EDUCATION

Educational institutions plagued by lack of 
parking space 
Tribune News Service

Faridabad, September 12
Absence of proper parking lots outside schools and educational institutions in the town has led to a near mess, which has become a common problem for both the visitors and students. About 72 public and private schools have been operating in the residential sectors, developed by the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA). Despite the fact that majority of these schools have a land up to 2.5 acres (plot area), hardly any of the school has provided a parking area for the staff, students and visitors inside its premises. As a result, the green belt outside these schools have been occupied and used as parking area, which is allegedly illegal as per noms of HUDA.

With shortages of parking space and lack of safety outside the school premises, incidents of thefts of petrol and vehicles itself have surfaced in schools.

In Sector-14 here, students number as many as 6,000, besides hundreds of staff, but it has limited parking space. Even the staff members have to park their vehicles on the road, which leads to chaos and inconvenience to people moving in the area.

While the school buses are parked outside, the visitors have to park their vehicles in nearby lanes and outside the houses located nearby. The problem becomes acute in the morning and noon, when there is a heavy rush of vehicles in the area and leads to major traffic jam.

The situation is similar outside the schools in the town, when students and staff are seen rushing to occupy the available space. Recently, a motorcycle belonging to a student was stolen while parked outside a school in the same Sector. It is reported that many of the students who bring mobikes, park in the houses nearby for want of proper safety.

Teachers to protest transfer of appointment powers
Our Correspondent

Sonepat, September 12
The Haryana Rajkiya Adhyapak Sangh has decided to protest against the government move to transfer the powers of appointment of the primary schoolteachers to Zila Parishad.

In the first phase of their agitation, the teachers will observe chain hunger strike, sit on dharna in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office and hand over a memorandum of their demands to the DC.

Giving details of the stir, general secretary Jagdish Rathi and treasurer Balraj Dahiya of the district unit of the sangh today said that the hunger strike would begin on September 15. Every day five teachers will sit on dharna. And for maximum participation of the teachers, they have been visiting the schools for the last many days.

They pointed out that if the power of appointment of the primary schoolteachers by the Zila Parishad was not withdrawn, it would encourage nepotism and politicise the appointments.

Moreover, the appointment would be influenced by the vested interests, biased motive and political affiliations, they remarked.

Other demands in the memorandum will include formation of the policy of rationalisation with the consent of the sangh; regularisation of the ad hoc teachers; stop taking unacademic work from the teachers; removal of pay anomalies; reintroduction of the examination system of the drawing and physical education subjects; giving pay scale of Rs 75-12,000 to the headmasters of the high schools and lecturers of the senior secondary schools and issuing promotion list twice a year.

They pointed out that these had been the longstanding demands of the sangh and on a number of occasions, the Chief Minister had also announced to consider their demands sympathetically.

Meerut varsity to rein in western couture
Our Correspondent

Meerut, September 12
At a time when the rising hemline and plunging neckline are becoming the order of the day; when the ‘guard of honour’ for girls, the traditional ‘dupatta’, starts shrinking from the shoulders; when the traditional dress like salwar kameez is worn on some festivals only; when the western dresses like jeans, tops and shirts have become ‘de rigueur’, in such a crucial time, Chaudhry Charan Singh University, Meerut has vowed to bring the Indian dresses and culture back to the university colleges.

It has decided to start a campaign to save the old traditional values.

It has constituted a “Literary and Cultural Council” on the university campus and directed its affiliated colleges to immediately constitute such a body to instil Indian ethos in their students.

A university ‘Kulgeet’ (song of university) is also being penned, and it will be must for every student to remember and sing it.

The university has also directed all its colleges to prepare its flags and keep them ready by October 30.

COURTS

Ghani Khan asked to file revised petition
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, September 12
The Delhi High Court on Friday refused to stay its earlier order dismissing a plea by former Union minister Ghani Khan Chaudhary. The veteran Congressman had sought from the court quashing of the letter written by civic authorities, who demanded the payment of Rs 22 lakh as electricity and water charges for his official residence in NCT of Delhi.

A Division Bench, comprising Chief Justice BC Patel and Justice AK Sikri, refused to interfere with the single judge’s July 13 order and asked the petitioner to first rectify some technical defects in the petition pointed out by the court, before it could hear his petition challenging the earlier order.

In his appeal, Chaudhary sought to restrain the authorities from disconnecting electricity and water to the residence while the matter was being heard in court.

Chaudhary had disputed and not accepted the meter readings and the billing thereof.