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March 26, 2003, Chandigarh, India
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Reappear note shocks PTU students Ludhiana, March 25 While the students have already appeared for their respective papers on March 13, they have received an information from the university authorities that the papers have been cancelled and they must reappear fro the same on March 31. The reason behind all this exercise is said to be the probability of the leakage of papers, on that particular day, as the university authorities had not been able to supply question papers timely at some of the examination centres located in Sangrur, Jagraon and other towns. It is learnt that the question papers for students of BSc (IT), MSc (IT), BSC (lateral entry), MSc (lateral entry), BBA and postgraduate diplomas in computer applications and computer teaching had reached at these centres one to two hours late, causing delay in the conduct of these papers. Although no case of leakage of papers has come to the notice of the university authorities, they believe that some cases might go undetected. The students of all five study centres located at different parts of Ludhiana had appeared for their papers at the Centre of Vocational Studies and the Gujranwala Guru Nanak Institute of Management and Technology, Civil Lines, here. The students said the paper was conducted smoothly and well on time. It was after a few days that they received an information that their papers had been cancelled and they would have to reappear for the same. A notice regarding this has been put outside all study centres in the city. The situation has caused much resentment among the students who believe that they were being forced to reappear in papers for no fault of theirs. Since many of the affected students are simultaneously appearing for their postgraduation examination of the Panjab University, it was difficult for them to reappear in the papers. They said they were already appearing for their practical examinations and theory papers were scheduled to begin soon. Similarly, professionals and entrepreneurs, who were also doing these courses, said it was difficult for them to again spare time for preparing and appearing for the test. Mr K.S. Kler, Controller of Examination, Punjab Technical University, confirmed the situation. He said although no case of leakage of paper had been detected, Prof Y.S. Rajan, Vice-Chancellor, had ordered that the papers be conducted again and the students be directed to reappear. |
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Protests
against J&K massacre Ludhiana, March 25 Addressing the protesters, Mr Sharma said the state government in Jammu and Kashmir had completely failed to safeguard the life and property of Hindus and gun- wielding terrorists ruled the roost. He demanded
President 'rule in the state and said a relentless battle should be launched to wipe out terrorism and anti-national activities. Prominent among others present on the occasion were Mr Madan Mohan Sareen, Mr Satish Sharma, Mr Ashok Sareen, Mr Gopal Verma, Mr Ashwani Kumar, Mr Devinder Batta, Mr Ram Saroop Banga and Mr Ramesh Thakur. The Shiv Sena (Bal Thackeray) also held a demonstration and burnt an effigy of the Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister, Mufti Mohammed Sayeed, at Clock Tower Chowk here to express resentment against the massacre and unabated acts of terrorism and communal violence in the state. Led by Mr Pawan Sharma, state general secretary, and Mr Krishan Sharma, district president, party workers earlier marched from Chowk Division No 3 to Dr Kali Charan Chowk, Gur Mandi and Chaura Bazar. Speaking on the occasion, Shiv Sena functionaries alleged that the Jammu and Kashmir Government was pursuing a policy of appeasement, which had emboldened the militants and they were on a killing
spree. "The government is functioning on the diktats of the Hurriyat Conference and some of its key personnel are said to have links with the ISI.” They asked the Congress to withdraw its support to the Mufti government and demanded that the state be under President’s rule. Hundreds of slogan-shouting activists of the District Youth Congress burnt an effigy of the ISI and the Pakistani flag during a demonstration against the massacre. |
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Budget proposals draw flak Ludhiana, March 25 The state general secretary of the party, Mr Rajinder Bhandari, while reacting to the Budget presented by the Finance Minister, Mr Lal Singh, remarked that bringing the telephone services being provided by the Union Government under the net of sales tax was ridiculous. By curtailment of subsidies on health and education, the government had given ample proof that it was running away from providing basic facilities to the people of the state. “All over the world, top priority is being accorded to health and education, but here in Punjab, the government is taking these facilities out of the reach of the common man.” According to Mr Bhandari, the proposal to hike the charges for civic services like water supply and sewerage for the urban population was in fact a betrayal of the masses. The Congress had promised to provide these basic facilities free of cost to the people before coming to power, but now the government was out to snatch the right of the poor people to have access to these facilities. “The Budget has once again exposed the anti-people stand of the government and its failure to mitigate the hardships of the people, particularly those belonging to economically weaker sections.” Mr Bhandari said the BJP would soon launch a campaign to awaken the people against the hypocrisy and false claims of the government. “It is unfortunate that rather than doing something for the welfare of the masses, the government is spending public funds on advertisements in the print media and hoardings for self-glorification
