 |
|
|
|
|
||||
|
Two lawyers arrested for assaulting tenant Chandigarh, March 21 Dharminder, a tenant of Vijay Sharma, an advocate, sustained injuries in the head and fractured his arm in the attack. According to police sources, Vijay Sharma, Shiv Kumar another advocate, Rajinder a record keeper in a local court, and Aman, brother-in-law of a Sub-Inspector of the Chandigarh Police, allegedly beat up Dharminder with rods last night. They were trying to Dharminder was taken to the Sector 16 General Hospital, the police said. While Vijay Sharma, Shiv Kumar and Rajinder Singh were arrested, the police was on hunt for Aman. According to police sources, a week ago, Rajinder took on rent a room in Vijay Sharma’s house. Dharminder had already living in a separate room in the house for more than a year. Rajinder asked Vijay Sharma to give him the one-room set occupied by Dharminder. When Vijay Sharma asked Dharminder to vacate the room, he reportedly refused to do so following which the four allegedly attacked him last night. |
|
60 feet of collapsed
tunnel dug up Chandigarh, March 21 Experts of the Engineering Department and the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) have detected a nearly 60-foot length of the second tunnel. An inquiry ordered by the Chandigarh Administration and conducted by an IAS officer Gyanesh Bharati had also dismissed the presence of this tunnel. Sources told Chandigarh Tribune the second tunnel, which was earlier considered only 16-foot-long to link the Hospital barrack to the one in which Hawara, Paramjit Singh Bheora and Jagtar Singh Tara were lodged, was to open towards the right side of the watch tower. The second tunnel was to open at the same watch tower but on its right side. The 94-foot-long tunnel that took Jagtar Singh Hawara to “safety” opened towards the left side of the watch tower. The entry into the tunnel was from a toilet in the Hospital Barrack (known as Gurdwara Barrack). The experts are themselves digging up this tunnel to preserve the clues as any raw handling of this one would weaken the case of the police against the jail authorities. The experts, however, presume the second tunnel could turn out to be longer than the existing one as around the 60-feet length was only being considered half way. This tunnel may provide a clue to a mechanised tool that the escaped prisoners might have acquired to dig the tunnels. The Hospital Barrack where Hawara was earlier lodged is just parallel to the one from where Hawara and others escaped. The second tunnel is at least six-foot deep from the road level at one point, an expert said but the depth of the dug up part had not yet been determined, the sources said. The experts engaged in the investigation said it was now veering round to the view that the 94-feet-longtunnel had been dug up largely with a machine, which has not been found. The experts said examination of the other tunnel from the hospital barrack revealed that this tunnel was also possibly dug up with a machine. The tunnel from the Hospital Barrack seemed to have caved-in in the year 2002 due to rain. An expert revealed the
presence of water in the dug part of the tunnel also indicated that water might have been poured in this tunnel later to make it cave in. This is how the existence of this tunnel might have been hushed up. The sources said the design of the tunnel is similar to the one through which they escaped to “safety.” Hawara might have slipped away from the country and sitting quietly in some country. The Union Minister of State for Home, Mr I.D. Swamy, had said that the escaped militants were likely to be very much in the country. The experts have also found out that a stool might have been provided to Hawara and others to help them in their digging operation. The recovery of the stool is likely to give the police fresh clues. The sources said that only one part of the tunnel from the Hospital Barrack had been covered under a concrete layer. There were reports that this tunnel had allegedly been hidden by the authorities under a concrete layer.
