The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Chandigarh Stories

Swiss national found dead in Panchayat Bhavan
Tribune News Service

Fact file

* The police was trying to decipher the information stored in the hard disk of a lap top computer found from the room where the foreigner was found dead. Services of IT experts were being engaged as he had given a password to access the information. The information could help the police to know more about the victim.

* The police says that Edwin Bosshard died on April 18. According to an official, the process of rigor mortis( in which a body becomes stiff) sets in about two to three hours after death. Under the process the hands and fingers of feet begin to close and the stiffness remains for over eight hours before the body again loosens out.

Chandigarh, April 19
Little did a night watchman at Sector 18 Panchayat Bhavan, Des Raj, know that he would be the last person to see alive a 43-year-old Swiss national, Edwin Bosshard. The over six-foot tall foreigner, who had checked into a deluxe room (No. 109) of the bhavan at 10.30 pm on April 17, was found dead this evening.

The Swiss national, hailing from Zurich, had come to the city from Una en route to Mandi. The deceased did not come out of the room yesterday and was noticed lying on the bed in a strange manner at around 3.30 pm by a safai worker who had come to clean window panes of the room from outside. He knocked hard at the windowpane, but the foreigner did not respond. The Assistant Director of the bhavan, Mr S.S. Brar, was called to break the front door. The worst fears of the bhavan authorities came true when they found him dead. The stench of the decaying body had filled the room.

After the front door of the room was broken, police officials found that face of the deceased was tightly fastened in a sleeping bag, apparently suffocating him to death. There were no signs of forcible entry into the room as the door and windows were found bolted from inside. Blood has started to ooze out of the nose of the victim.

Though the autopsy of the body was yet to be done, the police did not rule out the possibility of the foreigner having committed suicide. Another theory being probed was the foreigner might have under the influence of some intoxicant fastened his face in the sleeping bag and died of asphyxia. The autopsy and chemical examination would reveal whether there were traces of any intoxicant in the body, said a police official.

The police has ruled out any foul play as the bag, containing Rs 72,300, $ 915, 960 Euro currency and 400 Swiss Francs, a Swiss passport having multiple entry visas of different countries, literature of Sai Baba, a set of credit cards, some travel documents and clothes was found untouched in the room. A lap- top computer, an empty glass of water and shoes of the deceased were also found in the room. A team of forensic experts was called to examine the circumstantial evidence in the room. A driving licence issued by the Kulu transport authorities (with a temporary address of Kulu) was also in the bag.

The DSP, Mr S.C. Abrol, and SHO of Sector 19 police station, Inspector P.S. Malik, visited the spot. Mr Abrol said the exact cause of death would be known after the autopsy.

What is intriguing in the entire incident was the part of the body (below the face) was found outside the black-coloured sleeping bag. It appears that the foreigner had zipped up the sleeping bag with his hand. The body below the abdomen was resting on the floor.

Going through the documents, the police found that Edwin had landed in the country on March 3 and had been travelling to different destinations in the country. In the documents of the bhavan filled by him, it has been mentioned that he was in the city for a business trip. A letter addressed by him to a Chandigarh-based Internet service provider, Bharti Bandwidth Ltd, and a project report of a non-government organisation were also found from his bag.

The police suspects that he died last evening as the body had begun to show signs of stiffness. The feet had started turning blue, apparently due to some intoxication. Mr Abrol said as per the protocol for foreign nationals, the Chandigarh police was informing the Swiss Embassy at Delhi. The body would be sent to Delhi after the autopsy tomorrow.

Sources in the police said it appeared that the foreigner had set up a camp office at Kulu and had been corresponding with his friends from the Kulu address. The articles found in the room were also being thoroughly examined for traces of any drug.

Thunderstorm causes damage in city
Our Correspondent

Chandigarh, April 19
The city was lashed by a thunderstorm this evening. High velocity winds uprooted trees, caused minor power break-down, forcing people to remain indoors and disrupting many marriage functions.

A portion of a religious building in Sector 46 is also learnt to have been damaged due to lightning.

Where the morning splashes brought the much-needed respite from the scorching sun, the evening showers spelt a lot of trouble, not only for agricultural produce, but also for residents of the city, who had to reorganise their programmes completely.

The storm uprooted a huge neem tree and at least two electricity poles opposite House Nos 2015 and 2016 in Sector 20 -C. Employees of the Horticulture Department were summoned to clear the road. City roads were strewn with tree branches disrupting traffic at several places, immediately after the thunderstorm. However, no casualty was reported.

The morning showers (the local Meteorological department recorded 2.4 mm rainfall) brought the temperature down by 7.2°C over yesterday.

