HEALTH

Stress propelling students to anti-depressants
Monica Sharma

Chandigarh, January 16
Nausea, cramps in stomach, insomnia, headache, nervousness, irritability and inability to concentrate — if your child is suffering from any of these symptoms before examinations, he is under stress. As per a study conducted by Delhi-based psychologists, 10 to 15 per cent students all over the country are suffering from anxiety and mental health problems due to the fear of examinations. Chandigarh is no exception.

In fact, the students, ignorant about the after-effects, are consuming stress-busters and anti-depressants drugs, besides performance- enhancing drugs that promise to improve memory.

The pills are prescribed to patients suffering from brain injury for modulating neurotransmission. Most of such drugs cannot be purchased without prescription.

According to an estimate, at least six to seven students visit chemists in the city daily in connection with the drugs after reading about them in newspapers and magazines. Some are introduced to the pills by seniors and friends.

“As the drugs are mostly consumed without the knowledge of parents, the students do not consult doctors regarding the dosage,” says a Sector 35-based private practitioner, adding that “they mostly depend upon their instincts or advice given by seniors before consuming the tablets.”

The students do not realise the “kind of havoc they are playing with their lives,” says a senior doctor with the PGI. “The drugs contain steroids and can make you feel relaxed for some time but can result in hormonal imbalance. In some cases, the pills can also lead to infertility,” he adds.

The intake of drugs is no solution, says Dr J. M. Jerath, Professor in Panjab University's Department of Psychology. Counselling in schools can go a long way in tackling the problem, he says. “The students should be told how to approach the examinations,” he says, adding that the parents should realise that their behaviour plays a vital role. High expectations result in pressure on children.

The system also has to change. “Evaluation of the students should be done throughout the year after taking their day-to-day performance into consideration. Only 30 per cent weightage should be given to examinations at the end of the year,” he maintains.

Also, comparison between two individuals should be avoided at all costs as every one is different. “They should just let kids be kids and handle the situation with guidance, not scorn,” says Mr Rakesh Sachdeva, Principal of DAV Model School (Sector 15).

‘Uninteresting job can cause heart attack’
Tribune News Service

Mohali, January 16
A person stands higher risk of a heart attack if he is employed in a field other than of his interest, stated Mr Hemant Goswami while conducting a workshop on ‘Way to your dream job’ here yesterday.

The workshop was organised by the Burning Brain Society, in association with the State Bank of India, at the Gian Jyoti Institute of Management. Mr Goswami quoted a medical study to emphasise the fact that that higher risk of coronary heart disease might not come from a fast and busy life schedule, but could be caused when a person felt that he was being forced to work against his liking.

He said the less control a person had over his life, the more the chances were of a coronary disease. He added that persons who loved their work derived pleasure out of it. He further said persons were happy to work for longer hours without much stress or tension. He explained that working in the field of interest triggered off the pleasure centres in the brain, which secreted salubrious hormones, enzymes and chemicals. He said this contributed to maintaining good health as it was like going on holidays. Mr Goswami said this was the reason that top achievers were mostly healthy persons with a pleasant disposition despite working for long hours. Interacting with students, he stressed that one must search for employment in the field for which one had innate aptitude and interest. He added that persons who got employed in their field of interest proved much more successful, lived longer and stood a better chance of reaching the top. The students were guided on preparing their bio-data according to the needs of today’s competitive world. Mr Goswami also briefed the students about the importance of non-verbal language and made them familiar to the ways of leaving a positive impression through body language.

SPORTS

Chandigarh beat Maharashtra in baseball
Our Sports Reporter

Chandigarh, January 16
Chandigarh moved up in both girls and boys sections on the second day of the 15th Junior National Baseball Championship played at the Panjab University grounds here today.

In the matches played today, Chandigarh beat Maharashtra 14-0, Punjab defeated Chhatisgarh 8-3, Karnataka beat Jharkhand 8-4, Delhi beat Orissa 8-0 and Himachal Pradesh beat Uttar Pradesh 11-10.

In the boys section, Chandigarh trounced Haryana 8-0, Manipur beat Pondicherry 9-1, Rajasthan beat Uttar Pradesh 4-2, Karnataka defeated Orissa 7-5. In other matches of the day, Madhya Pradesh beat HP 9-0, Maharashtra beat Chhatisgarh 10-9, Delhi drew with Punjab and AP drew with Karnataka. In the last match of the boys section, Orissa and Manipur scored wins over Jharkhand and Haryana 8-0 and 9-4, respectively.

Badminton team

As many as 16 boys and 12 girls have been selected for the UT Junior State Ball Badminton team coaching camp beginning at the Government Model High school, Sector 36, tomorrow.

The team are: boys — Sarvan Singh, Naresh, Chetan, Vivek, Shiv Kumar, Ankit, Ashish, Naveen, Muinish, Abhineet, Pavesh, Manmeet, Gurinder, Neeraj, Pardeep and Dheeraj, and girls — Roma Pamey, Poonam, Pooja, Jagdeep, Monu, Shikha, Santosh, Promila, Nisha, Seema, Neha and Kanchan.

Rabiya, Smiley move ahead
Our Sports Reporter

Chandigarh, January 16
Digvijay and Karan Bhai surged ahead in the under-12 boys’ section on the opening day of the sub-junior and junior lawn tennis tournament at the Lake Club tennis courts, Sector 6, here today. In the girls’ section, Krishma and Rabiya Gill won their matches with ease. In the under-16 section, Ekroop and Smiley Garg moved ahead.

