Sunday, February 23, 2003, Chandigarh, India

 

C H A N D I G A R H   S T O R I E S


 
EDUCATION

Run parallel schools for poor: Khursheed
Tribune News Service

SAS Nagar, February 22
More than 100 students received awards at the 24th Founders’ Day of Yadavindra Public School here today. The awards were given away by Mr Salman Khursheed, a former Foreign Minister of the country, on the occasion.

In his address, Mr Khursheed said parents should focus on teaching English to their children, as it was fast becoming the business language of the world. “To become international citizens, our children should know English and computers, the two most important economic instruments. The function of any parent or school is to protect the future generation from the winds of perversity blowing in this country for the past 25 years. If we have not been able to give our children a perfect India, let us strive to make them capable to fulfil this dream,” he said.

Mr Khursheed told parents that they should inculcate among their children a feeling of brotherhood, so that, they could face the “challenge from the enemy within the country” that was trying to divide the nation on the basis of religions.

He also said schools should follow the Delhi Public School example and run parallel schools for needy children without charging any fee. “In any case, a school’s infrastructure is not used for at least half a day,” he said. Mr Khursheed said the DPS would be opening its branch in Chandigarh and a parallel school called Shiksha Kendra for the poor will be run in the afternoons on the campus.

The school Principal, Mr Harish Dhillon, read out the annual report and listed the school’s achievements in various fields.

Those who received honours here today included Sanjukta Roy, Babanpreet Sandhu, Jasmine Kaur, Nayyaamat K. Sandhu, Rajat Mittal, Sukhmani Bachal, Ramandeep Neetu, Pratham Malik, Prabhjot Grewal, Amanjit Singh, Mannat, Simar Puneet, Qudrat Singh, Arushi Nargas, Raghav Duseja, Taarini, Sahil, Harjot, Rana Gurtej Singh, Gurjot Singh, Umesh, Malika, Atarpreet, Jagdeep Pannu, Simar Preet, Riddit Mitra, Asshna Mahajan, Shriya, Ujjal Didar Singh, Prabh Roohan Pannu, Ripudaman, Kalyani, Gursewak, Siddharth, Kanwal Preet Kaur, Naini Gupta, Ashoo Arora, Gurinderpal, Amanpreet, Simrita, Preet Anmol, Ravbneet, Harleen, Guneet Sabharwal, Gunet, Mahima, Shubhjeet, Agampreet, Guneet, Simranjit, Gurtej, Anuj, Ramandeep, Sarthak, Simarpreet Singh, Khushagar, Naman Singhalm, Gurpaul Singh, Karandeep, Jashan Uppal, Vanshdeep, Bharat Bhushan, Gursimran, Angad, Vinay, Azeem Lakshay, Vijay, Soorajmeet, Malwinder Singh, Jasjot, Bhupinder Mankanwal and Gurnain.

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English from class I in non-model schools
Our Correspondent

Chandigarh, February 22
The UT Education Department, has decided to introduce English in all non-model schools from class I.

The decision is significant, as, according to sources in the Education Department, model-school students “had an edge” over their counterparts studying in non-model schools. While they could converse fluently in English, non-model-school students “doubtlessly encountered difficulty” in expressing themselves in the language.

Sources said the handicap was resulting in a loss of confidence among a large number of non-model-school students, besides creating “problems” at a later stage in their lives.

This was not all. The introduction of English in class III was also adversely affecting the “popularity” of non-model schools. Parents, aware of the language’s importance in today’s competitive world, were admitting their little ones to model schools, instead of non-model ones.

This was also resulting in an “unequal distribution” of students. While seats remained vacant in non-model schools, students had to face stiff competition in getting admission in good model schools.

According to the new scheme, students can also opt for English as medium of instruction. As of now, this option is available only to class I students. With each academic session, an additional class would be added for the change in the medium of instruction.

The Director Public Instructions, Mr D.S. Mangat, ruled out the possibility of encountering problems in the implementation of the new scheme. He said an orientation programme for teachers would prepare them for instructing students more effectively.