Earlier in the day, residents were caught unaware by the rain. There was a thin attendance in schools and in the afternoon shift in government offices.

R.K. Sharma to write book on travails
Tribune News Service

Panchkula, April 19
A former Inspector-General of Haryana Police and accused in journalist Shivani Bhatnagar's murder, Mr Ravi Kant Sharma has said he is now writing a book on his travails he had undergone since August last year, when he was named an accused by the Delhi police.

“It will be a potboiler with all desired ingredients. From my own psychological and physical agony to the immense social build-up against the powers that be,” promises Mr Sharma, adding that the book should be read to know of the traumatic experiences of his family all through the time he was evading arrest and after.

Talking to mediapersons today, he said he was busy writing the manuscript of the book in Tihar Jail and it would be completed soon. His wife, Madhu, and younger daughter, Komal, are assisting him with the manuscript. Mr Sharma, who is out on a five-day bail to attend his elder daughter, Pragatti’s, wedding here on Sunday, visited Bal Niketan, a family-run home for the destitute children, in between making arrangements for the wedding.

He asked about the well-being of all children and how they were doing in their studies. The children, in turn, made innocent queries about what went on inside Tihar Jail. He said he would practise yoga and exercise in the morning and later pass his day reading and playing chess, besides taking time out for his book. The children, awed by the narration, innocently remarked that Tihar Jail appeared to be a more interesting place than the outside world.

He told them about repeater ward (where frequent “visitors” to Tihar Jail are lodged), the drug addicts’ ward, foreigners ward. His innuendoes on his two foreigner friends — Yug kil Kul and Mil tuk Tik — and the five star treatment meted out to foreign inmates had the children in splits.

14-yr-old girl ends life
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 19
A 14-year-old class X student committed suicide by hanging herself in her house in Sector 38 here this morning. The deceased, Surbhi, was found hanging by her mother who had returned from a mandir.

Surbhi had recently taken admission in a private school in Sector 38. Her father, Mr Ved Parkash, who is a vegetable vendor in Bijwara market, had left home in the morning. Her younger brother and sister had also left for their school. Stating that she was unwell, Surbhi told her mother that she did not want to go to school. Then her mother left for a nearby mandir at about 10.30 am.

According to the police, the girl was undergoing treatment for depression at the Psychiatry Department of the PGI for the last five years. She was said to be under stress. She had failed in class IX due to the ailment. The police has not found any suicide note from the spot.

COMMUNITY

MC permitted to renew firemen’s contract
Our Correspondent

SAS Nagar, April 19
The Department of Local Government, Punjab, has given permission to the Municipal Council here to renew the contract of 13 firemen whose services had ended on March 9.

Twelve of them had joined duty till this evening. The permission to renew the contract has been given on the condition that the process of filling the regular posts was completed within the next three months. The letter to this effect had been received by the civic body yesterday.

It had been reported in these columns yesterday that with the refusal of the Department of Local Government, Punjab, to give permission to the Municipal Council to renew the service contract of firemen, the local fire station had been badly crippled and put the whole of Ropar district in danger.

The contract of 13 firemen ended on March 9 leaving a token presence of merely four regular firemen at the station against the sanctioned strength of 39. They were being compelled to work for 10 hours during the morning shift and for 14 hours during the night shift and were also being deprived of their weekly offs.

The council had written three letters during the month of March to the Director, Local Government, requesting him to give permission for renewing the contract as the local fire station was the only station in the entire Ropar district and was facing an acute staff shortage. The president of the civic body had even met the Director on March 31 to apprise him of the situation.

The Joint Director of the Local Government had said in a letter of April 1 to the civic body that the council’s proposal to renew the contract had been rejected by the Director. He had asked the civic body to send another proposal giving “full justification” for filling the posts of fireman on a regular basis.

The fire station has been facing an acute staff shortage since 1996. To overcome this shortage, the council had cleared a proposal in the House in 2001 to recruit 20 personnel on a contract basis till the regular posts were filled. These 20 employees had joined duty on September 5, 2001.

Wonder berry from Ladakh
A.S. Prashar
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 19
Nature has a perfect way of maintaining its balance. In the hot arid Rajasthan where water is scarce, nature has endowed this bounty in the form of watermelons. In the cold severity of Kashmir, nature has endowed the saffron, the natural body warmer. In Leh-Ladakh where oxygen levels are low for human sustenance, nature has bestowed this wonder plant, rich in oxygen, in facilitating human adaptation to prevent extreme cold and hypoxic environment conditions.

