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| Wednesday,
April 16, 2003, Chandigarh, India |
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Mayor ‘under pressure’ on
encroachment issue Chandigarh, April 15 About 15 days ago, the Municipal Corporation had served notices to business establishments, including restaurants and hotels, against encroaching upon government land, violating fire safety norms, misusing drinking water, creating insanitation and dumping debris in the backlane, but a survey of the area showed that no action had followed. Chief Engineer of the Municipal Corporation V.K. Bharadwaj, confirmed the removal of encroachments had not yet taken place, but the proceedings to this end had been initiated. However, BJP national executive member and former MP Satyapal Jain said the inaction was caused due to interference of local MP Pawan Bansal and Congress president B.B. Bahl, both of whom were not allowing the Mayor to work independently. He said it was an example of a general lack of direction in the corporation. Mr Bahl denied having applied any pressure on the Mayor. He said, as the president of the Chandigarh Hotels Association, he had only urged the Mayor to go ahead with the removal of violations, if any. He said hotels in general had not indulged in any violations. Regarding the complaints of residents, he said it was the fault of the Chandigarh Administration to allot sites of hotels close to houses and the hoteliers were not responsible for the Administration's decision. The Association’s vice-president, Mr Ashok Bansal, clarified that the association had
asked the Mayor that keeping cylinders in the rear part of the building was as per the conditions of the Explosives Act and the MC was wrong in pointing out this as a violation. He also denied that the hoteliers were indulging in any violation. Mr Chawla’s rival in the party Chandermukhi Sharma, reacting to the delay, said the Mayor should resist “pressure” and remove violations to send a tough signal to encroachers across the city. Residents, who had earlier even moved the court to get relief, said the environment has deteriorated so much that fruit trees behind these hotels had stopped bearing fruits. Defence Colony Welfare Association president Air Marshal Randhir Singh, who has been fighting for the cause of the residents, said violations, use of generators, exhaust fans, encroachment and nuisance created by employees of the hotels and restaurants had made residents’ lives miserabled living. |
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32 hurt as truck overturns Panchkula, April 15 Eyewitnesses said the truck overturned after two rear tyres of the mini truck blew out. Since the truck was going at high speed, the driver lost control of the vehicle. The truck (HP-16- 1027) was ferrying devotees from Gurdwara Baru Sahib in Himachal Pradesh. The devotees were going back to Khanna in Ludhiana district after attending a Baisakhi mela. There were at least 40 persons, including women and children, in the truck, The injured included 13 women and six children. While five of the injured — Gurpreet Singh, Amarjit Singh, Guervinder Singh, Karanjit Singh and an unidentified person —have been admitted to the PGI, Chandigarh, four others — Gurdev Kaur, Kartar Kaur, Sadhu Singh and Satnam Singh — were taken to the GMCH, Sector 32, Chandigarh. The remaining injured were given first aid at Command Hospital, Chandimandir, and some of them were later discharged. The injured admitted to the Command Hospital are: Chander Kaur, Sarabjit Singh, Ajmer Singh, Paramjit Kaur, Teji Singh, Gurpreet Kaur, Amandeep Kaur, Hardial Kaur, Malkiat Kaur, Jaspreet Kaur, (13), Surjit Kaur, Gurjit Kaur, (12), Sukhpreet Singh, (3), Jasbir Singh, (17), Balwinder Kaur, Damandeep, (13), Simranjit Kaur, Amandeep Kaur, Satinder Kaur, Harshdeep Kaur, (12), Raj Kaur, Amarjit and Gurvinder Singh. |
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Relief for PU research students Chandigarh, April 15 Interestingly, only 7 per cent students had qualified in the examination conducted by the university. This created a big vacancy in seats as even all the qualified did not join the research programmes. Students went on an agitation and the university has now “formally” agreed to conduct another examination for those who could not make it in the first attempt. The university has decided that it “ may conduct entrance test for admission to Ph.D only for those candidates who could not qualify for admission in November, 2002, examination.” The university has justified the action saying that the step has been taken in the light of the fact that only 7 per cent students had qualified in the test. Khushbaz Singh Jattana, president of the Students Organisation of Panjab University, said that PU was the only university to have introduce the test and students had no idea about the pattern. In fact students asked the university to discontinue the test. However, the university decided to conduct another examination to give students another chance. It has been pointed out that lesser students were interested in the Ph.d these days because a the degree earlier was seen as a big advantage in seeking jobs, particularly in the teaching profession. After National Eligibility Test (NET) became a compulsion for seeking jobs in the teaching profession, the Ph.D had lost its charm. A senior professor defended the university conducting the test saying