The DPI also said about 300 postgraduate and graduate JBT teachers, besides 200 nursery teachers, would be given a three-week training in the Sector 32 Regional Institute of English. The training programme would start from March 15.

He said: ‘’English had been introduced in non-model schools on the demand of parents. Private schools operating from residential premises were fleecing parents in the name of providing children with good education and laying stress on English. “The best of infrastructure and teaching faculty is available in non-model schools, but, due to a lack of English teaching in lower classes, model schools are preferred over the non-model ones. This problem will largely be taken care of”. 

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No waste workshop, this!
Our Correspondent

Chandigarh, February 22
“The best out of waste workshop” was organised for the class I students at St Joseph School in Sector 44 today. Who else, but founder of a dream called Rock Garden, Nek Chand, was the guest of honour.

Students made flower holders with waste X-ray films. A model of a farm scene was also displayed. Sheep and pigs were made with egg shells and wool. Water scene was depicted by showing different water animals. Tortoise and snails were made with clay and walnut shells. Black pepper was used to make the eyes.

Hand puppets were made with old cardigans and socks. Waste buttons were used for the eyes. Beautiful photo frames were made with bangles, buttons and glaze paper. Photo frames were also made in the shape of a kite. Winter scene was depicted with help of little penguins and a snow man. Penguins were made out of the egg shells and snowman was made on the coke cans.

A massive collage depicting how to save the endangered species was also prepared. Coloured “burada” was used to convey the message. The presence of a legend, Nek Chand, was quite encouraging for the students.

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Vibrant Punjabi culture on view
Our Correspondent

Chandigarh, February 22
Students of Guru Gobind Singh College for Women in Sector 26 presented the vibrant Punjabi culture in the most alluring way as they presented the vibrant folk songs and dances besides an interesting bridal show.

The show presented some rare dance forms like Sammi and Dhola besides the much popular giddha and bhangra. A folk song competition was also organised. The show concluded with a spectacular bridal show where about 18 girls dressed up as Punjabi brides.

The show was compered by Prof Garib Singh, Head of the Punjabi Department and Ms Sukhmin Kaur. Col Jasmer Singh Bala (retd), Joint Secretary, Sikh Educational Society, Chandigarh, was the chief guest. Winners of contest — Bridal dress and make-up: 1. Sarika, 2. Jaslene Kaur, 3. Mandeep Kaur and Asha.

Folk song: 1. Supinder, 2. Gurjeet, 3. Rajinder.

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Juniors bid farewell to seniors
Our Correspondent

Chandigarh, February 22
The students of classes IX and +1 of Sanjay Public Senior Secondary School, Sector 44, organised a colourful cultural programme to bid farewell to the students of classes X and +2 here today.

The function started with “Saraswati vandana”. Then the colours of Punjabi folklore dominated the stage with series of songs and dances.

Mr. T.R. Sethi, Chairman of the SPS group, lighted the traditional lamp while Ms U. Sethi, Director-Principal of the school, gave an inspiring speech to the outgoing students asking them to respect culture and traditions while adopting the modern ways.

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DISTRICT COURTS
N.K. Garg files three applications
Our Correspondent

Chandigarh, February 22
N.K. Garg, the Chartered Accountant (CA) who had been arrested by the UT police in a scam related to income tax return on the basis of forged TDS certificates, filed today three applications seeking production of bank papers, CPUs and opening of his office sealed by the police in a local court. Acting on the plea moved by Mr Garg, the UT Chief Judicial Magistrate, Mr C.L. Mohal, issued a notice to the state to file a reply in the case for February 27.

In an application filed by Mr Garg for the release of items seized by the police through his counsel Rajan Malhotra, he stated that during the search operation the investigating agency had seized 12 CPUs, one laptop, various files from his house and office.

