The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Saturday, November 30, 2002, Chandigarh, India

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R E G I O N A L B R I E F S

PUNJAB

AMRITSAR
GANG BUSTED: Four members of a gang have been arrested for looting spare parts of two Japanese knitting machines worth Rs 2 lakh from a factory about two-and-half months ago. The arrested have been identified as Pardeep Singh, Narinder Singh, both of Kale village, Santokh Singh and Jaspal Singh of Nive Tung village. A huge quantity of spare parts was seized from them. This was stated in a press note issued here on Friday.

SEMINAR OPENED: A two-day state-level seminar on “woman as a resource manager” was inaugurated by Mr M.L.Khanna, general secretary , DAV College Managing Committee, New Delhi, at the local DAV College for Women. The seminar was presided over by Mr D.R.Gupta, Director (College), New Delhi.

BATHINDA
CYCLIST KILLED: A cyclist was killed when an Army vehicle hit his cycle on the Bathinda-Mansa road, 3 km from here, on Friday. The deceased has been identified as Maheshwar, a cobbler of Jassi village. The body has been sent for a post-mortem examination. In another incident, Ashok Kumar of Sirki Bazar was seriously injured when a truck hit him near Delhi Phatak on the Bathinda-Dabwali road on Friday.

ORDERS ISSUED: The Deputy Commissioner has issued directions that traders, industrialists, farmers or other residents should inform the police before employing labourers or domestic help. He said the step had been taken following reports of increase in crime.

GURDASPUR
ARRESTED: The police has arrested Sukhwinder Singh, resident of Naushehra under Dorangala police station in the district, for selling intoxicating capsules and injections to drug addicts. Mr Varinder Kumar, SSP, on Thursday said, on the search of the accused, in the presence of the Tehsildar of Pathankot, 400 capsules of Parvon Spass and two injections of Norphin were seized. A case under Sections 21/22/61,85, NDPS Act, had been registered.

DEMONSTRATION: Various leftist unions will hold a demonstration in front of Dina Nagar police station on December 9 in protest against the alleged ill-treatment to Mr Balbir Singh Randhawa, state president of the All-India Peoples Resistance Forum, while in police custody at the police station. This was stated by the forum in a press note issued here on Thursday.

ARRESTED: Yaqub Masih, a resident of Datial under Narot Jaimal Singh police station in Pathankot division in this district, was arrested on Thursday for fraudulently taking money from the people by promising to solve their problems through necromancy. A case was registered against him on a complaint lodged by Tehal Singh, a resident of Kohlian.

HOSHIARPUR
BURGLED: The Oriental Insurance Company branch office at Model Town here was burgled on Thursday night. After entering the office, the burglars broke open cupboards, and stole Rs 13,750 in cash, stamps worth Rs 17,000 and cheques and drafts for Rs 1.50 lakh and escaped. A case has been registered.

GAON CHALO ABHIYAN: The Goan Chalo Abhiyan of the BJP concluded at Patiarian village, 10 km from here, on Thursday. Members of the BJP assembled at Bajwara village from where, led by Mr Tikshan Sud, Mr Harjit Singh Grewal, General Secretary, Punjab unit, BJP, and Mr Balbir Kapila, in charge of the abhiyan, they went in a procession to Patiarian.

KURALI
SEWING MACHINES: Eighteen sewing machines were distributed to needy women by the Kurali Lions Club at a function here. The function was organised in Chakwal National Senior Secondary School. According to the PRO of the club, Mr R.S. Sangar, Punjab’s Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, Sports and Youth Welfare, Mr Jag Mohan Singh Kang, was the chief guest of the function.

LUDHIANA
DIED: Dr Harcharan Singh, former Adviser to the Planning Commission of India on health, died here. He was 73. Dr Harcharan Singh who was head of the Department of Social and Preventive Medicine at Government Medical College, Patiala, serves as advisor with the Planning Commission for 10 years and later on became who consultant and worked in Nepal. Two sons of Dr Harcharan Singh, Dr Raju Singh and Dr Gurneet Singh, are serving the DMCH and Arora Neuro Centre, respectively.

SEMINAR: Oxford University Press has been in the forefront of publishing English language teaching materials for the past many decades. It is in this connection and keeping in view the changes in the methods of language teaching as well as new curriculum, the press is holding a seminar on Saturday 30 at Hotel Friends at 8.30 am for the city schools. We wish to reiterate that the teaching fraternity has always looked forward to attend these seminars as they have been conducted by resource persons of experience and repute. The seminar would be conducted by Mr John Mason, Headmaster at Doon School, Dehra Dun.