that in several cases, particularly in the arts and the languages stream, students enrolled just to spend more time on the campus. A test would ensure better quality of students and also better quality of research as the university also plans to make corresponding changes to improve the quality. The university has also decided to introduce concessions for students of the honours school in science. It has been decided that “ a candidate who has passed B.Sc (honours) from the university can reappear as a private candidate (in which he appeared earlier) with a view to improving his earlier result. He can appear in first, second or third year examination or any of the examinations simultaneously or continuously”. Candidates will be given two chances within a period of three years of passing his honours school examination. The university has also decided that M Sc( honours school) in the semester system will be
given two chances within a period of three years of passing his honours school examination. The university has also decided that M Sc (honours school) in the semester system will be given a chance to improve his performance on the same pattern as students of the honours school in the annual examination. It was pointed out in the syndicate meeting by certain members including Mr Ashok Goyal and Dr Ajaib Singh that students possessing M.Phil degree should be exempted from the entrance test for admission to Ph.D. Mr Ashok Sachdev said not to allow exemption in the entrance test to M.Phil was to cast aspersions on such students as well the standard of their M.Phil. Prof K.N.Pathak, Vice-Chancellor said” after introduction of Ph.D the university had made a provision of 17 scholarships at Rs 3,600 per month for Ph.D students”. |
Oil
companies disappoint city residents Chandigarh, April 15 The industry and trading sector, including the striking truck operators, were expecting that with the international prices coming down from $ 37 per gallon to $ 24 per gallon with the Iraq war nearing its end, the companies would cut down prices proportionately. Mr Ram Naik, Petroleum Minister, had also announced recently that the prices would come down by Rs 3 per litre, but without any result. Interestingly, petrol pumps in city, Panchkula, SAS Nagar and surrounding towns had a few customers, as people were expecting a cut in petroleum prices. The state-level co-ordinator,
Punjab, Indian Oil Corporation, in a press release, informed that following new prices (per litre) would be effective from midnight. |
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Truckers'
stir affects vegetable supply Chandigarh, April 15 Traders said a number of truckers who had loaded fruits before April 10 from Karnataka, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh reached the city today. However, they said: “We have come to know that there have been no loading after April 10. Even today we have to pay slightly higher prices for the fruits. From tomorrow the supply would be affected.” Mr Brij Mohan, a fruit trader, said: “Since the market was closed yesterday, most of the traders today tried to purchase as much fruits as possible. The prices were slightly higher than other days.” He said today the average rate of safeda mango was Rs 250 per 14 kg pack, Rs 370 to Rs 400 per 140 oranges pack and Rs 65 to Rs 80 per 4 kg pack of grapes. In the retail market, he said, the orange was sold at Rs 60 per dozen, mango at Rs 25 per kg and grapes at Rs 50 per kg. The price of pomegranate increased to Rs 140 per 5 kg pack. Raju, another trader, said: “The strike has affected the supply of peas and tomatoes. Only two trucks of tomatoes reached the market. Consequently, the prices increased from Rs 80 to Rs 90 per 20 kg crate. In retail, the customers had to pay up to Rs 5 to Rs 7 per kg for tomatoes and Rs 20 to Rs 25 per kg for peas. However, traders and customers were delighted that the supply of potatoes and other vegetables remained normal, as farmers in the region came in large number on tractor-trailers to sell their produce. On the other hand, the truck operators unions maintained that the strike was complete and would continue till the government came forward to meet their demands. The Chandigarh Transport Association claimed that truck operators were forced to resort to the strike in protest against the indifferent attitude towards the transport sector. The operators lamented that the strike, if continued, would affect the supply of vegetables and fruits to the city and surrounding towns. They said the Centre and the state government should make efforts to reduce fuel prices, insurance premium, abolition of entry and toll tax and to revise the loading limits of the trucks. |
60
kg of unstamped meat seized Chandigarh, April 15 A team of the Municipal Corporation was sent to the shop by Mayor Subhash Chawla who got specific information that a truckload of animals was transported to the village last night. The informer also said that five of the sheep in the truck had died but were slaughtered by the meat supplier. The Mayor said that recently the Municipal Corporation had raided the same shop but the shopkeeper allegedly managed to dispose of the illegal meat. He said that there had been complaints against the same shop, which allegedly also had a private slaughter house outside the Union Territory and had illegally been smuggling meat from there. The corporation also recovered one animal bearing the stamp of the slaughter house. Asked how he could claim that the heads found were those of dead sheep, Mr Chawla said the meat bylaws did not allow any post mortem of the animal to ascertain if the animals seized were those which had allegedly died. He said the matter would be taken before the Municipal Corporation House for necessary amendments to ensure that the meat supplied to the city met international standards. The staff at the shop said stamping could not be done as it was a holiday of the slaughter