|
|
World Forestry Day Chandigarh, March 21 These saplings will be planted by various departments on roadsides, wildlife sanctuary, reserve forest area, parks, green belts, community land, government offices and residential colonies. Besides plantation of saplings, the other highlights of the plan include free distribution of 15,000 saplings (14,000 trees and 1000 shrubs) by the Forest Department through its five nurseries and establishment of herbal gardens in schools, colleges and ayurvedic dispensaries. The focus will also be on the promotion of cycling for better air quality and health. To promote cycling for transportation, the occasion was also taken to honour five people, who have been using cycles for commuting in the city. These include Air Marshal Randhir Singh (retd), Dr R.C. Sobti, Mr K.P.S. Shante, Sun Inspector Mr Ramchander Pannu and Mr Prince, who works as a painter with the voluntary agency Yuvsatta. Talking to The Tribune today, Mr Ishwar Singh, Director, Environment and Deputy Conservator of Forests, Chandigarh informed that before the plantation season began this year, the department would also hold massive plantation drives in schools, colleges, residential colonies, hospitals and other public and private lands, as part of Vana mahotsava celebrations during July. “We will also ensure plantation of tall varieties for better survival,” informed Mr Singh, who organised World Forestry Day celebrations at the Nepli Log Hut in the Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary area this morning. The area was the best place to host the celebrations, home as it is to diverse varieties of flora and fauna. Among the trees, it has
khair, kikar and shisham. Among fauna it features sambhar, cheetal, porcupine, pangolin, peacocks, red jungle fowl, night jar and golden oriole. The celebrations were marked by Adviser to UT Administrator Mr Lalit Sharma planting a sapling of ficus benjamin in the reserve forest area. Also present on the occasion were representatives of various NGOs working for environment conservation and heads of certain educational institutions which have been promoting the concept of conservation through eco clubs. There are about 150 eco clubs in the city. Meanwhile, Mr Ishwar Singh gave the break up of plantation targets for this year. While the Forest Department, UT, will plant 62,430 saplings, MC will plant 10,051 saplings. Horticulture Division of UT Administration has been given the target of 8,415 saplings, while schools and other educational institutions will together plant about 7000 saplings. Resident Welfare Associations and other voluntary agencies will handle the target of 8000 saplings for this year. Among the varieties that will be provided free of cost are
Neem, Jamun, Kachnar, Arjun, Aam , Kusum and Amaltas. Last year, the UT Administration had gone beyond its target of planting 92,800 saplings. The total plantation achieved was 1,24,837 saplings. |
|
Nature at man’s mercy, lament slum
children Chandigarh, March 21 The presentation comprised a play with a profound meaning. Scripted and directed by Devinder, a student of Dev Samaj College, Sector 36, the play featured slum children in diverse roles. It was structured to highlight the helplessness of animals and birds, which are losing their habitat due to the depleting forest cover. Named, “Man menace”, the play hit out at men who are responsible for all kinds of menace like cattle and monkey menace. The children voiced the pain of animals, who long for homes. So there was this unique panchayat of animals and birds, who share their helplessness with the world. First came Sunita, posing as a cow. She lamented upon the cruel nature of man, who uses cattle for milk and then abandons it when it turns unproductive. Then came another girl, who highlighted how pups are advertised for sale. The monkey cries hoarse that it has no home left, courtesy man, who has indiscriminately cut down all trees. The sparrow winds up the play with poignant remarks — “Chin, chin, chin ...in sabse bada mera dukh
hai...tinka tinka jodkar maine apna ghar banaya...par insaan ne apni garaz ke
karan, usko bikher diya...” The play was presented under the aegis of
Yuvsatta, a voluntary agency working for environment conservation in Chandigarh. Among the audience were the Adviser to the UT Administrator Mr Lalit Sharma, the Deputy Conservator of Forests, UT, Mr Ishwar Singh, and other officers, besides representative of NGOs and the public. |
||
|
World Water Day today