Results: boys: under-12: second round: Digvijay b Sampuran Singh 5-0, Bikramjeet b Jatinder Singh 5-0, Devin b Amrit Pal Singh 5-3, Jaivardhan Gupta b Amit Raina 5-0, Angad Chahal b Keshav 5-2, Gurinder Singh b Nisank Kumar 5-0, Samin Bhargav b Harpreet Singh 5-1, Uday Singh Mann b Deepak Garg 5-4(9), Abhinav Sharma b Shashank Sharma 5-4(9), Garry Amor b Anmol Singh Bains 5-2, Sonam b Ravisher Singh 5-0, Nikhil Kalra walkover Akshat Bhatia, Jivtesh Kang b Karan Thukral 5-0, Amit Chauhan b Harmeet Singh 5-0, Fateh Singh walkover Shivam Bali, Karan Bhai b Biplav Jhinjan 5-2; under-16: Deepinder Singh b Ishan Handa 5-0, Shiv Tandon b Hari Amor 5-2, Digvijay Singh b Prabhjot Singh 5-1, Navdeep Uppal b Pragin Mohan 5-1, Amber Shante b Ravneet Saini 5-1, Gurinder Singh b Amrinder Singh 5-3, Sidharth b Baidwan b Uplaksh 5-0, Mandeep Yadav b Chetanya Verma 5-0, Abhiraj b Narinder Singh 5-0, Gaurav Inder Toor b Ishan Gupta 5-0, Akshit Joshi b Arvinder Aulakh 5-2, Mandeep Gill b Harvinder Singh 5-0, Ashwini Kumar b Sahil Singla 5-2, Ishan Thukral b Manish 5-0, Parvesh Kumar b Harsimran Kohli 5-0, Akshav Chopra b Akash Bansal 5-0; girls: under-12: first round: Krishma b Joyna 5-1, Rabiya Gill b Divya 5-0, Prabh Amrit b Amandeep 5-0, Jaanesh b Vibha Sharma 5-0; under-16: first round: Saroo Trikha b Elisha Thapar 5-0, Jaanesh walkover Ashna, Neha Kumar walkover Tripti, Ekroop b Isha Jain 5-2, Divya Rangre b Ayushi Walia 5-0, Smiley Garg b Parul 5-0.

Satluj Public School win
Our Sports Reporter

Chandigarh, January 16
Satluj Public School, Sector 4, Panchkula, got the better of DAV Senior Secondary School, Sector 8, by four wickets in the last league match in group D of ESNP Cricket Cup here today. Satluj school won the toss and elected to bowl. DAV school scored 134 in 20 overs. Sumit scored 45 runs while Ashutosh Walia and Tejwinder Singh claimed three and two wickets, respectively.

In reply, Satluj school achieved the target off the last ball of the 20th over. Tejwinder Gill scored 43 off 33 deliveries and Shiva Mehta scored 27. In the last over, Satluj school needed 14 runs. Attar Singh Multani hit boundaries off the last two deliveries to snatch victory. Tejwinder was the man of the match.

Brief scores: DAV school 134 for nine in 20 overs (Sumit 45, Tejwinder 2 for 22, Ashutosh 3 for 30); Satluj school 136 for six in 20 overs (Tejwinder 43, Shiva 27, Saurabh 2 for 19).

Under-17 cricket

Gem Public School continued their winning spree in the under-17 PCA Parle Cup Cricket Tournament at the MCA grounds, Mohali. They beat Sant Ishwar Singh School, Mohali, by 58 runs.

Brief scores: Gem Public School: 207 all out in 35 overs (Hemant Kumar 75, Gurvinder Singh 18, Sachin Sohal 10, Manpreet 4 for 39); Sant Ishwar Singh School: 149 all out in 26 overs (Manpreet Singh 49, Vivek 11, Harmanbir Singh 5 for 26, Hemant Kumar 3 for 21).

ADMINISTRATION

PUDA evicts tailor from booth
Tribune News Service

Mohali, January 16
In an act of official high-handedness, a team of the Punjab Urban Planning and Development Authority (PUDA) Enforcement Wing today threw out a tailor from his rented booth in the Phase 1 market here for a fault on the part of the shop’s owner who resided in Amritsar.

The tailor was taken by surprise when the PUDA team landed at his shop in the afternoon and without any notice or warning or grace period asked him to take out all his goods from inside the shop. Within an hour the booth was emptied and locked by the PUDA team.

The head of the team, Mr Sukhpal Singh, Junior Engineer, said that the tailor had been asked to vacate the premises as the owner of the booth had not responded to any of the notices given to him for the violations in building bylaws done in the booth.

The owner, Mr Pratap Singh, had allegedly constructed a basement under the booth and despite having constructed the booth 13 years ago, PUDA chose to take action against him today. “The owner had appealed to the head office but the appeal was rejected and now we have orders to take possession of this booth which we have done,” said Mr Sukhpal Singh.The tailor, Mr Iqbal Singh, who along with his son had been working in the booth for the past 10 years, was in a state of shock. “We should have been given some time to make an alternative arrangement. All notices were being sent to the owner’s relative and we were not told anything,” he said. The Phase I Booth Market Association president, Mr Balbir Singh Suri, said that they would be meeting the higher authorities in PUDA and complain against the high-handedness of thier team.