R E G I O N A L   B R I E F S

PUNJAB

AMRITSAR
INQUIRY: Prof Darbari Lal, on his first visit here after being elevated as the Deputy Speaker of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, has promised to hold inquiry against sarpanches who were given grants during ‘Sangat Darshan’ by the former Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal.

DERA BASSI
RESIGNATION: Mr Gurnam Singh Saini, honorary adviser to Minor Irrigation, Punjab, today resigned from his post. In a letter to the Principal Secretary to the Punjab Government, Mr Gurnam Singh has said that due to bad health he could not serve the government any more. Tubewell engineer Gurnam Singh was nominated to the post by the BJP-SAD led government last year. 

FEROZEPORE
COOPERATION: The All India SC/BC/ST Ekta Bhalai Manch has decided to cooperate will the Manch president, Mr Jagdish Ram Dhosiwal. A resolution in this regard was adopted by the manch at a meeting held here. By another resolution the Manch appealed to the SSP to register a case against Mr Kulwant Singh Bhatti for misguiding the people of the SC, BC and ST categories.

DHARNA: The Agriculture Technocrats Action Committee held a dharna in front of the office of the Deputy Commissioner, Mr D.K. Tiwari, in support of their demands. Later the agitating employees submitted a memorandum to Mr Tiwari.

INSPECTOR HELD: Avtar Singh, Inspector, Cooperative Societies, was arrested while accepting a sum of Rs 2000 from Sulakhan Singh, secretary, Ghal Khurd Cooperative Society, for forwarding the TA bills of the complainant and two more employees to the bank.

POPPY HUSK SEIZED: A consignment of 300 kg of poppy husk was seized near Karmuwala barrier. The police found 10 bags containing poppy husk hidden under china clay powder bags. Bagel Singh, a traveller in the truck was arrested. Truck driver managed to escape.

KHAMANO
POWER CUTS: Residents sore with the PSEB authorities over the unscheduled power cuts in the town. Although the schedule of power cuts is announced every day, but this practice is not implemented properly. To provide power to the agriculture sector the board prefers to restrain the domestic supply. However, the XEN was not available for comments.

LUDHIANA
HONOURED: A local doctor has been presented with the Rashtriya Rattan Award for his contributions to the eradication of TB by the Global Economic Forum at the India International Centre, New Delhi. The award was presented by Union Minister of State for Railways Digvijay Singh. Dr Satish Nauhria is the president of the Ludhiana TB Eradication Society, an NGO, which works for the uplift of migrants and the industrial labour of the town. The society has so far distributed medicines worth Rs 10 lakh among poor and needy patients. The doctor has appealed to the city industrialists to come forward to help them in making Ludhiana a TB-free city. In this context, the society will establish a TB hospital in the city soon, he added. Dr Gursharan Singh, president of the local chapter of the IMA, has appreciated the work done by the society and has also urged the medical community to help the society achieve its aim. 

SUMMER CAMP: A month-long summer camp, organised at Gurdwara Sarabha Nagar here, concluded on Sunday. It was organised by Ms Rabinder Kaur, Director, Summer School, Dr Harbans Singh, Mr Shangara Singh and Mr Harinderpal Singh, secretary, Gurdwara Sarabha Nagar. More than 200 students from Classes III to IX from various schools took part in the camp. The English speaking classes were conducted by Ms Navneet Kaur, lecturer, Malwa Central College of Education, while the painting classes were conducted by Mr Jaspreet Mohan Singh, lecturer, Commercial Art and Ms Rajbir Kaur. The music classes were conducted by Ms Ravinder Kaur, lecturer, SDP College, Ms Arvinder Kaur and Ms Harpreet Kaur of Guru Gobind Singh Study Circle.

MALERKOTLA
MEDICAL ETHICS: Dr Surinder Singla, general secretary, Punjab Civil Medical Services Association, in a press note issued here on Sunday said the Medical Council of India in its regulations, 2002, had warned the doctors to be vigilant while discharging their professional duties otherwise disciplinary action would be taken against them.

MANSA
DEMOLISHED: Mr T.R. Sharma, Executive Officer, Municipal Council, Mansa, along with his team on Saturday demolished the front wall and the main gate of a plot situated on the Khokhar road. The plot was allotted to the local Rotary Club by the council. This was stated by Mr R.C. Goya, president of the club.

SHOP GUTTED: A fire broke out in an insecticide shop at Bareta in the district on Saturday. Residents of the town tried to control the fire for three hours as fire tenders from Mansa reached late. According to Mr Surinder Kumar, proprietor of the shop, stocks worth Rs 2.5 lakh have been damaged. The cause of fire could not be ascertained.

MOGA
SUBSTANDARD SEEDS: Officials of the agriculture departments have found substandard stocks of fertilisers, seeds, insecticides diesel and petrol worth several lakhs of rupees. This was stated by members of the BKU here on Friday. 

PHILLAUR
TRANSFERS: The President of the Punjab unit of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, Mr Sukhminder Paul Singh Grewal, while talking to newsmen here on Sunday alleged that the Chief Minister was helping some selected bureaucrats. He said a state level joint meeting of the Punjab unit of the BJP, BJYM, BJP Kisan Cell, SC\BC Morcha and BJP Mahila Morcha would be held on July 14 at Tarn Taran. The Punjab BJP in charge, Mr Sangh Priya Gautam would address the party workers.