Commonly called “Chharma” by locals, the components of Seabuckthorn viz the fruit, seed, leaves, branches and bark are exploited for their individual unique properties, besides proving as an important source of bio-mass for fuel and animal fodder.

The famous Sanjeevini Booti, as depicted in Ramayana, grew in this region.

The shrub characterised by its wide adaptation, extensive and well developed root system, rapid regeneration and compact canopy system protect soil from wind and water erosion.

It further helps in upgrading of fragile or marginal slopes through soft binding and enhances the fertility of the soil.

Seabuckthorn is a revolutionary, thorny, nitrogen-fixing wondrous deciduous shrub that grows under clean, ecological, icy heights of Himalayas. These small golden berries have goodness of over 100 nutrients vital for body functions.

The fruit contains eight vitamins, 24 minerals, 18 amino acids and anti-oxidants and is hailed as the king of vitamin “C”. It is a veritable mine of vitamins A, B1, B2, E & K.

As per Tibetan medical history, Seabuckthorn products have been gainfully used for at least 12 centuries.

A legendary story about Genghis Khan, the Mongol conqueror, says that his horsemen extensively used Seabuckthorn berries and seed and oil to improve their individual memory, stamina, strength and fitness.

In recent times, Russian cosmonauts have effectively used them on spaceship “MIR” to combat cosmic radiation and as an oxygen supplement.

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Field Research Laboratory (FRL), Leh, undertook serious research studies to harness its vast potential in facilitating human adaptation to extreme cold and hypoxic environmental conditions prevalent in inhospitable mountainous region with special reference to the highest battlefield, Siachin.

The aim of the research was of finding Seabuckthrorn preparations for improving physical and mental performance under hypoxic environment and prevention and treatment of cold injuries.

Prices of fruits, vegetables witness 60 pc rise
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 19
Prices of some fruits and vegetables registered an increase of 40 to 60 per cent as truck operators’ strike entered its sixth day today. Traders in the market claimed that though the prices in the market had increased by 15 to 20 per cent, retailers were charging high premium in the name of strike.

Since the supply of fruits coming from other states, including Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Delhi, has been badly hit, consequently, traders and farmers from surrounding villages coming to the city market are making fast bucks. Despite supply of vegetables by farmers on tractor-trailers, the prices have increased sharply.

Mr Brij Mohan, a leading trader of Sector 26 fruit and vegetable market, said, “The supply of mangoes, oranges, bananas, grapes and pomegranates has been badly affected. Most of the traders in the market are selling fruits from their old stocks as the supplies from Nagpur, Hyderabad, Bangalore and other markets have almost come to naught.’’

He said the retail price of mango crossed Rs 30 per kg against Rs 20 per kg before the strike. The price of bananas has increased from Rs 15 per dozen to Rs 25 per dozen. Since there was no supply of grapes to the city market, the traders who had stored stocks in the cold store, were selling these at a high price. Before the strike, if grapes were available for Rs 20-25 per kg, today the retailers were asking Rs 60 to Rs 70 per kg for these.

The traders said the retail price of potato increased to Rs 4 per kg as against Rs 1-2 per kg before the strike. Similarly, the price of onions had increased from Rs 4 per kg to Rs 8-10 per kg during the past one week. The price of tomato had witnessed a maximum increase from Rs 2-3 per kg to Rs 10 per kg. Another trader in the market disclosed that the price of oranges had increased from Rs 35-40 per dozen to Rs 60- 70 per dozen due to strike.

The Chandigarh Transport Association has claimed that tempo unions, which have so far been participating in the strike passively, have agreed to participate in it actively. It has warned the government that like southern states, the strike would be intensified in the region as well. If the government failed to accept the demands, there would be no movement of goods except milk and cooking gas to the region.

Mr Rajiv Sood, general secretary, Chandigarh Transport Association, lamented that instead of accepting genuine demands of the transporters, the government was creating problems for the public. He said though they were paying a substantial amount as road tax and permit fee, they were asked to pay toll tax and entry fee for using roads. The truckers, he said, were denied renewal of insurance of old trucks, and the premium had been increased manifold.

Exotic bonsai varieties beckon visitors
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 19
One could not have wished for more beauty than what the eyes encountered at the venue of the fifth bonsai show this morning. Filling the space of the venue were over 200 exquisite bonsai varieties, trained to create the illusion of nature.

On display during the show are the best bonsai varieties grown and maintained by local members of the Bonsai Club of India. The president of the club, Mr Anil Kaushik, himself a seasoned bonsai trainer, said the membership of the club had grown three times since it was established in 1999.