In the second plea moved by Mr Garg for production of blank papers that he was made to sign during the police remand, he pleaded that during the course of police remand, the investigating agency had taken his signature on certain blank papers, which could be used to falsely implicate him in the case. Therefore, a direction had been sought to produce the blank signed papers in the court.

N.K. Garg filed the third application seeking permission to open the seal of his office in Sector 35 which was sealed by the investigating agency during the search operation. Claiming that he was falsely implicated in the case, Mr Garg stated in the plea that after the registration of an FIR, the investigating agency officer along with the team had searched his house and office premises and sealed the office.

Giving details, Mr Garg further said in an earlier plea, the court had passed an order directing the investigating agency to give him the possession of his house and to open the seal of the office after completion of search. He complained that the investigating agency had still not opened the seal put on his office.

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Lawyers hold conference
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 22
A commission should be set up for looking into the appointment of Judges, said former Supreme Court Judge Justice Krishna Iyer while addressing the sixth national conference of the Indian Association of Lawyers.

Speaking on the occasion, he asserted that the commission should also look into the matters pertaining to transfers and other related issues. He also spoke on secularism, “advance or retreat” and judicial accountability.

The conference, attended by over 150 delegates from all over the country, was inaugurated by former Chief Justice of India Justice J.S. Verma. The Punjab and Haryana's Advocate-Generals, Mr Harbhagwan Singh and Mr Surya Kant, respectively, were present during the conference.

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Rafi’s melody revived on stage
Our Correspondent

Chandigarh, February 22
The old melodies of legendary singer Mohd Rafi cast a spell at Plaza Carnival today as 14 Rafi fans and amateur singers sang popular numbers once sung by the singer, keeping the audience stood rooted to the ground throughout the performance.

Organised by the Centre for Carnival Arts and sponsored by The Tribune and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd., the organising committee plans to do a few more shows along this line. “We are planning to do a show featuring songs by Sahir Ludhianvi and hits songs from Raj Kumar films,“ said Ms Maniki Deep, president of the centre.

The songs like “Chura liya hai tum ne jo dil ko”, “Dil tera diwana hai sanam”, “Akele akele kaha ja rahe ho” took the audience down the memory lane to the era when melody used to be the sole component of music. The singers who performed were Ramesh Kumar, Ganesh Girdhial, Anil Sharma, Sandeep Kumar, Rimi Chopra, Nishi, Inderpreet Kaur, Ajay Bakshi, Sharan Sidhu, Jai, Rahul Behal, Meenu Palta, B.D. Sharma and N.K. Talwar.

The atmosphere was infused with life as costume characters moved around the place attracting a lot of young children. Young artistes from the Government College of Art, Sector 10, also impressed with their on-the-spot paining, sketching and tattooing.

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FILM REVIEW
Foggy start for Mihir on big screen
Sanjeev Singh Bariana

'Dhund’ (KC and Suraj, Panchkula), coincidently as the name indicates, has a very foggy future for screen acceptance by the audience for any kind of success at the box-office. Equally shaky is the start in Bollywood for Amar Upadhaya, (Mihir of 'Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi' serial fame).

Shyam Ramsay an established name behind horror thrillers, this time claims to have made a musical thriller. A thriller it is! However, the thrills do not enthrall. The music too is average.

Aditi Govitrikar is a model tipped to win a mega fashion contest. Shweta Menon is her rival who would want her away from the ramp and engages her brother Irfan Khan to do the job. Aditi is supported by her admirer Amar, a photographer. Aditi wins the contest and lands in a jungle in company of her group. The "chills and spills' of a suspense thriller start here. There is a murder and the needle of suspicion points towards three persons.

Sukrit Pictures and Springwell mattress have combined for this production. The film also features Apoorva Agnihotri, Prem Chopra, Divya Palat, Mukesh Tewari, Gulshan Grover and Tom Alter. Yashowardhan Tyagi is the producer; screenplay has been handled by S. Khan; Vinod Sharma is the co-producer and Bhageyash Mohala is the production executive.