Meanwhile, the Government Pensioners Association has expressed dissatisfaction over the Budget for not announcing any benefits for them. In a statement issued here today, Mr Yash Pal Ghai, additional general secretary of the association, said more than seven lakh Punjab Government employees, including those working in various boards and corporations, were agitated over the failure of the Amarinder Singh government to announce any sop to its staff and pensioners in the Budget. He said the promises made by the Congress in its manisfesto had not been kept so far and nothing had been done for the welfare of the employees and the pensioners. |
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Budget anti-farmer: BKU Ludhiana, March 25 Mr Ajmer Singh Lakhowal and Prof M.S. Qadian, president and general secretary of the union, said the concession of just one per cent in the interest rate on the loans taken from co-operative banks was a cruel joke on the farmers. If the government was serious about improving the financial condition of the farmers the rate should be lowered to four per cent enabling them to pay off their dues in time. Similarly, the prices of diesel have been increased by one per cent while the cost of insecticides and other products have risen by 10 - 15 per cent. This has negated any relief that has been projected in the Budget, they claimed. They, however, hailed the roll-back in the prices of fertilisers and the purchase tax on milk in the state. The leaders pointed out that while the state has been harping on diversification in agriculture all year round, no money has been allocated for this purpose under any head in the Budget. No mention of any state policy has been made in the budget speech or the document. This will force the farmers to think twice about breaking out of the wheat rice monoculture, they added. Mr Lakhowal said despite numerous assurances of establishing meat factories in the state to tackle the problem of unproductive cattle, no provision has been made in the Budget. Similarly, the Budget is also silent on the concessions on power and water in the state. The Budget has been drawn up in such a way that a vast section of the farmers are apprehensive that in the coming days more concessions would be withdrawn since no provision has been made either for tackling natural calamities or problems arising from the price freeze by the Centre, he asserted. He said the union was organising a mass protest on March 30 in Delhi to protest against the MSP freeze, linking the price of farm produce with the price index besides other related issues. |
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Accident
jams traffic at Damoria Ludhiana, March 25 While the policemen had to divert traffic for some time, but still there was no respite for the commuters who had to wait for more than half an hour to cross the bridge. The chaos prevailed till afternoon and the traffic could be managed only after the rush on the road subsided. The traffic cops said the jam was caused due to a minor accident involving a rehri carrying vegetables, which had caused the blockade on one side of the road. The Damoria bridge, a known traffic bottleneck, caused problems to the commuters almost everyday. The commuters were now pinning their hopes for smooth travelling on the elevated road, work on which is in progress. The main causes of traffic overflow at that point are the narrowness of the road and unchecked traffic from four sides, including rickshaws, bicycles and carts. Encroachments on both sides of the road by residents as well as shopkeepers also contribute to the traffic chaos. Deputing of a cop there does not help much as the width of the stretch is much less for the heavy vehicular traffic. ‘‘ We have to face it everyday. If you have to reach your destination in time, leave home at least half an hour in advance to cross this bridge. I have never found this place free of traffic chaos,’’ said Nisha, who works in an office in Bhadaur House. The commuters, who have their offices at the Bhadaur house market, clock tower market, Air Conditioned market and Phillaur, have no other option but to pass through the bridge everyday during the rush hours. The traffic police had recently started an experiment by diverting the traffic on one side of the bridge towards the Phillaur road, but it did not help much. |
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Too much hue and cry is being raised over the introduction of the Value Added Tax and the Central Excise duty. Although it would be introduced nationwide, the traders and other businessmen in Ludhiana probably believe that only they have to pay it. Although the decision has been deferred for some time by the Central Government and the Punjab Government has already announced that it will not impose VAT from April 1, yet the traders seem agitated. Interestingly, there is an umpteen number of traders and industrial associations. While all of them have different names, there is a controversy over one particular name, “Pradesh Beopar Mandal”. As far as Sentinel knows, there are three organisations bearing the same name. While one Beopar Mandal is pro-BJP-Akali, the second Beopar Mandal is loyal to the Congress, and the third one, again named as Beopar Mandal tries to remain on the fence. While all of them are opposing VAT, they continue to be a divided house and desperate to claim credit exclusively. Even journalists sometimes feel at a loss to make out which Beopar Mandal is organising which programme on which day. That is what is in a name! An unfulfilled dream No firecrackers Firecrackers worth thousands of rupees were purchased by the local residents on the big day of international cricket when the Indian team had to play against Australians at the Wanderers. But the destiny had something else in store for these firecrackers that were perhaps bought never to be burst. As the excitement in the air was high before the start of the match, disappointment started replacing it soon after the start. Those who had stocked hundreds of firecrackers to burst after the much-sought-after win had to face disappointment. But suddenly after half-an-hour some firecrackers were burst. These were by the person, who after getting over the victory of opponents felicitated the runners-up in the championship.
