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July 14, 2003, Chandigarh, India
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Dhand seriously hurt in attack Ludhiana, July 13 Nirdosh Dhand was stabbed eight times on his chest, abdomen and shoulders. He is under treatment at the surgery ICU DMC and his condition is said to be serious. He was conscious till he was brought to the hospital. He has not given any statement to the police but had disclosed the identity of the assailants to his family members. On the basis of a statement by his wife Meenakshi, the police has registered a case of attempt to murder against two persons — Goldie and Anil Kumar, alias Pinchu. Reliable police sources and persons close to the victim revealed to the Ludhiana Tribune that Nirdosh Dhand was brokering a compromise between the group of the accused and another group involved in certain anti-social activities, especially in the parallel financial market involving loan sharks. Eyewitnesses disclosed that the two accused had gone on a motor cycle to Nirdosh’s house. One of them even touched his feet. They were standing on the road opposite the house. Nirdosh had two bodyguards. One of the guards was sent to fetch ice-cream while other one went inside the house to bring some utensils. Nirdosh was heard saying that the two should meet him in his office the next day and he would get help reach a compromise between the accused and the other group. At this juncture, the accused allegedly pounced on him with some sharp-edged weapons and stabbed him several times. Unconfirmed
reports say that some persons in a car were accompanying the accused. The police is investigating this aspect also. Nirdosh Dhand is facing charges in about 20 cases ranging from murder, extortion, torture, and heading an organised racket of loan sharks. He was seen commonly with a number of musclemen. A former youth congress leader, Nirdosh Dhand was quite a terror in the city till about two years ago. He was close to several policemen and was said to have circulated the ‘black money’ of some police officers, including gazetted officers, into the illegal financial market in the city. His terror came to an end when the district police caught him in a murder case and took him around the city in an open jeep.
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New English book for BA (I)
sub-standard: teachers Ludhiana, July 13 While the old book had 10 essays, 10 poems and 10 stories, the new one has four essays, six stories and 16 poems. The lecturers of English have analysed that in case a student prepared just two essays, he could easily attempt all questions in the section as there was a lot of internal choice in the examination. The lecturers said one of the most read essays titled ‘Girls’ best friend’ has been omitted from the new book. Also six blank pages have also been added to the poetry section of the new 105-page book, they said. They said that this would reduce the course to the KG level. If there were 105 working days in the session, the students would be required to go through just one page a day, they explained. The teachers have also pointed out that while such changes in syllabus were decided latest by March, the decision regarding the change of book has been taken too late. They said the same book was earlier prescribed for the students of BSc II as they were more drawn towards their science subjects and could not devote time to languages. However, they said for the students of BA, English was an important language and the only book with lesser contents would lead to deterioration of its standards. Many lecturers have also alleged that the change of syllabus under such circumstances had been made to suit the needs of many booksellers who had the old stocks of the book ‘Three facets of English’ and wanted it to be introduced for a year or two in the colleges. Prof K.B.S. Sodhi, former Professor of English, GGN Khalsa College, said he had gone through the new syllabus and was rather shocked to see it. He said the syllabus of the course had been reduced to mockery. He demanded an inquiry into the circumstances under which such a change had been made. Prof L.S. Bedi, member of the Board of Studies and also a Professor in GGN Khalsa College, said the contents of the new book were sub-standard. He said some of the essays and poems were of the standards of Class V. He said he was not aware of the change in syllabus and was shocked to know about it two days ago. However, Prof Balraj Thapar, member of the PU Board of Studies for English and Professor at SD College in Chandigarh, differed on the issue. He said the contents of the course were better in the new book. He said this change had been made as the previous book was being followed for more than eight years. He, however, added that the book was an interim arrangement only as Panjab University had started preparing a new book for the class which would come out in two years’ time. |