house. |
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2 more power meters seized Chandigarh, April 15 Following information that some industrialists and showroom owners in the city were stealing power by fixing remote-controlled devices on their meters, the team had raided seven industries and three showrooms yesterday and sealed four meters. |
Air Force flats in bad shape Chandigarh, April 15 Air Force personnel and their families refused to speak to the media, fearing repercussions from the Ministry of Defence More than 800 flats were built about 25 years ago. The buildings get vibrations whenever a helicopter passes overhead, said a resident Earlier, the Military Engineering Service (MES), which is responsible for the upkeep of the flats, had carried out repairs. Now the condition is again very bad. The MES had installed additional pipes for disposal of rainwater from the roofs. This has improved the problem of seepage. Even the power supply is not adequate, which results in
fluctuations. |
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Viral infection hits poultry belt Barwala (Panchkula), April 15 Scientists of Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI), Ijjatnagar, who had been called in for help by poultry farmers, have identified the virus as a mutation of the Ranikhet Disease (RD). The RD outbreak in this belt has been witnessed after 1991 when thousands of poultry animals had died. This virus had last affected poultry farms near Ajmer in Rajasthan almost one-and-a-half-year ago. This affects the ovary of the hen, which stops eating its feed, leading to the death of the bird. The poultry farmers say that they had been using vaccine against the spread of this disease ever since the previous outbreak. However, scientists of the IVRI, in their report sent to the Haryana Poultry Farmers Association yesterday, have said that the viral infection has reportedly spread in farms as a result of the failure of maintaining the cold chain system of the RD vaccine in one of the farms. A cold chain is required to be maintained at a particular temperature so that the vaccine does not lose its potency. The infection has caused a sharp decline in egg production here , which has gone down by almost 60 per cent. “A poultry farm that has around 1 lakh egg-laying hens would normally have 85 per cent egg production. This has gone down to 25 per cent because of this viral outbreak. However, once the incubation period of the disease (which lasts for 10-12 days) is over, the egg production improves to 70 per cent, which is again 15 per cent less than the original egg production,” said one of the biggest poultry farmers of this
belt. When asked about the disposal of the dead birds, the poultry owners said that the birds were being buried in deep wells. They clarified that none of the dead birds were finding their way to the market. Meanwhile, poultry farmers said that they were reeling under a severe crisis. While on the one hand, there is a glut of poultry products in the market leading to a decline in prices, especially in eggs, on the other, the prices of poultry feed had increased by almost 40 per cent in the past one year. It is learnt that at least 10 poultry farms in the belt had closed down because of this crisis. Mr Rajinder Mittal, general secretary of the Haryana Poultry Farmers Association, said that the poultry farmers should be treated on a par with the agriculture sector in terms of income tax rebate, power tariff and exceeding cash credit limit to 40 per cent by the banks. |
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Hi-tech cameras installed
in Burail Jail Chandigarh, April 15 The work was completed in the first week of the month at a cost of about Rs 23 lakh, inform sources. At present, about 470 inmates, including nine accused in the assassination of former Chief Minister of Punjab, Beant Singh, are lodged in the jail. The installation of the hi-tech system would help to keep a close watch on those lodged in the jail especially those involved in sensitive cases. An inner circle of 100 security personnel and an outer circle of 126 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) men are in charge of the inmates lodged in the jail. Of the 11 cameras fixed in the jail, seven are moveable while four are fixed — one inside the interview room and three inside the jail. Monitors have also been placed in the house of the Jail Superintendent to keep a watch on jail activities. The Jail Superintendent, Mr D.S. Rana, informed that the government had granted funds to the jail authorities under the “Modernisation of the prisoners jail scheme” in 1990. |
