may prove costly for the alliance, particularly in the constituencies of Ludhiana (East) and Ludhiana (West).

Three women, one mission
Ludhiana, February 4
Ms Anjali Rai, a Congress legislator from Delhi and the chairperson of the Delhi Commission for Women, Dr Param Navdeep Singh and Mrs Nirmala Shaktawat, accompanied by another Delhi legislator, Mr Prahlad Singh Sahni, are on a single mission as party observers to monitor and boost the party campaigning in different assembly segments of the state.

Morcha rally in Kila Raipur

Jodhan (Ludhiana), February 5 The Panthic Morcha candidate from here, Mr Mahesh Inder Singh Grewal, held a two-wheeler campaign rally today. The rally covered most villages of the constituency. Supporters of Mr Mahesh Inder Singh Grewal, candidate of the Panthic Morcha from Kila Raipur, take out a scooter rally in the constituency on Tuesday. — IV

Shiv Sena flays BJP
Ludhiana, February 5
Senior Shiv Sena leader and the chief whip of the party in the Lok Sabha, Mr Anand Rao Adsul, today criticised the BJP for “giving up” the Hindutva agenda. Addressing a press conference here today, the Shiv Sena leader claimed that his party was monitoring the situation and will not allow the nationalistic interests to be ignored at any cost.

Badal accused of violating panthic traditions
Ludhiana, February 5
“The Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, had not only violated panthic traditions, but had also lowered the prestige of Akal Takht, the sanctum sanctorum of Sikh community and he will have to pay the price for this religious misconduct.”

COMMUNITY

YOUNG VOICE
‘Say no to shahtoosh’
Twenty-four-year old Preeti Kansal is a crusader for ban on shatoosh shawls. At this age, when her contemporaries vie with each other to don the latest fashions, Preeti is peeved at the killing of Tibetan antelope Chiru, an endangerd animal which is slaughtered for manufacturing the shawl.

Cop reports threat from seniors
Ludhiana, February 5
A Punjab police constable posted at Jagraon has approached the Punjab Human Rights Commission, seeking that some senior police officials be stopped from “interfering” in his divorce case.

WHILE dissensions and rebellion at the time of elections are not new in politics, but this time it seems to have be more widespread than ever. For the first time in almost each and every constituency in the city there are people who are working not for the victory of a particular candidate, but only for his defeat. And they are putting in more efforts. And interestingly, such people work only for the defeat of their own candidates only.

Cart campaigning Traffic blues Harassed commuters

Political or non-political? Rumour mongers Pressure horns Getting louder

CRIME

4 held in theft cases
Ahmedgarh, February 5
The CIA staff has recovered cash and goods worth Rs 1.36 lakh from four persons arrested in connection with a dozen theft cases registered against them at police stations of Ahmedgarh, Amargarh, Dhuri and Malerkotla.

Bus driver robbed
Ludhiana, February 5
Mr Amandeep, driver of mini local bus, was beaten by some youths near Dhandari yesterday who also allegedly took away the cash bag lying in the bus before fleeing the scene of the crime.

AGRICULTURE

PBW-343 wheat variety popular: survey
Ludhiana, February 5
PBW-343, a wheat variety developed by PAU, is the most popular variety in Punjab if a survey by the Department of Sociology and Economics, ascertaining the area under various varieties is to be believed.

SDP college girls win debate

Ludhiana, February 5 The district unit of the Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) organised an inter-college debate at Kamla Lohtia Sanatan Dharam College here today. Balwinder Kaur, a student of SDP College for Women, receives the first prize in an inter-college debate competition organised by the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad in Kamla Lohtia Sanatan Dharam College on Tuesday. — IV

PCCTU postpones rally
Ludhiana, February 5
The Punjab and Chandigarh College Teachers’ Union has postponed its district-level rally by one day which earlier was scheduled to be held tomorrow. The venue has also been changed to GGN Khalsa College, Civil Lines.

Colourful show by tiny tots Ludhiana, February 5 Fancy dress contest and prize distribution marked the annual function of Tiny Tulips Play Way School, Asha Puri, here today. Children of Tiny Tulip Play Way School participate in a fancy-dress contest at the annual day celebrations of the school on Tuesday. — Photo Inderjeet Verma

College teachers’ rallies today
Doraha, February 5
The college employees’ protest rallies will be organised in Amritsar, Batala, Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur, Muktsar, Bathinda, Barnala, Patiala and Chandigarh on February 6 and in Ludhiana on February 7, according to a press note issued by Prof Kuldip Singh and Prof Parminder Singh, district president and secretary, respectively, of the Punjab and Chandigarh College Teachers Union, here today.

Promises galore on campus, too
Ludhiana, February 5
The election scene has picked up in Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) with various candidates seeking the support of the faculty and employees.