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Chinese team cancels visit, disappoints education board Mohali, January 12 The board officials kept waiting for their foreign guests last evening and came to know of the postponement of the visit only after a telephone call was made to China early morning today. Thereafter, all bookings, including that of the stay of the delegates at Hotel Mountview in Chandigarh, were cancelled by the board authorities. A minute-to-minute programme had been chalked out in connection with the seven-day visit of the Chinese delegation which was to be shown different schools in Punjab. A meeting of the delegation had been planned for the exchange of views in order to bring about improvement in the education system. Mrs Veena Dada, Nodal Officer for the educational cooperation programme, said on January 1 a message was received that the delegation was coming on January 11. For the past two days she kept waiting for a fax message from the Project Manager, Ms Shi Yunyu, about the programme in detail and the time of the flight. Since no such information had been received at the board office she kept trying to contact the Project Manager on the telephone, but could not succeed. However, when the Nodal Officer contacted the Project Manager early this morning, the former was told that the visit had been postponed due to some unavoidable reasons. She was told that a fax message had been sent in this regard to the board office on January 7. However, the board received a fax message about the postponement of the visit only after a talk on the telephone with the Project Manager today. Ms Dada said apart from cancelling the booking at the hotel, she had to cancel the booking for a bus which had been hired for showing the foreign guests various schools in Mohali, Chandigarh, Phagwara, Amritsar, Jalandhar and Patiala, besides for sight seeing. The schools concerned had also to be intimated about the postponement of the visit. She said the purpose of the visit of the Chinese delegation was to understand the education system, have a general idea of the basic education in Punjab and probe the possible fields in which cooperation between schools in Jiangsu and Punjab could be developed. While commenting on the postponement of the visit of the delegation, Dr Kehar Singh, Chairman of the board, said it had definitely affected the enthusiasm of the board. He said the delegates had now proposed to come on February 17, but it would have to be seen whether the date suited the board or not because the middle class examinations were conducted around that period. The Chinese delegation had planned to visit Punjab after the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Punjab team and the authorities of the JPDE in China on September 21 last year. |
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National Youth Day celebrations Chandigarh, January 12 A panel discussion on the role of youth in national integration was oragnised at the Dev Samaj College of Education, Sector 36. The NSS programme officers, Dr Agnese Dhillon and Dr Manjula Kataraia, said the youth were the backbone of society. The Youth Club of the GCG, Sector 42, celebrated National Youth Day. About 200 students participated in the celebrations. At the Government College of Education, Sector 20, Mrs Surinder Kaur Tangri, Principal, called upon the students to follow the path of values and social justice. National Youth Day was celebrated in the GCM, Sector 11, by holding a talk on the life and teachings of Swami Vivekananda. Various competitions on the life and teachings of Swami Vivekanand marked the celebrations of National Youth Day at the GGDSD College, Sector 32. An essay-writing competition was held on the teachings of the great thinker and reformer. At the Sector 46 Government College, a talk on ''Philosophy of Swami Vivekananda — its relevance for youth'' was organised. Mrs Geeta Mohan, Principal, welcomed the chief guest, Swami Brameshananda. |
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DAV School donates 1.10 lakh to HelpAge Chandigarh, January 12 Olympiad Kailash Bahl DAV Centenary Public School, Sector 7, would be holding the National Informatics Olympiad first stage examination on January 31 from 10.30 am to 1.30 pm.
Quiz contest A quiz contest was organised by the Sarvhitkari Educational Society at Ravinder Joshi Sarvhitkari School, Dhanas, here today. As many as 11 teams of teachers of various branches of Sarvhitkari schools of Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh participated. The team of Sarvhitkari School, Maloya, bagged the first prize and the second prize was shared by Sharda Sarvkitkari School, Sector 40-D, and Shaheed Neerja Bhanot Sarvhitkari Vidya Mandi, Sector 15. The third prize was won by Sarvhitkari Vidya Mandir, Bijanpur. |
Notice of motion to Panchkula SP Chandigarh, January 12 In his petition against the state of Punjab and Haryana, besides other respondents, Nikhil had also sought provision of security cover for his sister. Claiming that their lives and liberty were in danger, he had asserted that the Chandigarh police had recently caught a gang planning to kidnap him. Giving details, he had asserted that investigations had revealed that a conspiracy had been hatched to kidnap the petitioner because of the general impression that his father had a lot of money. The petitioner had added that his father was in Model Jail at Burail due to inability to repay money invested by persons in Golden Forests.