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Insecticides
pose threat Ludhiana, July 13 Many cases of poisoning due to insecticide spray have already been reported from many villages during the last week as termites have attacked the crop in some villages and the farmers are spraying deadly insecticides to kill it. Doctors say such cases have started pouring in although no death has been reported so far in the district. They say village doctors have started receiving such cases. They called for a campaign to educate farmers in this direction and save their lives. Villagers say every year many persons die after spraying the insecticides especially on paddy crop because they spray the insecticide during the afternoon, that leads to suffocation as the volatility of the chemicals increases when it is hot. They said over the years they had become aware of the problem and so preferred spraying in the morning hours only. But some overzealous farmers, in an attempt to finish the work soon, indulged in spraying during afternoon also. Dr Devinder Ashok, practitioner in Pakhowal village, said he had already started receiving such complaints. He said every year clinics in rural areas were flooded with such patients whenever the spraying season commences. He said the cases were also reported during the cultivation of other crops but, the incidence of poisoning was the highest during paddy season. He said insecticides were volatile and toxic in nature and harmed humans besides other animals found in the fields. A farmer said the problem had become so grave that the labourers had also started demanding more money for spraying. The insecticides are absorbed through lungs and get mixed with blood. These are highly volatile in nature and are inhaled by those spraying them. Doctors said the only cure was to inject an antidote to the poison intravenously. The doctors said villagers were falling prey to the poisons as they were quite careless in handling these. They did not wear face masks while spraying. Most of the cases were reported during the noons as these chemicals became more volatile due to heat and affected people easily. Even the insecticide manufacturing companies had written a warning on the packing stating that these should be sprayed only in the mornings and evenings. Moreover, certain farmers used some oils on their skin before spraying the insecticides. The experts said this was a
The experts said broad spectrum insecticides were better as compared to the others as these had lesser volatility and lesser chances of getting inhaled. The farmers were also advised to wear face masks during spraying and not to spray during noon. They were also advised not to spray on empty stomach as this aggravated the problem. |
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Former PAU professor
arrested Ludhiana, July 13 Dr Balwant Singh was booked on June 6 on the complaint of the PAU official. He was booked under the Prevention of Atrocities against Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Act, 1989. Dr Balwant Singh allegedly called him names banned under the Act. The accused was picked up from his house early this morning. He has denied the allegation. He counter-alleged that he was paying the price for making allegations against some PAU officials. A Duty Magistrate here today remanded the accused in judicial custody till July 26. According to the FIR, the accused had insulted Mr Gopal Dass in his office. There were four witnesses to the incident. Police sources said the accused was evading arrest though a number of raids were conducted to nab him. On the other hand, sources close to Dr Balwant Singh stated that he was being harassed for daring to expose certain highly placed PAU officials. The sources said Dr Balwant Singh’s entry was banned on the PAU campus by the authorities. |
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Fake sales tax inspector caught Ludhiana, July 13 The accused cheated people by posing a sales tax inspector. He usually took some bribe from the truck operators to let them go. His modus operandi was that he chose a lonely place and stopped the vehicles with a red cloth. He showed his “fake” identity card and forced the truck operators to pay him money. One of the truck operators got suspicious and reported the matter to the police. The police then caught him red-handed. He police has also recovered Rs 470 from him which he had taken from a truck driver.