PATIALA
OFFICE-BEARERS: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Patiala Chapter of Cost Accountants: chairman — Mr R.D. Vohra; chairman professional development committee — Mr S.C. Arora; chairman coaching committee — Mr H.S. Arora; vice-chairman — Mr Sushil Jain; secretary — Mr V.K. Goel ; joint secretary-cum-treasurer — Mr Jasvir Singh; and auditor — Mr R.N. Garg. 

TRAINING: The PSEB has launched in-service training for all its cadres from assistant linemen to engineer-in-chief as part of its strategy to bring changes in the attitudes and working style of employees and officers. Giving this information, a spokesperson said that the electricity board had decided to take immediate steps to upgrade the human resource development as a major activity. 

CAMP: The Social Welfare Society organised a free artificial limb camp at the District Rehabilitation Centre, here on Friday. Nearly 70 persons were given artificial limbs and tricycles. 

MEDICAL CAMP: A free medical check-up-cum-multispeciality camp was held at the Community Centre of Partap Nagar here on Sunday where nearly 500 patients were given treatment and expert opinion after being examined by doctors. Free medicines sponsored by a Bangalore firm, Micro Labs Limited, were distributed on the occasion. Free laboratory tests were also performed on a majority of the patients by a local lab, Sigma Labs. A team of renowned doctors including Dr Gurdeep Singh (orthopaedics), Dr Harminder Singh (neurology), Dr Arun Kumar Chopra (cardiology) and Dr M.K.Batish (paediatrics) checked the patients.

CHANDIGARH

FUNCTION: Bal Bhavan, Sector 15, here on Friday completed its first year of existence. A function was organised by students of Bal Bhavan, Ambala. They performed Dandiya, Haryanvi and Punjabi fold dances. Nearly 400 children participated.

HARYANA

KALKA
B. COM SEATS INCREASED: The Education Department of Haryana has increased seats of B.Com at the local government college. According to information seats has been increased from 80 to 160. The last date for submission of forms for BA, B.Com and B.Sc (I) is June 30, while July10 for other classes. 

HIMACHAL PRADESH

BILASPUR
OPEN CONSTITUENCY: A campaign will be launched in the Gehadwin constituency (reserved) to get it declared as an “open”. Announcing this Sanjay Guleria, senior vice-president, NSUI, told mediapersons here on Saturday that the Constitution envisaged the rotation of reserved constituencies in the district. The Gehadwin constituency had remained reserved for the past 40 years. A 25-man campaign committee has been formed. He said even Rikhiram Kondal, BJP, MLA, has been invited to become a member of the campaign committee.

LOK ADALAT: The Lok Adalat organised here on Saturday settled eight civil cases, including four motor accident claims. Compensation worth Rs 3.30 lakh was awarded to the motor accident petitioners. It was presided over by the District and Sessions Judge, Mr M.D. Sharma, and attended by the Sub-Judge-cum-Judicial Magistrate (First Class), Ms Jyotsana Sumant Dadhwal.

DHARNA: A large number of villagers who were uprooted for setting up ACC Cement Factory at Barmana near here staged a dharna outside the District Collectorate on Sunday and later presented a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner. They warned that oustees would be forced to launch an agitation if their promises were not fulfilled.

CHAMBA
PLAZA: A high-level team of engineers and architects from Shimla will shortly visit Chamba, for on the spot inspection of ‘zero point’ and old police barracks destroyed in fire a few years ago, for constructing a bus terminus at zero point and a plaza at police barracks. Mr Rahul Anand, Deputy Commissioner of Chamba, said this while talking to deputations of the Chamba Welfare Association and the Chamba Citizens Progressive Council which met him separately.

LAKE’S DEVELOPMENT: The Central Government has chalked out an ambitious plan of Rs 40 lakh for the development of the Khajjiar Lake and the hill resort in the district . This was stated here on Sunday by the Deputy Commissioner.

JAISINGPUR
PRIZE DISTRIBUTION: A technical education institute will be opened in each district. This was stated by the Minister of State for Technical Education and Energy, Mr Ravinder Singh, while presiding over the annual prize distribution function of Government Senior Secondary School, Majheen, in the Thural Vidhan Sabha area, about 50 km from here, on Saturday. The government spends a sum of Rs 933 crore on education in the current financial year, he added.

KUMARHATTI
2 COPS TRANSFERRED: Mr Bhupinder Singh and Mr Ajai Kumar, in charge and munshi at Dagshai police chowki have been transferred. They were found wanting in handling a case of assault on a woman at Barog. Mr SZH Zaidi, SP, Solan, while confirming the action has said that an inquiry has been ordered in this case.

SUNDARNAGAR
ONE CONVICTED: The Additional Sessions Judge, Mandi division, has convicted Sanjay Gupta, resident of Uttam Nagar, New Delhi, for possessing 750 gram of charas. He has been sentenced to undergo a rigorous imprisonment for five years and to pay a fine of Rs 30,000. In case of default in the payment of fine, the convict has to undergo a simple imprisonment for a period of one year. The order was announced on Saturday.