C H A N D I G A R H

Top stories | Community | Crime | Business | Education

Courts | Culture | Sports

TOP STORIES

Property tax rate hiked by 3 pc
Admn ignores MC General House suggestions
Chandigarh, May 8
The Chandigarh Administration has not only bypassed the resolution of the Municipal Corporation General House with regard to the property tax rate, hiking it from 2 per cent to 5 per cent, but also rejected most of the concessions extended by it to different sections of businessmen.

• Draft notification on property tax

• CHB amends quota rules

Dignified Jacob bids goodbye
Chandigarh, May 8
Finally the super-active Punjab Governor and UT Administrator, Lieut Gen J.F.R. Jacob (retd), bid goodbye to the city today by raising his hand and shouting the traditional Sikh war cry “Jo Bole So Nihal ... Sat Sri Akal”.

Goodbye, says Punjab Governor and UT Administrator J.F.R. Jacob as he leaves the Punjab Raj Bhavan in a white Mercedes pushed by employees in a symbolic way in Chandigarh on Thursday. — Photo Manoj Mahajan

‘Help’ to candidate: PU seeks report
Chandigarh, May 8
Following reports that the UT DPI (Colleges), Mr Dalip Kumar, allegedly used his influence to “help” a candidate during examinations, Panjab University has ordered the Principal of the Government College for Girls, Sector 11 (GCG-11) to submit a report in this regard.

• Entrance test for PhD

3 have miraculous escape in roof collapse
Chandigarh, May 8
A public verandah roof collapsed in the wee hours today over three sleeping labourers, who miraculously escaped unhurt, in the Sector 22 Bajwara market here.

The verandah roof that caved in the Sector 22 Bajwara market in Chandigarh on Thursday. — A Tribune photograph

PGI fails to recover Rs 12 cr from Punjab, Haryana
Chandigarh, May 8
The PGI might not tire of crying hoarse about paucity of funds coming in way of completion of its projects, but it has failed to recover almost Rs 12 crore from Punjab and Haryana on account of maintenance cost of 200 beds at the premier medical institute treating patients from the region.

3 held for blackmailing businessman
Panchkula, May 8
A 27-year-old woman and her two male accomplices were arrested by CIA officials late last night on charges of blackmailing a Mani Majra businessman and extorting Rs 1 lakh from him.

COMMUNITY

UT to launch ‘City Portal’
Chandigarh, May 8
The Chandigarh Administration will launch “City Portal” — an interactive site for the residents — within three months. It will enable the people to download various forms for getting driving licences, ration cards, voter’s identity cards, and register their grievances through e-mail in various departments.

SP seeks Mayor’s resignation
Chandigarh, May 8
Janata Party President Ajay Jagga and his Samajwadi Party counterpart Shivi Jaiswal have sought the resignation of Mayor Subhash Chawla on moral ground for his failure to get the Municipal Corporation House resolution of 2 per cent property tax approved by the Chandigarh Administration.

IN FOCUS
Boom time for Kharar real estate
Kharar, May 8
Over the past few years, there has been a spurt in the number of privately promoted residential colonies coming up in this township. The rising cost of buying or constructing a house in neighbouring Chandigarh or Mohali, and Kharar being just a stone’s throw away are the prime factors for the real estate boom.

A view of one of the private residential colonies coming up in Kharar. — Photo Parvesh Chauhan

Blood donations mark Red Cross Day
Panchkula, May 8
The Haryana branch of the Indian Red Cross Society collected 70,000 units of blood by organising blood donation camps in different parts of the state besides distributing 3500 artificial limbs and medicines and cloths worth Rs 4.53 lakh to the poor, needy and physically challenged in Haryana and other states.

Haryana Police personnel donate blood at a camp organised by the Red Cross Society at Bal Bhavan Sector 15, Panchkula, on Thursday. — A Tribune photograph

WORLD THALASSAEMIA DAY
Markfed organises cycle rally
Chandigarh, May 8
As many as 130 persons today participated in a cycle rally organised by Markfed to mark the World Thalassaemia Day. The rally was flagged off by Mr Lal Singh, Finance and Cooperation Minister, Punjab.