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MC move on boundary walls irks residents Chandigarh, April 15 The residents, who plan to take their complaint to the authorities concerned, say the move has come as a contradiction to the original concept of the city which was designed to be a pedestrians’ paradise. “If you observe the basic structure of Chandigarh, in each sector one can enter through four entries, which are meant for vehicular traffic. However, for pedestrians these green belts after some distance are the only routes for moving from one sector to another,” say a resident. “A majority of the residents of Sector 37 used to walk through these open spaces which link the Fragrance Garden of Sector 36 and take morning walks but now that these connecting places have been sealed with brick walls, one has to go via the main road by a car or a two-wheeler for those routine walks,” says Mr Vinay Kumar, another resident. However, the problem is not just limited to the morning walkers. Many office-goers or students use these green belts to reach the sector dividing road. The Mayor, Mr Subhash Chawla, said the construction of walls had become necessary as these free pathways became accident-prone areas. The provision of building boundary walls around these vacant spaces had always been in the master plan of the city. Mr V.K. Bhardwaj, Chief Engineer, said the free pathways had always been a cause for accidents. “According to the master plan, the green plots are not meant to serve as roads but to give the city an airy and open look and so the construction of walls along roadside is not an imposed structure,” he said. Mr Bhardwaj added that in certain areas opening for pedestrians would be remained along the walls. |
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Sanitary
conditions in a mess at Palsora Chandigarh, April 15 Unskilled manual labour dominates a portion of the population in the colony and includes construction labour, ragpickers, rickshaw-pullers and sweepers among others. Skilled manual labourers and people offering general services like class-IV employees closely follow them. A large number of Palsora residents are engaged in “low status — low income” jobs. The moment you enter the colony, the very first sight of polythene bags and rags scattered on both side of this dirt track, stray cattle and dogs, heaps of garbage, including cow dung, children playing even without proper clothes and open drains gives you a portrait of a neglected society of urban poor living within the vicinity of the City Beautiful. The affairs of UT Administration and the Municipal Corporation the seem to be in a mess as poor sanitary conditions become visible amid false assurances and tall claims made by the local representatives and authorities of the Chandigarh Administration. Unhygienic surroundings, infection-breeding milieu, unremoved heaps of garbage, waterlogging and blocked drains are common scenes that make the residents of the colony vulnerable to diseases. The irresponsible and callous attitude of the UT Administration and the Municipal Corporation has virtually made life hell for the residents of this colony. Residents complain that the civic body is managing garbage, including cow dung, in a very shoddy manner, posing a serious threat to public health However, there is a significant relationship between the lack of education facilities and the poor health and sanitary conditions in the colony as the residents, whom this correspondent interacted with, hardly spared a thought to keep their surroundings clean. Shabnam (name changed), a middle-aged woman living in the heart of the colony, said: “The government has provided mobile toilets for the residents but they are hardly utilised. Most of the residents, both men and women, go out to defecate in the open during the wee hours at different locations.” Fed up with the problem of open defecation by Palsora residents in the forestland, along the roadside adjoining Sectors 39 and 40, Mr Ashok Kapoor, the general secretary of the Residents Welfare Association of Sector-39D, has written a complaint to the Administrator, UT Administration, demanding the declaration of the forestland a green belt. “The human defecation has not only led to foul smell in the area, but also exhausted the very survival of the bamboo trees that add to the decoration of the ‘eco-friendly’ city”, said Mr Kapoor. |
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Mahavir
Jayanti celebrated Chandigarh, April 15 The chariot was tastefully decorated for the occasion. Devotees pulled the chariot of Lord Mahavira and were served sweet water. A community kitchen was also organised for the devotees. A function was also organised at Jain Sathanak in Sector 18. Another function was organised at Sanatan Dharam Mandir in the same sector. |
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BJP, VHP decry conversions Chandigarh, April 15 A VHP spokesman said a fact-finding committee led by the former Punjab DGP Mr P.C. Dogra, had been set up to inquire into the background of those who had been brought from Haryana to embrace other religions. Local BJP leaders Yashpal Mahajan, Purushottam Mahajan and Bal Krishan Kapoor while terming the conversions illegal said a party delegation would meet the UT Administrator to demand action against the guilty. |
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Plea evokes sharp criticism Panchkula, April 15 The Panchkula Development Group, owing
allegiance to the INLD, has criticised the sabha for trying to discriminate on the basis of creed. The Aggarwal Sabha, in a press release, said since the number of voters of Aggarwal community was maximum here, the president should come from the community.