As for varieties, it was difficult for office-bearers of the club to make a choice. Out of all the entries received, the experts finally zeroed down on 200 displays, each one exotic in its own right. On display are bonsai of different varieties — informal upright variety being the most abundant. As Mr Kaushik said, “The majority of bonsai in the world fall in the informal upright variety. This variety is the most easily available.” Formal upright (where the base and the trunk run in a straight line) varieties also feature in the show.

Cascade and slanting varieties, where the plant almost dips to one side, instead of following a straight line of growth. Style of the bonsai can be altered by altering the manner of its training. Bonsai varieties from native habitat include pilkhan, pipal, bougainvillea, and many other shrubs and trees found and grown locally.

Among the foreign varieties, procured by the club from Mumbai and Delhi, are the Chinese elm, moraya (a hedge plant), and malpighea coccigera (most common variety used to create bonsai forests). Myrtle, a Greek plant, is also a range among bonsai varieties. It is much sought after for its flowers that change colour, depending on seasons. Bonsai forests have also been created using conifers.

The show will be open till tomorrow.

Snow, rain in region

Chandigarh, April 19
The higher reaches in Himachal Pradesh and adjoining areas of Jammu and Kashmir experienced another spell of mild snowfall, while the mid and lower hills were lashed by had and rain today.

A 2.4 mm sharp rain in Chandigarh and adjoining areas of Punjab and Haryana caught the people unawares, specially farmers. The harvested wheat crops were drenched. New wheat arrivals in grain markets were soaked and several low-lying areas were flooded.

The farmers were hard pressed to salvage their crops. The day temperature hovered around 30°C five degrees less than normal and against the highest of 38.2°C on April 15.

Hisar in Haryana, which had been reeling under hot weather conditions, had 0.4 mm of light rain overnight on the eve of the President’s visit.

Jammu reported 0.5 mm of rain till this morning. Srinagar remained dry.

Weathermen here attributed the sudden change in weather to western disturbances moving over Jammu and Kashmir and adjoining areas of Pakistan. The system, they said, was likely to cause renewed spells of light to moderate rains at several places in Himachal Pradesh. Light to moderate rains at a few places in Haryana and Punjab were forecast for the next 48 hours. They have also warned of hail and thunderstorms and squalls exceeding 45 kmph during this period.

A report from Shimla said showers in the lower reaches caused a sharp fall in temperatures. It said high altitude areas it the districts of Lahaul and Spiti and Chamba had intermittent snowfall since the morning.

The snowfall on the 3915-m Rohtang pass, the gateway to Lahaul and Spiti district and Dhauladhar mountain ranges, plummeted the temperature in the twin valleys of Kulu and Kangra.

Shimla and its adjoining areas were lashed by hail and rain today. High velocity winds blew across Kufri, Naldehra and neighbouring areas, which also experienced rains. Shimla recorded 1.8 mm of rain while Kalpa recorded 2.6 mm and 0.6 mm.

Reports of rain were also received from Kangra, Kulu, Solan, Sirmaur, Chamba, Hamirpur and Mandi districts. UNI

Heading for the hills in rain
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 19
Imprisoning rain was no dampener as enthusiastic youngsters in wind-cheaters over rugged denims broke free from their daily routine for driving uphill just to “feel the breeze on their visages”.

Justifications were not required. Armed with excuses, the teenyboppers got out of their residences on one pretext or the other as the April rain drove the heat away into the recycle bin of their memories.

Till today, they had been forced to remain indoors. Not because of the grumpy parents objecting to their movements during the holiday season, but due to the “hostile weather”.

As the dense black clouds smiled overhead in the morning, hectic calls were made before the youngsters took out their bikes and cars to cut along the sharp curves of life on way to Timber Trail, even Kasauli and Shimla.

Little wonder, boisterous din of honking cars and bikes drowned the whisper of cool mountain breeze blowing soft across the trees as so many vehicles crawled through the narrow Kalka bazar cramped with encroachments on either sides.

At the Parwanoo barrier, the traffic came to a standstill as the toll collectors struggled hard to keep pace with the rush.

“It is always crowded on weekends and during the holidays, no doubt about it,” a Parwanoo shopkeeper commented. “But today, the rush was exceptionally heavy because of the rains, perhaps”.

Heavy rush on a rainy day? Don’t residents prefer driving uphill during the hot and humid weather? “Yes, tourists from Delhi and other far flung areas are inclined towards having a nice time in the hills during the summers,” he explained. “But City residents, particularly the youngsters, do not wait that long.

They drive up the hills just to enjoy the rain even if they have to miss the classes, or the office, for it”.