Coins for marbles Children living in slums in the city have devised a new method of gambling. Dressed in rags, they can be seen playing the different games of marbles. The novelty was that they use coins in the game. The coins are hurled towards the hole like the marbles. The player then takes an aim. And the winner takes away the coins. Some times, the player takes aim at coins only. He wins the coins he had hit. A sort of gambling, the game is quite popular among these children. One can see children playing these games in slum colonies across the railway track. The children seem to be on the way of becoming gamblers as police and social workers look the other side.
Salespersons If earlier it were the beggars that were harassing commuters at traffic lights, now is the turn of salespersons. A number of companies, especially those dealing in car accessories and kitchen items, throng vehicles stopping at the various crossings. These salespersons run around cars and keep on tapping at the windowpanes with an irritating repetition. Sometimes, such persons disrupt the flow of traffic as they are caught in the lanes. The police had launched a drive against beggars, who were causing similar harassment. But these salesperson have escaped the cops attention so far.
No appointments It was a day of contrasts on Sunday when the Ludhianvis were expecting Indian cricketers to come out as world champions. A curfew-like situation prevailed in the city some minutes before the start of the match. Nobody was seen on the roads. The fever was so high among the masses that some insurance companies that usually open on Sunday had no appointments for the day. Everybody they phoned up had one thing to state, “Please invite us on some other day. We want to watch the match.” But within two hours after the start of the match, the residents started coming out of their houses. The lawns of Sutlej Club also that were jampacked in the evening as the club was screening the match were abandoned by the last hours of the match.
Maharaja Sahib Is Capt Amarinder Singh the Chief Minister of a democratic state or King of a feudal state? The answer seems to be in the affirmative if the manner in which bureaucrats and police officials address him in his presence or even at his back. No one had heard them saying CM-sahib. Instead a revered Maharaja sahib is always on the lips of the official lips. One such official confided that they dare not be politically incorrect, “The CM is called Maharaja sahib by his aides, coterie, senior officials in Chandigarh. So why should we take any chance to displease him or his advisers”.
Phone-less driving Gone are the days when drivers in the city were seen chatting endlessly over their mobile phones while negotiating the intricate lanes. Thanks to a crackdown on such violators of traffic rules by the traffic police, the drivers have almost completely stopped the practice. While earlier people used to take calls even at a road crossing, now they either don’t answer the call or simple hang up after saying, “Sorry I am driving (or am at traffic lights)”. The law breakers can, however, always find a way out. Some drivers put the call on hold when they see a cop and then resume the conversation. Traffic police sources told Sentinel that such people could not befool every time. “We will catch hold of them now or then”.
Tree temple Ever seen a tree trunk temple? If not visit the local railway station where a tree has been converted into a mini-temple with numerous photographs of various gods and goddesses pasted on it. But before you wonder about who could have done it you will spot a beggar sitting nearby. The innovative beggar has pasted the photographs to earn money in God’s name without putting in much effort. Passersby keep offering coins near the tree and the beggar collects them. How smart! Sentinel |
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Severe power cuts this summer likely Ludhiana, March 25 Enquiries made by Ludhiana Tribune with the civic administration here revealed that the total network of tubewells and submersible pumps in the city limits was solely dependent on urban feeders serving the respective localities with no back up or alternative means to maintain the supply during power failure. Therefore, for all practical purposes, in the event of power cuts in the mornings or evenings, water supply was bound to be affected when it was needed the most. The city residents in many localities still have better memories of the last summer days when for quite some time, power cut was imposed for an hour or two early in the morning and not a drop of water was available, causing immense suffering to the office-goers, students and housewives. There were several instances, in some of the colonies, where power supply had failed for a day or two or tubewells had developed some electrical snag and water had to be transported in tankers by the MC to meet the daily requirement of the residents. Sources in the MC disclosed that a scheme was in the pipeline for procurement of some portable diesel generators which could be pressed into service in such areas where water supply was disrupted due to power failure, power cut or shutdown. However, running tubewells or submersible pumps directly with the help of generators was not feasible, according to technical experts because enough pressure of water could not be generated to reach the tail areas. The generator sets could only prove to be of limited use in the areas where water was first stored in the reservoirs. In order to tide over the problem of disruption in water supply during power failure, the MC had, sometimes back, mooted a proposal to have separate power supply network for tubewells but it was shelved since it entailed a lot of capital expenditure and at that particular time, the civic body did not have enough funds for this purpose. The claims of the MC to provide cent per cent water supply to the city population notwithstanding, people were destined not only to withstand sweltering heat but to do so without power and water for an extended spell during the coming summer months. |