“Don’t let the source of your life go down the drain. Store it”, says an advertisement of the Delhi Jal Board. Excessive use and over-pumping of groundwater, coupled with concrete urbanisation, results in depletion of water-table. In Chandigarh, Panchkula and Mohali, the maximum dependence on tubewells has resulted in depletion of water-table at an alarming rate. The water supply of Chandigarh is met from two sources — Bhakra Canal and tubewells. Since the canal water supply is limited, the dependence is more on the tubewells. Around 195 deep tubewells are yielding water for domestic purposes and 35 for irrigation purposes. At present, water is available in most parts of the city at a depth of 50m. In the Mani Majra, railway station, Mauli Jagran and Kala Gram areas, water is available at more than 55m below ground level. However, the water level is rising in southern sectors. In the monsoon, it reaches up to 3m, while in northern sectors it is between 30 and 50m below the ground level. Similarly, in Mohali, Kharar, Ambala cantonment and Dera Bassi also the water table is rising, thus creating the problem of waterlogging. Since water from shallow aquifers is not fit for consumption, the dependence on deeper aquifers for domestic and irrigation purposes has put them under severe stress. Explaining the rationale behind going for rainwater harvesting, the Director of the Chandigarh-based Central Ground Water Board, Mr D.S. Saini, says rising population and urbanisation result in the groundwater sinking to new depths. For artificial recharge, water availability is mainly from two sources, surface runoff and rooftop rainwater. The rooftop rainwater is almost silt free. Since Chandigarh has a number of buildings, houses and shopping complexes having connected rooftops, the rooftop harvesting is more successful. For rainwater harvesting, one needs to set up a special structure. There are a number of artificial recharge structure designs to choose from. The choice depends on the size of the catchment area or the rooftop area, average rainfall in the area and the depth of the aquifer in that area. Each structure aims at collecting rainwater or other run-off, passing it through a filter arrangement and finally making it reach the aquifer. The cost of the structure, which is a bit higher, can be brought down by setting up a joint structure. For setting up the structure, one can take the help of officials of the Central Ground Water Board, Sector 27, Chandigarh. |
||
|
Rock Garden, town planning impress
Pakistanis Chandigarh, March 21 The delegation comprising Major Asghar Hayat Kalyar (retd), Adviser to the Chief Minister, Pakistan, Punjab; Mr Javaid Iqbal Khan Khichi, Provincial Secretary for Forests; and Chaudhary Nazar Hussian Gondal, Provincial Secretary for Education; who reached the city late last night were given a warm welcome by Mr O.P. Narang, a Panchkula based advocate. Mr Narang, who orginally hails from Pakistan, was brought up in Multan but after Partition came to India and settled in Panchkula. Many families that had migrated to India after partition also turned up to meet the delegation. On the first day of their visit to the city, the visiting Pakistanis visited Rose Garden, Rock Garden and Sukhna Lake, besides taking a round of the city. They were much impressed with the town planning of Chandigarh, as well as its open spaces. The delegates admitted that they felt at home in India where ever they went, right from Fatehabad, Ajmer and Jaipur to Fatepur Sikri and Agra. During their visits to these places they found many things in common — the language, culture and lifestyle. While talking to The Tribune, Major Kalyar pointed out that media played a negative role in the entire Indo-Pak episode. He felt that media of both the countries did not provide clear and transparent pictures that would have served to improve the relations. He added that instead of wasting huge money on ammunition like atomic bombs, both the countries should have thought of the basic necessities for the poor and the needy. On the Kashmir issue, Chaudhary Nazar Hussian Gondal said ‘‘No doubt the issue is real but it could be solved by a dialogue between both the countries’’. He opined that such issues should be resolved by the governments after getting public feedback. Expressing concern over terrorism, the Pakistani ministers claimed that the Pak Government had recently launched a massive combat operation to nab the anti-social and criminal elements. Beside this, Pakistan was making the best possible efforts to root out terrorism from the grassroots level. They also hoped similar operation from India to maintain peace, harmony and brotherhood among the citizens of India and Pakistan. Mr Khichi was of the view that both the neighbouring countries were affected by terrorism which had worsened their relations. He claimed that both countries should work out strategies against terrorism and plan for development projects. |
|
BJP not addressing key issues:
Bansal Chandigarh, March 21 Addressing a meeting of the Seva Dal, Mr Bansal said the policies pursued by the government had led to closure of a large number of small-scale units, leading to greater unemployment. The potential of harnessing jobs in the information technology sector have not been explored optimally, he added. Mr Bansal said it was immature to follow the policies of the developed countries blindly without putting them in perspective of the current Indian economy, taking note of drawbacks in different sectors. In the absence of any worthwhile social security system , the government had been unwise in curtailing the rate of interest on savings of retired people. This had adversely affected the economic security of a large section of the population, he stated. Mr Parhlad Yadav, the chief organiser of the All-India Congress Seva Dal, said the practice of the BJP had only been to spread rumours and launch campaigns of misinformation and disinformation. Mr Surinder Bhatia, chairman of the Seva Dal, spoke on the public response to door-to-door contact programme of the party. The rally was followed by a padayatra in Bapu Dham colony. |