Sukhna case
Taking up save the lake case, a Division Bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, headed by Chief Justice Mr Justice B.K. Roy, today asked the states of Punjab and Haryana, besides the union territory of Chandigarh, to give details of the steps being taken to remove silt. The case will now come up for further hearing on January 19. City resident Dr G.S. Dhillon had earlier claimed that he was associated with Sukhna Lake since its inception in 1958. Taking a serious view of his letter regarding the lake, the high court had directed its handing over to the UT counsel. In a related matter, a Naya Gaon resident had earlier sought directions for restraining the states of Haryana and Punjab, besides the union territory of Chandigarh, from investigating public funds for purpose other than agriculture and afforestation. The petitioner — Dr B. Singh — had added that urbanisation by the state of Haryana was a scandal just like the Taj heritage project. The Prime Minister, he further claimed, had restrained urbanisation of the area. The UT Administration had earlier informed a Division Bench that there was no threat to Sukhna Lake or the residents, following which the save Sukhna petition was dismissed. The petitioner had asserted that the catchment area of the lake was in fact a forest area and an attempt was being made by the Haryana Government to have a lake adjacent to Sukhna Lake by retaining rain water or water from the rivulets ending into the lake. |
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Report on suicide by cop submitted Panchkula, January 12 According to sources, the report would be submitted to the Punjab and Haryana High Court, where the case would come up for hearing tomorrow. The wife of the deceased had filed an appeal in the court demanding that those responsible for abetting her husband to commit suicide be brought to book. The cop had shot himself with a 9 mm pistol at Sector 5 Police Station on the night of October 10 last year. In his suicide note, the deceased had accused senior police officers,including the DGP, Mr M.S.Malik, for harassing him by framing him in false cases. In the suicide note, he had alleged that he was taking the extreme step on account of the harassment meted out to him by the DGP, the AIG, Welfare, Mr M.S.Malik, a senior police officer, Mr Navdeep Singh Virk, who is currently on deputation with the Union Government, the DSP, Mr Jagwant Lamba, the stenographer to the Yamunanagar SP, Mr Mehar Singh, a Head Constable, Mr Raj Pal,posted at Ambala, and a property dealer, Mr Hardeep Singh Jaggi.
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Arrest warrants against 4 cops Panchkula, January 12 According to information, the police had moved an application before the court praying that the arrest warrants be issued against the four accused, Om Prakash and Brijinder Singh (both SIs), and Sukha and Ajit Singh (constables). The accused have been evading investigations. The police had already booked the accused.
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Freak out... carefully First of all, do not wear inflammable stuff. “Remember you will be playing around the fire all the time,” says fashion designer Ramandeep Sandhu. “Avoid nylon and silk stuff please. Also take care of that shawl wrapped around your shoulders. Just be careful it is nowhere near the fire”. Do not drink if you have been invited to a party and have to drive back home. The Chandigarh police has decided to come down heavily on drunken drivers on January 13. Senior police officials confirm that the personnel are setting up barriers all over the city for nabbing them. As most of the parties are outdoors, do not forget to wear something warm over that nice alluring dress you wish to don for setting the cool evening on fire. You can go in for a good faux leather jacket. “Faux leather jackets are cool in the winters of 2004,” says fashion designer Nidhi Mehra. “They are convenient also. Unlike pullovers, you can take easily them off as soon as you feel the heat. After the dance around the blaze is over, you can wear the stuff again without hassles”. She, however, warns: “You should never ever wear a faux leather jacket over salwar-kameez. “The combination is just not right,” Nidhi asserts. Giving details, she adds, “You can attend a Lohri bash wearing salwar-kameez. In fact real good stuff is on display in the garment houses spread all over the city. You can buy it for the big evening by pulling out between Rs 2,000 and Rs 5,000 from your handbag. But make sure that you wrap yourself up nicely and properly in an embroidered jacket instead”. |
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Ethos, a watch showroom in the city, has opened a new shop at Fun Republic. The new outlet at the shopping mall in Mani Majra has been opened as the first anniversary celebrations of its store in Sector 8. Maintaining its contemporary and swanky interiors, a colourful look has been granted to Ethos-2. Though the showroom is smaller in size than the Sector 8 showroom, it has the entire range of 10 international brands on display. Other than housing 10 international watch brands, a new section of Swarovski crystal jewellery has been displayed. Since this outlet will have more of young and casual buyers, the display of premium brands like Omega and Longines have not been included. However, Timex, Espirit, Swatch, Fossil, Titan and Pierre Cardin, which range between Rs 1,500 and Rs 20,000, have been displayed here, informs Mr Rakesh Mohunta, Head of Operations, Ethos. TNS |
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Residents seem to be going back to their roots. The astounding success of the Gram Shree Mela at Panchkula, where rural artisans from all over the country had displayed their wares, suggests the yearning for traditional handicrafts. The fair, which opened to a good response on January 6 at the HUDA Grounds in Sector 5, registered sales worth Rs 12 lakh till yesterday. Says Mr Vijay Kumar, member convener, Council for Advancement of People’s Action and Rural Technology (CAPART), which organised the fair, “ Our objective of bringing rural producers in direct contact with the urban consumers has been quite successful. On an average, we have registered sales worth Rs 2 lakh a day.” In this fair, small-scale producers from 10 states had come together to sell their rustic wares. The most frequented of all the stalls was the one put up by weavers from Jammu and Kashmir, who had a complete sellout of their exquisite shawls, besides the cane and bamboo handicrafts of Tripura and jute and handloom work from Uttarnchal. Leather and food processing products from Himachal Pradesh also attracted a large crowd, and so did the wood inlay work furniture by artisans from Hoshiarpur. Artists from Bihar had brought in a range of tussar silk products, exquisite tribal jewellery and other home accessories. The Benares silk handbags, cushion covers, silk panels, and dress material, was also quite popular. The exhibition, which has been organised with the aim of financially empowering the economically depressed sections, is the fourth to have been successfully completed this year. Earlier the exhibition was held at Udhampur, Kilong and Gurgaon. CAPART officials say that this will also be held at Patiala, Karnal and Kathua in the next two months.