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AT THE CROSSROADS IN this age of electronic media, books appear to have taken a back seat. The prime hours of a person’s life are being taken away by the small screen. Television provides much entertainment, latest information and up-to-date knowledge. Once engrossed in the idiot box, the viewer becomes oblivious of the outside world. New vistas open up before his eyes and he is lost in the wilderness of images. The sense of wonder is provoked and he is ever in quest of new discoveries. The curiosity of the mind leaves no time for him to ponder and reflect. In fact imagination is lulled to sleep and the instincts have a fair play to no end. The vacant hours in a man’s life are indeed taken up in this leisurely fashion but the vacant spaces in his mind present a desolate look. Before long the mind takes the shape of a dried-up soil that can yield no harvest of new thoughts and feelings. Such a state can be compared to a cage against the bars of which man’s cravings and longings beat their wings in vain. In this cooped up atmosphere, humans can merely vegetative and make no progress. Books come to help when television leaves one in the lurch. The glorious moments when one is engrossed in reading books have no parallel in any other human activity. As John Keats says, “Much have I travelled in the realms of gold.” It is truly a wonderful experience to reap the harvest of golden thoughts. These sublime moments help a person transcend the mundane existence and soar high on the wings of fancy. These are the blessings that man is heir to. Reading of books is no pastime but an attempt to be acquainted with all that is good, beautiful and true is a must. Books provide a link between the generations as well as the ages. The written words point to eternity. These can be preserved for any length of time and for any number of people. It is like a candle that illuminates other candles and thus banishes the darkness of ignorance. The process of reading books generally leads to the writing of books. Reading urges a person to take the pen in his hand and share his thoughts with others. Wisdom thus filters through the sieve of words and takes an attractive form. Thus the joy of reading books merges imperceptibly into the pleasure of losing oneself in the creative process. Television is a boon when used sparingly but it assumes the form of a curse when it starts over-whelming the mind. The best course is to adjust watching the television in such a manner that it does not interfere in the work of reading and writing. There is no clash if proper care is taken to sort out the priorities. It is not the question of rejecting the one and accepting the other. It is the process of making these two things fall in a line. Life is multi-dimensional and it needs to be viewed not from a single perspective but from varied viewpoints. N.S. Tasneem
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Pensioner
seeks early payment of bill Ahmedgarh, March 25 Ms Kailash Devi, a senior resident of Ward No. 15, told Ludhiana Tribune that she retired as In charge of the Primary Sports Block, Ahmedgarh, on August 31, 1997. She had been suffering from some major ailment of the joints and bones. When all treatments failed Civil Surgeon, Sangrur, permitted her to get both her knees replaced surgically vide letter No 99/1106 dated 12-11-1999. Ms Kailash Devi got her knees replaced in December, 1999, and January, 2000. The Director Health and Family Welfare, Punjab, sanctioned Rs 10,55,27/- in lieu of medical reimbursement in September, 2000, vide his letter No PMH(2) Pb/2k/9319, but she had received nothing till now. |
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Manch organises seminar Ludhiana, March 25 Mr Gautam Naulakha, a political thinker from Delhi with radical views on war said, “The naked fascist face of America is quite obvious when, it, as the whole world knows, is waging a war against Iraq with the sole purpose of grabbing its rich oil fields. America poses as if it is the superpower concerned with upholding the human rights whereas it is the main country violating human rights. It wants to throttle nations with a fierce independent spirit and wants to replace their governments with its own puppet governments so that it could increase its hold over the world. Its imperialists motives are very obvious when it uses its armed might against smaller nations.” Mr Jagmohan, patron and nephew of Bhagat Singh, said people should adopt the attitude of a ‘rationale’ as envisioned by Bhagat Singh.
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Missing
boy untraced Ludhiana, March 25 His father, Mr Joginder Singh, said he had scolded his son the day before he went missing for lying about the closure of school. He said his son did not want to go to school and when they forced him to do so, probably he left home. His mother said they checked up with all relatives and friends, but he did not go to any of them.