|
Bahuguna calls for environment
protection Panchkula, March 21 Addressing a function here on the occasion of the World Forestry Day, Mr Bahuguna said that there was a misconception about forests that they only comprised trees and were useful for the fuel
wood. On the other hand, the forests comprised the trees, bushes, herbs and wildlife, he added. Calling for another green revolution in the plantation sector, Mr Bahuguna said the efficient use of the natural resources was the need of the hour in meeting the ecological needs of the community. Earlier, Mr B.D. Dhalia, Principal Secretary to Chief Minister, said that the forests were the heritage to be passed on the next
generation. Urging the audience to make the environmental preservation as a mass
movement, he said the forest played an important role in conserving diverse plant and animal species. The Commissioner and Secretary of the Forest Department, Mr D.S. Dhesi, highlighted the environmental conservation efforts of the Haryana Government. Mr J.P.L. Srivastava, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, claimed that the tree cover was on the rise in the state as per the latest report of the Survey of India. Earlier, the dignatories planted a sapling at the Red Bishop Tourist Complex here to mark the occasion. It was highlighted that there was a large scope for increasing the tree cover in Haryana. Out of the 3.09 lakh hectares of panchayat land, 1.5 lakh hectares had already been covered, a press note added. |
|
Training syllabus for NCC girl cadets
revamped Chandigarh, March 21 For the first time girl cadets have been sent on attachment training with Infantry battalions. It involves spending about two weeks with the unit at its location and following the same schedule as regular soldiers. This was earlier restricted to boys only. “Additional subjects such as battle drills, map reading, land navigation and obstacle courses have also been introduced,” Deputy Director General, NCC, Brig D.S. Dhillon said. “The training of girl cadets has now become similar to that of boys,” he added. Earlier, girls’ training revolved primarily around communications, first-aid and attachment with hospitals, apart from sports and adventure activities for which they could volunteer. Some aspects of the earlier training syllabus like signalling and health and hygiene studies would continue. In another significant development which would have a direct impact on the strength of girl cadets is that the NCC is going in for “mixed battalions” where unutilised vacancies in boys’ battalions would be filled by enrolling girls. “We have issued orders to this effect,” Brigadier Dhillon said. “The scheme, which will be implemented from the forthcoming academic session, will increase the strength of girl cadets without affecting any increase in the overall sanctioned strength of the NCC,” he added. Some aspects of the training will be carried out jointly, while some training will be conducted separately for boys and girls, NCC officers said. The move would also require enrolling more lady associate NCC officers. These are regular school or college teachers, who are granted commission after stipulated training to oversee NCC activities in their respective institutions. At 1.8 lakh, girls presently comprise just 15 per cent of the NCC strength, with the ratio between boys’ and girls’ units being 41:9. This year itself, the Punjab, Haryana Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh NCC Directorate plans to raise the strength of girl cadets from 12 per cent to 22 per cent, bring it to 23,340 cadets. |
|
Ex-servicemen warn against political
gimmicks Chandigarh, March 21 Pointing out that political parties are luring retired defence personnel to join their respective ex-servicemen’s cells, the All-India Defence Brotherhood, in a statement issued here on Friday said while political leaders were promising the moon, no political party had come forward when the ex-servicemen were struggling to get their demands fulfilled. The statement alleged that the ex-servicemen’s cells in political parties were harming their interests. The only beneficiaries of the cells, the statement alleged, were a few officers-bearers. Urging the defence community not to get tricked by political gimmicks, the brotherhood pleaded with the defence community to provide support only to those candidates who would espouse the cause of the service community. |
|
Implement Act on undertrials effectively, says NHRC Chandigarh, March 21 Addressing a gathering of superintendents and deputy superintendents of Punjab jails, NHRC’s special rapporteur Chaman Lal said effective implementation of the Act could result in the release of 25 per cent undertrials on probation. He was also in favour of holding lok adalats for the purpose. The workshop was organised by the Institute of Correctional Administration (ICA). It was jointly sponsored by the NHRC and the Punjab Prisons Department. In his address, Punjab’s Director-General of Prisons A.P. Bhatnagar said there had been an increase in the cases of escape by prisoners from jails and police custody. He stressed upon the need for the modernisation of correctional services. According to ICA’s Deputy Director, Dr Upneet Lalli, the workshop helped in removing some of the apprehensions of the jail staff. |