SAMMELAN: The 56th annual Shri Harinam Sankirtan Sammelan, which is organised every year by Shri Sanatan Dharam Sabha Sankirtan Mandal, got under way here on Thursday at Shri Haridev mandir. Mr Ravinder Kumar Jain performed the flag-hoisting ceremony and Mr Shori Lal inaugurated the tableaux. Students of Shri Haridev Mandir School enacted various episodes from the lives of Radha-Krishan and Krishan-Sudama to the delight of the gathering. Ms Veena Malhotra started the sankirtan. Among those who performed the poojan ceremony were Mr Tilak Raj Lali, Mr Jagdish Lal, MrKasturi Lal,, Mr Prem Nath, Pandit Chaman Lal and Mr Sham Sunder. Those who were honoured at the sammelan included Mr Rattan Lal Uppal, Mr Surjit Singh, Mr Sanjiv Kapahi, Mr Shyam Lal Kalia, Mr Jagdish Bajaj, Mr Som Nath, Mr Krishan Lal and Ms Asha Chopra. In the Istri Satsang Sabha, members of the Punj Bihari Raas Mandal- Saroj Verma, Veena Malhotra and Suman Bala- presented Raas Lila.

CONDEMNED: Mr Suresh Gupta, general secretary, SPCA ( Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals), has condemned the health officials responsible for hanging stray dogs upside down while transporting them in a mortuary van. He said the officials concerned had committed a grave offence under the various cruelty prevention Acts and they must be booked accordingly and punished.

RAM DARBAR: Shri Ram Darbar Samiti, Chhawni Mohalla, is holding a Ram Darbar Samaroh at the Satsang Bhavan of the locality from November 30 to December 8, according to Mr Subhash Ahuja, a spokesman of the samiti. Swami Muktanand and Swami Geetanand ji from Fatehabad would recite the Ram-katha every day from 9 pm to 11 pm. Meanwhile, a shobha yatra was taken out on Friday afternoon from Shri Laxmi Narayan Mandir in connection with the samaroh.

IDOL INSTALLATION: An idol of Shani Dev would be installed soon at the Shri Geeta Mandir in Vikas Nagar, Pakhowal, according to Mr Pardeep Dhall, general secretary of the temple managing committee.

FOUNDATION STONE: The foundation stone of Bhagwan Krishna Mandir was laid down in street No. 6 of Janata Nagar on Thursday by Mr Parkash Singh Matharoo, general secretary, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, who exhorted the gathering to donate liberally for the construction of the temple.

PATHANKOT
MAN KILLED: Shaloo (23), a shopkeeper of the Dhaki Chowk area, was killed on Friday night when a truck hit his motorcycle near Dhaki Chowk. He died on the spot. A case has been registered against the driver of the truck who has been missing.

PATIALA
SEMINAR: It is high time that female foeticide is taken seriously and measures are taken not just to enact strict laws but also to adopt multi-dimensional approach to tackle the problem, said Dr H.P.S. Walia, Programme Officer of the NSS unit of Punjabi University, in his presidential address during a seminar organised on “Female foeticide” by the university campus unit of the NSS. Attended by intellectuals, social workers, doctors and journalists, the aim of the seminar was to devise a strategy to educate the prospective parents about the menace of female foeticide.

PHAGWARA
BURIED ALIVE: A 26-year-old labourer, Balwinder, was buried alive under debris here on Friday. A portion of the roof of a building was being pulled down when the mishap occurred.

CHANDIGARH

WORKSHOP: A national workshop to “develop a handbook for improving the effectiveness of reading material for adult learners and field functionaries” was held at Panjab University here on Thursday. The workshop was organised by the Directorate of Adult Education, New Delhi, in association with the Regional Resource Centre, PU. Participants from Assam, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Orissa, Rajasthan, Bihar, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh participated in the workshop.

FOOD SAMPLES TAKEN: The UT Food Health authorities took samples of eatables from various parts of the city and issued notice to a ‘petha’ factory in Palsora for unhygienic conditions, posing a health hazard, on Wednesday. The raiding parties of the UT Food Health Department collected samples of curd and milk from Sector 40 and Palsora and ‘chutney’ and ‘gajar halwa’ from Maloya. Seeing the unhygienic conditions prevailing at the ‘petha’ factory in Palsora, the officials have given a 15-day notice to the owner to clean up the place. Samples of wheat flour from a general store in Sector 56 were also taken. All samples have been sent to the laboratory for testing.

CONFERENCE: The 32nd annual conference of the Indian Academy of Cytologists, being attended by over 200 delegates from India and abroad, was inaugurated by the PGI Director, Prof S.K. Sharma, here Thursday. The chairperson of the organising committee, Prof Subhash K.Gupta, stressed the need for early diagnosis of diseases, especially cancer, with the help of latest advancements in the field of cytology. She pointed out the need for a multi-discipline approach in diagnosis.