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‘Industry in state of metamorphosis’ Ludhiana, March 25 Making these observations at a seminar organised by the LMA on “Indian industry in the globalised economy — issues, challenges and responses”, Mr Rajiv Gupta, Managing Director, Resource Development International (RDI), a global firm headquartered in the UK and operating in 30 countries, however, regretted that India’s overall performance compared to other nations was still disappointing. He discussed at length the relevance of developing a detailed understanding of performance parameters and the reasons for the current mindset. He also elaborated on the challenges of governance and corporate culture. Discussing success factors and managerial priorities, he pointed out that management of human resources was a prerequisite for actualising the desired performance. Mr T.K. Sabarwal, Head, Learning Solutions and Technologies, RDI, spoke on how organisations could create a culture for competitive advantage. He discussed at length as to how the current managerial styles could be self-defeating and interfered with innovation and creativity. Earlier, introducing the subject, Mr V.K Goyal, general secretary, LMA, said,“ Massive changes have taken place in the global economic environment in the past 50 years , particularly in the last decade. Speaking on the occasion, Mr Mahesh Munjal, vice-president, LMA, said,“We must understand that globalised economy demands a major change in the mindset. The Indian industry must successfully make a transition from an era of protection to the fully globalised markets of tomorrow”. |
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Govt committed to traders’ welfare: Hanspal Ludhiana, March 25 He was speaking at a meeting of the representatives of various trade and industrial bodies here on Monday evening. The meeting was organised by the Pradesh Beopar Mandal (Punjab). He said keeping in view the opposition to the proposed VAT system of taxation, the government had already decided to defer its implementation. The new system would be discussed at length with trade and industrial associations and brought into effect only after the related issues had been sorted out. He claimed that the government had fulfilled its poll promise of abolition of octroi, which would become a thing of the past from July this year. It would facilitate movement of goods and transport vehicles without any hindrance throughout the state. Moreover, the revenue collection of local bodies would also remain unaffected, because the loss of revenue from octroi would be made up from the Local Area Development Fund, he said. Mr Jagmohan Shama and Mr Ram Nayyar, president and general secretary of the Pradesh Beopar Mandal, respectively, and office-bearers of many other trade and industrial associations attended the meeting. |
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Businesses
shift to Civil Lines Ludhiana, March 25 While most of the space along the posh Mall Road and the College Road stand already occupied, the latest craze among the business houses appears to be the Cemetery Road. Particularly after the inauguration of some new showrooms, the focus has shifted to the Cemetery Road. During the past few months a number of showrooms have come up on this road. According to Mr Vipan Gupta, a showroom owner, there has been a greater customer inflow on the Cemetery Road as compared to the Chaura Bazar area since it provides lot of parking and open space, much to the convenience of the customers. He too had earlier established his chain of sari store in the Chaura Bazar area, but now he finds the business on the Cemetery Road more lucrative. However, Mr Kuldeep Singh, President of the Chaura Bazar Shopkeepers Welfare Association, does not agree that business has shifted out of Chaura Bazar. He observed that the business houses were only expanding their base and busy setting up additional outlets at other places. He pointed out, that all leading business houses of the city may certainly have shifted to the Mall Road and the Cemetery Road, but they have retained their original outlets in Chaura Bazar. But there is a general feeling among the customers that there is no parking space in Chaura Bazar and it is difficult to even those walk on foot. Hence, the customers prefer open spaces like that along the Mall Road, the College Road and the Cemetery Road. Even people have started avoiding the Ghumar Mandi as the roads are invariably congested there and it is difficult to move there during the peak hours. With paucity of space in the upcoming markets, the real estate prices have also shot up. While land is not available anywhere, the rents are also quite high, beyond the reach of the common businessmen. Like the minimum rent of an average showroom along the Cemetery Road is said to be Rs 50,000 while along the Mall Road it is much higher. Still there are a number of businessmen who would do everything to open up a
showroom at these places for a better and promising business prospect. |
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Millions and millions of Indians had dreamt of claiming the Cricket World Cup for the second time. However, it was not to be as most of them were disappointed. But celebrations were organised much in advance. A person in Ludhiana organised the birthday of his child only one day ahead of the World Cup finals, as if it was the celebration of a World Cup victory. The cake he had prepared was marked with the pitch and the boundary with candles inserted like the wickets. He had also organised a dummy trophy which he presented to his son hoping the Indian team will win the trophy only next day.