|
Long queues at Mansa Devi
temple Panchkula, March 21 Long queues of devotees, extending up to the Mansa Devi Complex (MDC) police post, could be seen early in the morning. The police had a tough time controlling the crowd. Shouting “Jai Mata di”, devotees tried to jump the queue, but were restrained by the police personnel and volunteers. Due to the heavy police bandobast, a large number of visitors could been seen arguing with police personnel on being frisked. Several officials, including a top district official, were not allowed to enter the main temple when Haryana Chief Mininter Om Prakash Chautala was offering prayers. Mr Chautala was among the first to perform “yajna” at the temple. Mr Chautala said the shrine was among the famous “shakti peeths” and pilgrims from every part of the The Chief Administrator of the Shri Mata Mansa Devi Shrine Board and Deputy Commissioner, Ms Satwanti Ahlawat, told the Chief Minister of the arrangements made for the pilgrims and tourists. The musical fountains at the temple attracted devotees. A special bus service had been started for the devotees from Chandigarh, Pinjore, Kalka and other nearby places, she added. |
|
Asiatic lioness dies in
zoo Chhat Bir, March 21 The animal was found dead in the lion safari this morning. The zoo authorities, after conducting a postmortem examination, cremated the carcass this afternoon. |
|
|
17 hurt as truck
overturns Panchkula, March 21 Four persons, who were injured seriously, have been admitted to the PGI, Chandigarh. They have been identified as Manu Kaur of Raipur Kalan in Chandigarh, Kavita of Baltana, near Zirakpur, Rajesh and Saroj. The rest were discharged after first aid. Driver of the truck Ashok Kumar apparently lost control while turning. |
|
Hawala operator also indulged in drug
smuggling Mohali, March 21 According to SP Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, the 48-year-old conman, since he left India for the UK in 1973, had lived at many places using different identities, married thrice and was jailed a number of times in the USA and the UK before being caught in Mohali. Relating the story of his life, pieced together from the information given by Balhar Singh during interrogation, the SP said Balhar was a well-connected criminal and had links with senior officers in Punjab. Known as Avtar Singh, alias Taru, in his ancestral village Chachari, near Goraya in Jalandhar, Balhar Singh left for the UK, along with members of his family, in 1973. There he allegedly got involved with a woman Rani, whom he deserted in 1975, coming back to india to marry Ranjit Kaur, a resident of a village in Ludhiana. When he returned to the UK with his wife, he realised that Rani had got him booked for rape. He shifted his home from Birmingham to Hadison, but the UK police caught him at Bradford and jailed him for five years. Balhar Singh was deported to India in 1980, where he got his passport renewed in Jalandhar. In 1982, he went to Austria on this passport and then allegedly entered Germany illegally, from where he went to Mexico, before reaching the US border. He was caught by the US border patrol and jailed for two months. He was released on bail and started living in Yuba City, California, where he allegedly married an Irish woman. In 1983, he was jailed for an year again on charges of domestic violence. He fled from custody to Canada, where he lived as Harbhajan Singh, using a social security card. In 1991, Balhar Singh came to India by forging the passport of Jarnail Singh. He reached the UK in 1992, where he took over the identity of his brother Dalbara Singh forging his British passport and using his British citizen registration. Since 1992, he had been visiting India regularly as part of an international gang, said the police. During this period, he bought a flat in Mohali and a Mercedes car in Delhi. His bank account in Mohali had over Rs 20 lakh and the police also recovered foreign currency from him and a pistol, along with 26 live cartridges. “Although he is wanted by the US police and not by the UK police as thought earlier, we have contacted the UK and US police for cooperation in the case. Once we have more details on him, investigations are likely to lead to further interesting findings,’’said the SP. |
|
40-year-old labourer hangs himself to
death Chandigarh, March 21 Shivram was working as a mason in Sector 16. Last night, Shivam and his family went to sleep out side their room. Later, Shivam went inside his room andhanged himself from a ceiling fan. When his wife woke up in the morning, she found the room bolted from inside. She called her neighbours who informed the police. The police forced open the gate and found him hanging. His wife told the police that her husband had been disturbed for some time but could not tell the exact reason of the suicide. Besides his wife, Shivram is survived by three children. In a separate incident, 17-year-old Asha Devi, daughter of a retired peon of the PGI, hanged herself to death. |
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Mailbag | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | National Capital | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