TNS |
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Samajwadi
Party flays cases against Mulayam Chandigarh, April 15 At a meeting called by the local unit president Mr Shivi Jaiswal the registration of the cases was condemned. The party said the BJP had earlier targeted the minorities in Gujarat and was now “undemocratically trying to” weaken those who had stood by them. It said Ms Mayawati was acting at the behest of the BJP as part of a conspiracy against the minorities and the democratic forces. |
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SAVE SUKHNA
The rate of silt inflow into the lake through rivulets during the rainy season is almost the same as witnessed at earthen dams in the Kandi area, which have been constructed for flood control and land treatment. Moreovers, these dams also reduce the speed of water and check silt inflow. The natural steep gradient of Shivalik foothills results in high velocity flash floods during the monsoon causing erosion of soil thus bringing a lot of silt into the lake. The work done so far needs to be monitored and evaluated. Ram Chand |
Rs 22000 stolen from scooter tool box Chandigarh, April 15 Car stolen Maruti car (CH01J 0011) of Mr Balwinder Kumar, a Sector 32 resident, was reportedly stolen on April 10 here. A case has been registered.
One injured The police yesterday registered a case under Sections 279 and 337 of the IPC in connection with a road accident that took place on March 26 on a road turn of Sectors 9 and 10. The complainant, Santokh Singh, was injured after a motor cycle rammed into the scooter he was riding. He was admitted to the PGI.
Case registered The police has registered a case against the Unique Group Art Correspondence and A.K Deo and Punam Deo for allegedly defacing public property.
Molestation bid A resident of Maloya Colony here has alleged that Bharat and Raju, both residents of Shahpur Colony, had tried to outrage her modesty on a road here yesterday. A case under Section 354 of the IPC has been registered. Dera Bassi The police arrested Karamjit Singh, a resident of Chamaru village in Rajpura subdivision, for carrying 400 pouches of country-made liquor on Monday night. According to the police, Karamjit Singh was caught red-handed while carrying liquor pouches on a scooter at a naka put up on the Dera Bassi-Barwala road. After registering a case under the Excise Act, the accused was produced in a Rajpura court on Tuesday. |
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Man hangs himself Chandigarh, April 15 Though the police could not find any suicide note, according to sources he was under stress due to family problems. Yesterday he had an altercation with his wife, following which she along with her three sons and a daughter left the house for her parents’ house. |
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Industry ignores fire safety norms Dera Bassi, April 15 The Fire Department has been issuing notices under the provisions and clauses of the Nation Building Code of Indian, 1983, for the past couple of years but industrial units have not turned up with their replies till date. To ensure fire safety in industrial units, cinema halls, schools, hospitals, hotels, restaurants, marriage palaces, banquet halls, clubs, farm houses, motor garages and other buildings in
Zirakpur, Dera Bassi and Lalru, the fire authorities at the local fire station issued notices, asking their owners to install fire-fighting equipment. The fire authorities have also asked the owners of these establishments to provide them a report listing the fire safety measures being taken by them to avoid fire incidents and loss of life and property. Enquires revealed that the Dera Bassi fire brigade authorities had issued notices to 85 industries located in
Zirakpur, Dera Bassi and Lalru, asking them to file a report about the fire safety measures being taken by them. Besides, the authorities had also asked the industrialists to set up fire-fighting equipment with the ISI mark and give training to their workers on fire-fighting methods. The authorities had also offered the industrialists to send their unskilled workers to the local Fire Brigade station for proper training. These notices were served by the department after inspecting various buildings for fire safety measures under Mr D.S.
Saini, a fire officer, and a team of Fire Brigade employees. Meanwhile, Mr Kewal
Garg, president, Dera Bassi Industries Association, said that a meeting of all industrialists would be called on the issue and those who had not installed fire safety equipment would be asked to take immediate precautionary measures. |
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The people who were expecting a cut of Rs 2 to Rs 3 per litre in the prices of petrol and diesel felt deceived today when the oil companies announced a price reduction of just Re 1 to Rs 1.18 per litre.
The move of the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation to construct boundary walls around green patches between the residential plots has irked 4,000 residents of the city. As the walls would obstruct easy access to the sector dividing roads for pedestrians, cyclists and two-wheelers, residents of Sector 37 are strongly opposing to the decision.
Annual desilting of the lake before the monsoon is the only way out and this is justified in view of the benefits of lake such as providing a picnic spot, water sports facilities protection from floods and recharging of subsoil water table.