Markfed employees take part in a cycle rally to mark World Thalassaemia Day at Chandigarh on Thursday. — A Tribune photograph

Cause of anguish among kids
Chandigarh, May 8
The spate of suicides in the city has triggered off a massive debate on the causes and possible remedies of the grave problem.

Police Dept fails to pay BSNL’s bills
SAS Nagar, May 8
With the BSNL, having hiked its charges, the SAS Nagar police stations, however, seem to remain unaffected. Every month most of the phones go dead following the failure of the police stations to pay the monthly bills to the BSNL.

ULTA PULTA
Thank God, my phone is dead
My friend Sharmaji looked very happy. When I asked him the reason for that smile on his face, he said, ‘‘My phone is dead for the past one week’’. I was surprised because aren’t you supposed to be tense and unhappy when your phone is dead?

Former Tribune employee dead
Chandigarh, May 8
Mr Hari Ram, a former Foreman of The Tribune, died here on Wednesday. He was 69.

Tribune Society executive body

SAVE SUKHNA
Multipronged policy needed
A multipronged policy is required for dealing with the complex problem of Sukhna Lake. Measures like afforestation and provision of silt-arresting equipment suitable for various sites in the catchment area are required.

EDUCATION

One more PU panel on attendance norms
Chandigarh, May 8
Panjab University is still grappling with ideas to streamline the condition of minimum attendance in classes for students to be allowed to appear in the annual examinations.

53 kids given scholarships
Chandigarh, May 8
About 53 students from 10 peripheral schools of Chandigarh were given scholarships at a function organised by a society at Lajpat Rai Bhavan, Sector 15, here today.

Tripathi on jury for Ovshinsky Award
Chandigarh, May 8
Dr Surya Kant Tripathi, Department of Physics, Panjab University, has been selected as a member of the International Jury for the Ovshinsky Award for Excellence in Non-Crystalline Chalcogenide for the year 2003.

Questions outside syllabus: students
Chandigarh, May 8
Students of BA (Part II) today claimed that parts of the English Honours (paper-B) question paper set by Panjab University were outside syllabus.

‘Little angels’ visit religious places
Chandigarh, May 8
The idea of religious harmony and national integration was etched in young minds studying in Little Angels School in Sector 38 through a tour to various religious places in the city today.

Students of Little Angels School interact with Maulana Mohammed Ajmad Khan at Jama Masjid, Sector 20, Chandigarh, on Thursday. — A Tribune photograph

Tiny tots on picnic
Chandigarh, May 8
Tiny tots of Tender Heart School, Sector 33, enjoyed a picnic organised for them at The Orchard in Mullanpur, near here, today.

Students of Tender Heart School splash about in a pool during a picnic at Mullanpur, near Chandigarh, on Tuesday.
— A Tribune photograph

Pvt schools to close on May 17
Chandigarh, May 8
While a majority of the private schools of the city are scheduled to close for summer vacation from May 17, others have fixed May 20 as their last working day.

SCHOOL WORLD
History
The early Dam builder from the IIT Roorkee
Growing up along the banks of canals that criss-crossed north India in the 19th century young William merely wanted to be an irrigation engineer - a mere one notch above the position of a canal supervisor that his father held in the service of the Government of India.

• School World Helpline

D.R. Sharma is president of CAT Bar Assn
Chandigarh, May 8
Mr D.R. Sharma, advocate, was unanimously elected president of the CAT Bar Association, and Mr C.L. Gupta and Mr Sanjiv Pandit were elected vice-president and secretary, respectively.

SPORTS

Education Dept amends sports policy
Chandigarh, May 8
To give added impetus to sports in city schools, the UT Education Department has made few amendments to its previous policy on sports. Stating this, Mr Daljit Singh Mangat, Director, Public Instruction (Schools), UT, said the annual sports activities of the UT Education Department would begin from July.