Explaining the trend, he asserted, “In days that are no more and will, perhaps, never come back, few had cars. They had to depend upon rickety, weather-beaten, buses for journey uphill. No wonder, a visit to Shimla, even to Kasauli, was a planned excursion”.

He added, “All that was years ago. Things have changed now. The mobility has increased. Substantial number of people have their own cars and bikes. That also new. Not second hand. Thanks of their availability on easy installments”.

New or old, everywhere you looked you could see excited youngsters in puffing and panting cars with stereos blaring latest bhangra music. Or else, on bikes. Raincoats, even helmets, were apparently not necessary as they negotiated the sharp turns, casually.

Their bikes did skid, but fortunately no major accident was reported. At least not from Kasauli.

SBI employees stage dharna
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 19
Employees of State Bank of India (SBI) staged a dharna in front of the SBI Zonal Office here today.

Employees from all over Haryana had gathered under the banner of the SBI Staff Association to lodge their protest against unilateral decisions of the Deputy General Manager and its regional employees.

Mr H.B.S. Batra, Deputy General Secretary of the association in a press note, said though the management had made efforts to stop the employees from participating in the protest, yet over 500 employees reached here. He said the management was resorting to the transfers of employees on flimsy grounds and harassing them.

He said as part of the agitation the employees would hold a demonstration on May 6, wear black badges from May 12 to May 14 and would hold district-level dharnas in Haryana on May 23.

Police raids Gymkhana Club
Tribune News Service

Panchkula, April 19
The police raided the Gymkhana Club in Sector 6 here this evening following a complaint that a latest Bollywood movie, The Hero, was being screened there in violation of the Copyright Act. KC Cinema in Sector 5 here is currently running the latest release.

As per information, the club authorities had given a contract to one Mr Harminder Singh of Chandigarh to entertain its members every Saturday by screening movies.

Police sources said it was on the information provided by Mr Pawan Valecha, a partner in KC Cinema, that a raid was conducted at the club. They said Mr Valecha had confirmed the screening of the film at the club by sending his manager, Mr Roop Lal, to the place.

The club authorities were not available for comments. No case had been registered till the filing of this report.

Save Sukhna
Make dams to check direct inflow

Make pebble and rock dams where silt coming downstream the rivulets can be filtered. Besides, silt in the lake can be removed each year by regular dredging with machines. This will increase the capacity of the lake to hold more water. Water level in the lake should be maintained by tapping water sources of the catchment area.

There is also a need for planting more trees in the catchment area to maintain the level of groundwater.

Fish species like mrigale, common carp and cat fish can be released in the lake to clean the water of dead animals and organic matter which would enhance fishery in the lake.

Rajinder Sharma, President, Chandigarh Environment and Anti-pollution Front.

DEBATE

City Beautiful's most prominent water feature, Sukhna Lake, is in danger.

Readers of Chandigarh Tribune are invited to send in their views not exceeding 150 words on the subject along with a passport size colour photo for publication in the newspaper to: Save Sukhna Lake, Chandigarh Tribune, Sector 29-C, Chandigarh.

CRIME

2 vehicles stolen
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 19
During the past 24 hours, at least two cases of vehicle theft were reported from different parts of the city.

A car (CH01J 7700) of Mr S.S. Virk, a resident of Sector 35 was reportedly stolen from his residence on the night intervening April 18 and 19.

Mr Harjinder Singh Malhi of Phase X, SAS Nagar reported to the police that his Bajaj Chetak scooter (CH01 P 5174) was stolen from Sector 21 on April 15.

Held: The police has arrested four persons from Colony No 5 allegedly for gambling at a public place on the night intervening April 18 and 19. All of them have been booked under Sections 13, 3 and 67 of the Gambling Act.

The police has also arrested Bohal Mehta, Mauli Jagran and Inderjit, Bikran and Baldev, all residents of Manimajra from different parts of the city allegedly for carrying liquor in an unauthorised manner here yesterday. They have been booked under various sections of the Excise Act.

PANCHKULA

Liquor seized: The police has recovered 125 cases of country-made liquor pouches being smuggled in a car near Tawa chowk on Friday night. As many as 1247 pouches were recovered.

Two held: The police arrested Ram Prakash from Khera village on charges of drinking at a public place. Another person, Munish Kumar, was arrested from Devinagar village on chrages of speculation and Rs 820 recovered from him.

Arrested: The police has arrested Radhe Shyam, a resident of Indira Colony on charges of harassing his wife for dowry. A case under Section 498 of IPC has been registered on the complaint of his wife, Sita Devi.