The recent line of hits, including 'Raaz' and 'Humraaz’, have been comparatively small-budget films compared to big-budget releases which have bit the dust at the box-office, including ‘Kaante'. Plot and not mere grandeur of the cast or the settings seems to be the catchline for the success of these films. 'Dhund' too is different. However, the presentation is not neatly packaged and the climax is not worth the wait. Ibrahim Ashq has written rather average lyrics for an equally average music by Viju Shah.

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WESTERN FILM REVIEW
Gere touches new low
Rajiv Kaplish

Chandigarh
What does a filmmaker do with a moth-eaten script? He turns it into a creature-feature, ‘The Mothman Prophecies’ (Kiran), basing it on true incidents which took place in Point Pleasant, West Virginia, in which, a mysterious “bird-like” creature appeared from nowhere and wreaked terror on people.

If that director happens to be Mark Pellington, he does even worse. He reduces it to an ‘‘edge-of-the-seat’’ thriller. Everytime there is a howling or a scream in the film, viewers are driven to the edges of their seats in disgust — so much in the name of horror.

Having accomplished the task, Pellington embarks on his twisted agenda to make mincemeat of the roles of the protagonists, John Klenn (Richard Gere) and Connie (Laura Linney), a reporter and a cop, respectively.

Realising the intentions of the filmmakers, Gere treats his role like an albatross around his neck and, to get rid of it, walks zombie-eyed throughout the film.

Refusing to be outdone, Laura throws in the towel even before Gere and tries to be as unconvincing as possible. In the process, she takes her performance to so low that she has to be drowned along with her car during a bridge collapse near the climax. What leads to her resurrection at denouement might be known only to her and Pellington and cannot be prophesied by any viewer, least of all this reviewer.

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Music as rich as French wine
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 22
After long, the city was treated to a musical concert par excellence. Holding the fort in Tagore Theatre here today were seven musicians from across the world gathered on a common platform under the direction of great Bernard Wacheux, musician and conductor.

After attending the concert, one knew why music was called the language of the world. As the group headed from one presentation to another, music rose to become religion, that anyone can profess anytime of the day. The composition was rich, overwhelming and magical.

The concert, presented by Alliance Francaise Chandigarh and Banque Nationale de Paris, was led by Bernard Wacheux, whose affair with music has lasted for over two decades. The idea behind the show was to communicate with people in the language of music, to apprise them of the richness of the French stream. That was why international soloists joined hands to express a new sensibility in the French musical tradition. The French soloists, together, include seven artists (on two violins, alto, bassoon, cello, drum and sitar) who are also eminent professors.

Among the attending artistes were Antonio Vivaldi, who presented the concert for Hautbois, Bassom and String Quartet; Antonio Dvorak, who presented American Quarlet; John Mayer on the Shanta Quintet sitar and string quartet. These musicians, first, took the hold, filling the ambience with melodies divine. After a pause, the others resumed. The second half saw Jacob Gordon presenting a duet for bassom and violin, maurice Ravel presenting string quartet and george Bizet presenting an extract from the opera ‘Carmen’.

The artistes are of high repute, who have graduated from great institutions in Paris, Brussels, Lyon, London and other such places. They gathered together around Bernard, professor of violin at the Conservatory of Lille, to share their common passion and vision. It was this vision that they shared with the audience in Tagore Theatre here today.

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Kalagram Utsav extended up to Feb 24
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 22
Kalagram Utsav-2003 has been extended by one more day i.e. February 24 in order to accommodate art lovers.

Informing this, Mr R.T. Jindal, Director, North Zone Cultural Centre (NZCC), said special events had been arranged to mark the concluding day, including a special “ragini” festival by renowned “ragini” singers like Ishwar Sharma, Mahavir Guddu, Sarita Choudhary and others.

Besides, the art exhibition will feature works by famous artists like Padma Shri K.S. Shekhawat and R.G. Vijayavargiya from Jaipur. A poetic symposium was organised yesterday in which 14 poets took part.

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