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AT THE CROSSROADS I consider myself lucky to have met Bhisham Sahni twice when he was National Fellow at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla. It was in June 1992 that I paid a casual visit to Rashtrapati Nivas, Shimla, more to have a look at the monument than to meet someone there. But at the entrance, I changed my mind and went upstairs to meet Dr J.S. Grewal, Director of IIAS. He told me that a seminar on Punjabi literature was in progress in the institute and I could attend the session starting at 3pm that day. In the seminar hall, I was happy to meet Bhisham Sahni, among other writers and scholars. He was there as National Fellow, working on his next play. In that session he talked about his growth as a writer. He talked in a low voice, picked up words meticulously and put forth his views in a cogent manner. He never exaggerated but was rather modest and unassuming. At tea-break, I introduced myself to him and he clasped my hand in both of his own as if we had been old friends meeting after a long time. I was touched by the warmth of his feeling and his benign smile. Almost two years later, I attended a seminar on well-known Urdu short story writer Saadat Hasan Manto at Rashtrapati Nivas, Shimla. Bhishan Sahni was still there and I had the opportunity to meet him for four days. His wife Sheela was also with him and like an ideal Indian wife, she had been taking good care of him. Once at breakfast, Bhisham Sahni helped himself with a good quantity of pickle. Sheela at once removed that nasty thing from his plate, saying, “You have a sore throat, why do you forget such things?” “How I can remember some important things if I do not forget certain things?” The three or four of us around the couple in the dining hall just exchanged glances while suppressing smiles. Bhisham Sahni knew the art of slipping away from the firing line when the situation so demanded. But Sheela Sahni was still a bit tense. Perhaps the secret of his greatness as a writer lay in his being unruffled even when a strong wind gushed around him. In Tamas, of course, he could not help raising his voice of protest at the ruthless killings during communal riots at the time of Partition. Later, this novel in the form of a telefilm brought home to the people, on both the sides of the border, the futility of misplaced frenzy at a critical juncture of history. His death at the age of 88 may be viewed as a life coming full circle. His writings are bound to inspire the coming generations to tread on the path of sanity, amity and cordiality. N.S. Tasneem
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Akali Dal conference a big success Ludhiana, July 13 Mr Badal has been organising district conferences for the past one week to mobilise the workers to fight against the onslaught of the congress government in the state. Mr Mahesh Inder Singh Grewal, a former minister and a close associate of Mr Tohra, said today that workers participated in the conference forgetting all differences of the past more than four years when there was bitterness among the top leaders and the workers. All senior leaders of the Tohra faction participated in the conference. Mr Tohra himself was scheduled to participate in the conference but could not come as doctors have advised him not to exert to much for sometime more. The mood at the conference was to fight the congress government and even Mr Parkash Singh Badal was in an upbeat mood. As a matter of fact, Mr Badal has become stronger after the unity with the Tohra faction and lately the support extended by the BJP central leadership. On the other hand, Congress Chief Minister Amarinder Singh is fighting the Akali Dal single handedly and is not getting the support and cooperation of his party. The district congress committees all over the state are not countering the anti-Amarinder Singh or anti-Sonia Gandhi campaign which has been started by the Shiromani Akali Dal and the BJP leadership. Although the Punjab BJP leaders presented a memorandum against the Congress government to the Punjab Governor, yet they are not coming of in support of the former Chief Minister with all the force at their command. They are also in the fear of the state government as now cases are being instituted against the BJP leaders. Mr Badal is yet to reorganise the Shiromani Akali Dal after the unity and the process for the same is likely to be started after July 16 when the ‘Akhand Path’ would be organised at Akal Takhat to formalise the unity. Tohra faction is to be given representation in the various frontal organisations and the PAC and the working committee of the Akali Dal. Even the SGPC will witness a change of guards. |
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Fake currency in circulation Mandi Ahmedgarh, July 13 Cashier of a nationalised bank, on the condition of anonymity, said three types of fake notes are in circulation. He said, “The quality of fake notes prepared on computer depends on the quality of paper. Rs 500 and Rs 50 denomination notes are more conveniently prepared because of peculiar colours and shades, which could easily be reproduced with the help of hi-tech computer printers.” He said fake notes printed on press could be distinguished from original by comparing size of letters. |
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Transporters