POLLUTION CHECK: The Haryana Environment Department has set up a Referral Laboratory at Chandigarh for testing effluent samples and air samples for protection and improvement of environment in the state. This was stated in an official press note issued here on Thursday. Rs 3.30 crore had been earmarked for coordinating various environment schemes during the 10th five year plan. The press note also claimed that the Environment Department was also assisting the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests, the Haryana Pollution Control Board, the Haryana Public Health Department and PGI, Chandigarh, for effective implementation of environment protection schemes.

FUNCTION: Merchant Navy officers from the region who are presently on leave organised a get-together, along with their families, at the Chandigarh Club on Wednesday night. It reminded them of the parties that they enjoyed on board ships, said Capt T.S. Bhatia, general manager (north) of the Singapore-based Executive Ship Management Private Limited. The general manager, Capt J. Verma, and the superintendent, Mr S.M. Iyer, from the Mumbai office were among those who attended the function.

PANCHKULA
KAR SEVA: Hundreds of volunteers from different parts of Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and Uttar Pradesh on Thursday participated in “kar seva” for roofing at the historic Nadda Sahib Gurdwara. A new state-of-the-art building is under construction and the roofing of the darbar hall was completed within four hours. Langar was also organised on the occasion.

ANTI-ENCROACHMENT DRIVE: As many as 400 jhuggis in and around different commercial places in the township were demolished by the Enforcement Wing of HUDA. The demolition squad concentrated on markets in Sectors 10, 11, 12, 12-A, 14 and 17. The HUDA staff also confiscated at least four truck loads of goods from the encroachers.

FREE MEDICAL CAMP: The Indo-Tibetan Border Police, Bhanu, on Thursday organised a free general medical camp at Aasrewali village. As many as 400 residents took part in the camp and at least 250 patients were examined for different ailments by a team of doctors led by Dr Bhaskar Ray. Free medicines were also distributed among patients.

PROGRAMME: A consumer awareness programme for students of classes IX and X of Hansraj Public School was organised by the Northern Regional Office of Indian Standards in association with the Consumers Forum, Panchkula, here on Thursday. The students were told about formulation of standards, operation of certification mark scheme and complaint redressal mechanism of the BIS. Ms Renuka B. Salwan, Deputy Director (Public Relations), BIS, told the students about the Gold hall marking scheme launched by the BIS. Dr V.P. Dubey, chairman, Consumer Forum, Panchkula, and Mr J.Saini, secretary of the forum, also addressed the students. Ms Poonam Wig, coordinator, senior section of the school, was also present.

SAS NAGAR
STRIKE ENDS: The three-day-old strike by some students of the Gian Jyoti Institute of Management and Technology (GJIMT), Phase II, reportedly ended here on Thursday following the agreement by management on one of the main demands of the students. The students had demanded among other things the discontinuation of semester tests conducted by the institute, as the university did not require the tests. They had also demanded that winter timing of the institute be changed and roll numbers of the students should not be blocked under any conditions.

HARYANA

AMBALA
DEMANDED: The Bar Association, Ambala Cantt, on Friday demanded the immediate starting of construction work on judicial complex here. In a joint statement issued by Mr D.K. Bansal, President Bar Association, Mr Om Prakash Malik, Mr Mohan Lal Gupta, Mr N.K. Gupta and Mr Umesh Mittal, they requested the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court and Haryana Chief Minister Mr Om Prakash Chautala, to order the PWD authorities to start the construction at the approved site.

FOOD CARNIVAL: A food carnival was organised by students of B.Sc medical and food and nutrition at SD College on Thursday. The carnival was held under the guidance of Prof Ishar Singh and Prof Komal Hand. The students set up different food stalls besides organising games. The SDM, Mr M.K. Ahuja, was the chief guest.

NOTES EXCHANGE CAMP: The local branch of the State Bank of Patiala, has made arrangements to change old and soiled notes on Sunday. The Branch Manager, Mr T.P. Jaitly, said as per the Reserve Bank of India’s Clean Note Policy, the bank would remain open on Sunday to change old, mutilated and soiled notes. The branch would also distribute new Rs 5 coins along with the exchange of note. The timing will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., according to a press note.

GAMES RESCHEDULED: The Haryana Deaf and Dumb Games, which were earlier scheduled to start on December 3, will now begin on December 8. The Haryana Deaf and Dumb Welfare Association joint secretary, Mr Prem Gupta, said deaf and dumb sportspersons from all over the state would participate in the meet.

KIDNEY DONATION: Mr Sushil Bharadwaj a resident of Prabhu Prem Puram in Ambala Cantt on Friday appealed for kidney donation for his wife. Mr Bharadwaj said both the kidneys of his wife, Anshuka had failed and had three daughters. He appealed to kidney donors for early donation. Anshuka is undergoing dialysis at the PGI. Donars can contact at 2699889.

BHIWANI
CASE REGISTERED: A case has been registered against nine persons of Shishwala village for felling trees on shamlat land. Later, they were produced before a court which sent them to judicial custody for 14 days.