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Rare surgery on nose stone at Mohali A rare case of rhinolith (nose stone) was operated upon under general anaesthesia by a Mohali-based doctor today. Dr Pankaj Arora, an ENT specialist, today claimed to have cured a 30-year-old male patient of recurrent episodes of cold and nasal bleeding for the past 20 years by removing an abnormally large-sized stone from the left part of his nose. Giving details of the operation, Dr Arora said the patient, Harinder Singh, was being treated at his village by general practitioners, but his condition had not improved. “On endoscopic examination we found a large calcified mass on the left side of his nose, which was pushing the nasal septum to other side. The size of the stone was very large, approximately 4.5 cm by 3 cm’’ said Dr Arora. Under general anaesthesia, the stone was removed after breaking it into pieces with the major part of it taken out through the mouth. Listing the various causes of rhinolith, Dr Arora said, “Any foreign body in the nose, if neglected, can cause collection of secretions around it. Calcium and magnesium salts get deposited over it and then it grows with the size of nasal cavity, which causes nasal blockage, pain in the nose and recurrent sinusitis.” TNS |
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Still a child at heart
The child in him has always got the better of him. All of Soumitra Ranade’s films have revolved around the fantasies of a child, be it “Naseem” and “Kabhie Haan Kabhie Naa”, for which he had scripted the storyline, or more recently, the hugely successful children’s movie ‘Jajantaram Mamantaram’, which was directed by him. In town as a judge for the “24 fps Visual Effects Awards,” being organised by the Maya Academy of Advanced Cinematics (MAAC), this Bollywood director says that he means when he says he wants to be different. And going by his past record, Ranade has proved that he makes movies with a difference. From being an advertisement agency executive to becoming a successful and much-in-demand director, Ranade has come a long way. His work has been profiled and appreciated in numerous film festivals around the world. Beginning his career as a movie maker by making documentary films for DD-3 channel, his first movie was a Marathi film “Sapate Ne Karache Mool” — based on a Marathi play of the same name. It was an experimental film having no big star cast and thus never found any takers. “It could never be released. But I never gave up and wrote the script for “Kabhi Haan Kabhie Naa”, — which was quite off the beaten track. Later, I assisted Syed Mirza and Aziz Mirza in directing “Naseem” — a film based on the life of a Muslim girl,” he says. The director says cinegoers have got sick of the cliched storyline, which proves why experimental movies like ‘Jism’, ‘Makdee’, ‘Khawaish’ and ‘Bhoot’ did well at the box office, while mushy romances like ‘Kal Ho Naa Ho’, did well only because of the star cast. Talking about his last movie, ‘Jajantaram Mamantaram’, which was a visual effects’ treat for cinegoers, he says he came up with the idea of creating a superhero character for Indian kids, who had per force been addicted to Superman and Batman. “Considering that approximately 800 films are made each year, and not a single film is made for children, I decided to go ahead and make a visual effects’ children’s movie” he adds. “The film did extremely well not only in metros and other urban centres, but also on foreign shores and the interior regions of the country. Loosely based on the travails of Gulliver and Bakasur, the demon in Mahabharata, the films made on a Rs 8-crore budget, had a worldwide release and did good business in the UK and Japan, which was a huge leap,” he adds. Talking about his future projects, Ranade informs that he is doing a film on a teenage love affair, where a child matures as a man as the story progresses. He is also making a thriller, which will be strictly for adults. “Being an iconoclastic, how can I stick to making films from a child’s perspective alone”, he adds. |
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It’s my life In my view, Chandigarh is a heaven for the youth. Sometimes I express my gratitude to my parents for their judicious decision taken a few years back to shift to Chandigarh from the rural belt of Punjab. I began my student career with Yadavindra Public School, Mohali, while we stayed in Sector 15, Chandigarh. The choosing of this lively sector also modified our lives and me and my elder brother Simrandeep always had a good time living in this sector. After passing out from YPS last year, I joined Paragon Public School, Mohali. Now we have shifted to Sector 39. I am fond of football since it involves action and can be regarded as a fantastic sport. Though in India, this sport is still not considered a priority sport, but it is very popular among children. Only recently, I attended the national school football camp for the Asian school football meet. I and my elder brother who had taken part in the international school cricket meet two years back were happy to be staying in this non-polluting city of India. As told to Arvind Katyal |
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You have already picked up logs for lighting the bonfire. You have also posted invites to friends and relatives for celebrating Lohri at your residence. Popcorns, groundnuts and other winter delicacies too have been ordered. The reason behind your anxiety is not hard to see. It is your first Lohri after marriage. Or your son’s first one after birth. Little wonder, you wish to look perfect. But some precautions are necessary. Here is a list just for you.