list problems Ludhiana, July 13 Moreover, they said an increase in the special road tax, hike in the prices of diesel and several other factors were responsible for the crisis in the bus transport industry. Addressing a press conference, the president of the association, Mr Fateh Singh Libra, vice-president, Mr Tejinder Singh and the general secretary, Mr Ravinder Pal Singh, regretted that despite several representations to the authorities, no remedial measures were taken. They said while the private buses were checked on various counts, the buses operated by Punjab Roadways, the
PRTC, Haryana Roadways and the Chandigarh Transport Undertaking were never checked. They pointed out these operators were plying more buses than the permissible limits. While these operators were authorised to ply a few buses only, in actual they were running many more buses, thus causing huge losses to the private bus operators. They said while the number of buses had increased, the number of passengers had come down over the years. The problem was further complicated as trucks, tempos and other four-wheelers were also ferrying passengers. Listing various reasons for the losses to the bus transport industry, Mr Libra said these included special road tax, double hike in the price of diesel during the past three years, illegal carriage of passengers by trucks, tempos and other four-wheelers, large increase in the number of uses and decrease in passenger flow, too much increase in the prices of spare parts, tyres and tubes, illegal free travelling by police personnel and students and too much hike in bus stand fee without any facility. Meanwhile, Mr Fateh Singh Libra of Libra Bus Service, Mr Tejinder Singh of Blue Line Transport Company, Mr Ravinder Pal Singh of RL Bus Service, Mr Surinder Singh of Anand Bus Service and Mr Rajeet Singh of Nankana Sahib Transport were elected as president, vice-president, general secretary and cashier, respectively. Mr Amarjeet Singh of Nankana Transport, Mr Jaswinder Singh of Malwa Highway and Mr Gurcharan Singh of New Akal Transport were appointed executive members of the association. The president has also been authorised to nominate five more executive members. |
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Tributes
paid to Dr Ishwar Singh Doraha, July 13 Speakers lauded the selfless services of the great educationist and a political activist. They offered tributes to the “great soul” by recalling the ordeals undertaken by him till the death. They also called him a complete man who never looked back in his life. His life was spent in the service of the needy and the helpless. They said Dr Ishwar Singh would remain alive in the hearts of the people and shall be immortalised through his dedicated tasks. Speakers also highlighted his services towards the medical profession, towards the educational institutions as the president of the non-government management federation, Punjab and Chandigarh, towards the nation as an active political leader and finally towards society as a selfless worker of the masses. Among those who offered their tributes to the departed soul were Mr Parkash Singh Badal, former Chief Minister, Mr Tej Parkash Singh Kotli, Transport Minister, Punjab, Capt Kanwaljit Singh, former minister, Mr Balwant Singh Ramoowalia, president, Lok Bhalai party, Mr S.S. Hundal, president, PCCTU, Mr Tarsem Bahia, Principal, A.S. College for Boys, Khanna and Jathedar Kirpal Singh Badungar , president , SGPC. |
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621 widows given relief Ludhiana, July 13 Mr Harjinder Singh, SDM ( East), Ludhiana, disbursed various items of ration and daily use among the widows. Mr Raghunandan Lal Bhatia, MP, who was the chief guest at the function, later inaugurated a sewing school for girls which has been opened by the temple management and dedicated to the memory of Sardarni Gurdish Kaur Sandhu. The function got off to a religious start with Shri Sanjiv Sondhi of Sahajyoga delivering a brief discourse on the utility of yoga in everyday life. In his address, Mr R.L. Bhatia lauded the efforts of the temple management in helping the destitute widows with monthly rations and assured his help to the management at all times. Mr S.C. Ralhan, president, Ludhiana Handtools Association, donated Rs 40,000 to the temple management. Others present on the occasion were Mr Ashok Puri, president, Lions Club, Mr Jagdish Bajaj, president, Gyan Sthal Mandir Sabha, Mr Sunil Raj Khullar, Mr Parshottam Vohra, Mr Ramesh Gumber, Mr Chaman Lal Kapur, Mr C. and Mr Raj Kumar Jindal, Mr Chander Bhalla and Mr Naresh Goyal. |
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Mystery
over missing child Ludhiana, July 13 Madan Lal, an accountant with Nagesh Hosiery, and his wife along with their son were strolling outside their house when a car hit them from behind and sped away. Madan Lal and his wife were thrown at a distance. The woman escaped with minor injuries. She called other relatives who took the injured and unconscious man to CMC Hospital. However, despite frantic search, they could not find the child. Salem Tabri police sources said it did not seem that the child was kidnapped as the family was financially weak. There was no personal enmity also. The police said it seems that someone found the injured child and admitted him to some hospital or he was taken away by some one. The district police failed to find any clue about the child even after several hours of search.
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Fountain
opposed Ludhiana, July 13 In a press release here today, Mr Raj Kumar Khaira, president of the club, said that the club had been holding the annual feature every year since 1972 and the present move to construct a fountain at an estimated cost of Rs 5.50 lakh was a deliberate attempt to stop the same. He said that a fountain which had been built in Kamla Park some years ago had been out of order for the past several years. There were other fountains in the area which were not functioning for the past many years, he added. Mr Khaira urged the Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, that the civic body should ensure first that these non-functioning fountains worked again before going ahead with the construction of the proposed fountain. |
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Guru Purnima celebrated Ludhiana, July 13
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Man selling spurious kerosene held Ludhiana, July 13 Fraud alleged:
Hit-and-run case:
The Division No 8 police yesterday registered a case under Sections 279, 337 and 338 of the IPC on the statement of Mr Iqbal Singh, a resident of New Deep Nagar, against Akashdeep, a resident of Chander Nagar. The complainant had alleged that the accused, while driving a three-wheeler, had caused an accident in front of the CMO Office as a result of which he and co-passengers Usha Rani, Ravinder Kumari and Babu Ram were injured. The accused was arrested and released on bail, said the police. The division No 2 police yesterday registered a case under Sections 279, 337,338 and 427 of the IPC on the statement of Mr Raj Kumar, a resident of Harcharan Nagar, against Chander Lal, a resident of a village near Almora now living near Military Camp, Dholewal. The complainant had alleged that while he was going on his cycle near the Dholewal Chowk, the accused, who was driving a military jeep hit him and injured him . His cycle was also damaged. No arrest has been made so far. The Division No 4 police yesterday arrested Bhajan Lal, a resident of Kohar Pur village falling under the Anandpur Sahib police station and booked him on the charge of overspeeding under Section 279 of the IPC. The police said the accused was driving his scooter (PB 10-N 2520) beyond the permissible speed limit. The accused was released on bail. Beaten up:
The Haibowal police yesterday registered a case under Sections 323,341 and 506 of the IPC on the statement of Mr Rahul, a resident of Chander Nagar in Haibowal, against Prince, Vikas and Mohit. The complainant had alleged that the accused had intercepted him on the road on the afternoon of July 5 , beaten him up and also threatened him. No arrest has been made so far. Burglar held:
Held for
quarrelling:
Held for jamming traffic:
The Sahnewal police yesterday arrested Dharam Singh, a resident of Govrani village falling under the Mehta police station in Hoshiarpur district and booked him under Section 283 of the IPC. The police said the accused had parked his truck on the road and jammed the traffic. The accused was later released on bail.
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Booked
on forgery charge Ludhiana, July 13 According to the FIR, Davinder Singh has alleged that the accused was a driver employed in his factory. He managed to make duplicate copies of bill receipts and collected large amount from the consumers.
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‘Spicy’ laser show Ludhiana, July 13 Speaking on the occasion, Mr Swarn Bajaj, general manager, marketing, Spice Telecom said, “We are pleased to bring, for the first time in Punjab, an innovative laser show for all Ludhianvis. Innovation and creativity have always been the hallmark of Spice. The theme of the show was to promote our achievement of having the largest number of roaming tie ups, spreading all across India and over 155 countries.” The glittering laser beams, foot-tapping music and the unique idea added 'spice' to the evening of all the 'Ludhianvis' drawing rich applause from all the audience present. |
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