R E G I O N A L   B R I E F S

PUNJAB

Amritsar
SEMINAR: The two-day seminar on “development of interpersonal skills in teachers” stressed that changing trends in education need corresponding understanding to meet the growing needs of new teaching techniques and wider spectrum of knowledge base. It concluded at the local DAV College of Education on Saturday.

NEW ATM: UTI bank opened its first off-site ATM in the Shakti Nagar locality here on Saturday. Mr Brij Mohan Khanna, Chairman, Khanna Paper Mills Pvt Ltd, inaugurated the ATM. Mr L M Sharma, Assistant Vice-President of the bank, said this was 40th ATM in Punjab and second in Amritsar and the bank was planning to open more ATMs in the holy city.

DECIDED: Dr Manjit Singh Randhawa, president, Sikh Nation Organisation, said the organisation had decided to submit a petition to the head priests of the Sikh takhts regarding celebrations of Gurupurbs as per the old Sikh maryada.

ORGANISED: A legal literacy camp was organised by the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) at May School in Gumtala on Saturday, to make people aware of free legal aid scheme and their legal rights. Mr Varinder Agarwal, Civil Judge, Senior Division, and secretary of the DLSA, presided over. Representatives from various social organisations, social workers, school teachers and students participated in the seminar.

CONDEMNED: The Sai Mian Mir Foundation has condemned the Pakistani move to send back Kanwar Sandhu, Resident Editor, Hindustan Times, Chandigarh. It also condemned Mr Om Prakash Chautala, Chief Minister, Haryana, for not expressing resentment towards the Pakistani action.

Bathinda
CHICAGO ADDRESS: The Swami Vivekanand Study Circle and the Vigilant Citizens Forum organised a function to commemorate the 112th anniversary of the Chicago address by Swami Vivekananda at SSD Girls College here on Saturday. Swami Ram Dev, a celebrated yoga teacher, was the chief guest.

FATEHGARH  SAHIB
TRAINING CAMP: Farmer’s training centre of Punjab National Bank, Sirhind branch, organised a farmer’s training camp at Samsher Nagar village on Sunday. Mr Chand Singh, Deputy Zonal Manager, Punjab Zone, inaugurated the camp, while Mr U.K. Sharma, Senior Regional Manager, presided over the function. More than 150 farmers participated in the camp. Addressing the farmers he said Punjab National Bank had initiated a programme to educate the farmers particularly the rural youths about the changing crop pattern, increase in the sources of income, self employment, to get maximum produce by using modern technology as well as to utilise their income in a proper manner. Mr Rattan Singh, Project Director, said the training centre would be developed in Samsher Nagar on a five acre plot and the building would be ready by January 2005. He told the farmers about the various types of training which would be imparted to rural youths, women and farmers at the training centre.

CAMP: Mr S.K Ahluwalia, Deputy Commissioner, inaugurated a free medical check up-cum-blood donation camp organised by Saheed Bhagat Singh Memorial Sports and Welfare Club, Fatehpur Arian on Sunday. Speaking on the occasion he exhorted the people to donate blood more often. He also urged the people to co-operate with the district administration in commemmorating the 300th year of supreme sacrifice of younger sahibzadas. He announced a grant of Rs 11000 to the club from Red Cross. Mr Jagdeep Singh Cheema, SAD(B) leader appreciated the efforts of village club in organising the camp. He donated Rs 2000 to the club. A team of doctors from Civil Hospital, Fatehgarh Sahib, checked up more than 400 patients and about 80 units of blood were donated.

Ludhiana
Appointed: Amritpal was appointed new vice president of district of National Students Union of India (NSUI) at a meeting held here on Saturday. Jaspreet Singh, President, NSUI, said that the union has been working for the students for the past two years.

Dr NK Aggarwal: SIGN is an international conference that helps poor patients in poor countries across the world. Institute of Orthopaedics and Super Speciality Trauma Centre at a hospital, here is the only centre in North India recognised by SIGN for supplying implants for use in poor and deserving patients. Dr N.K. Aggarwal, Director, IOSTC, is the only orthopaedic surgeon from India who is attending the conference at Washington.

Sangrur
SAPLINGS PLANTED: Under the Pulse-Plantation programme about 3.40 lakh saplings of various trees were planted in the past few days in Sangrur district. This was stated by Mr Husan Lal, Deputy commissioner, Sangrur, while addressing a function, organised in connection with vanamahotsava celebrations in Khalsa Public High School at Gaggarpur village, near here on Friday. 

CHANDIGARH

OFFICE-BEARERS: Mr Mohal Lal Sharma has been elected president of the Residential Welfare Association, Hem Vihar, Phase II, Baltana. Other office-bearers include vice-president: Mr Hari Singh; general secretary: Mr Ram Parkash; joint secretary: Mr Kapoor Singh; adviser: Mr Narsh Kumar Sharma; and treasurer: Sandeep Bassi. 

HARYANA

AMBALA
AWARDED: The Haryana Ophthalmic Academy today awarded gold medal to Dr Amod Gupta, Head of the Eye Department, PGI, Chandigarh, for his outstanding contribution in the field of Phaco surgery in the 19th conference of the academy that concluded today. Eye specialist from Ganga Ram Hospital, Delhi, Dr A.K. Grover was awarded Dr J.K. Pasricha Award for his services in the field of eye surgery. Dr Rajvardhan Azad, a senior eye specialist of AIIMS inaugurated the session by lightning the lamp. As many as 350 doctors from various states took part in the conference. A film on exceptional eye surgery was also screened on the occasion. Dr V.K. Mahajan, Dr G.S. Dhami, Dr Kamal Kapoor, Dr Sameer Sood, Dr Kapil Vohra and Dr Mahesh Manocha shared their experiences with doctors at the conference.

TALENT SHOW: Shri Atmanand Jain Institute of Management and Technology (AIMT) organised a talent show and the Registrar, Kurukshetra University, Mr J.S. Kadian, was the chief guest on the occasion. The show comprised competitions like singing, dancing, mono-acting, painting, quiz, poetry and mimicry. The following are the winners of various contests: solo song — Rahul Joshi (MCA), first; Naresh Ranga (MBA), second. Speech competition — Neha Puri (MBA), first; Kulu Ram, second. Mimicry — Pankaj Arora (MCA), first; Sumit Hans (MBA), second. Painting competition — Neha Mittal, first; Pooja Dahiya, second. 

Kaithal
PROJECT WEEK: A project week organised at Darshan Academy, Kaithal, concluded here on Saturday. Students presented projects on social, geographical, historical and religious life of Haryana and the progress made in the field of agriculture industry.

POPPY HUSK SEIZED: The police has seized 54 kg of poppy husk and 370 gm of charas during August. This was stated by Mr Ranbir Sharma, SP, here on Saturday.

TEACHERS HONOURED: Five teachers were honoured by the local branch of the Haryana Vikas Parishad at a function organised at Ever Gay Public School here on Saturday. Dr Rajinder Thakral, member of the state Executive of the HVP, was the chief guest. Some students were also given awards on the occasion. The students presented a cultural programme.

Karnal
WORKSHOP: The National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI) has decided to hold a two-day all-India dairy husbandry officer’s workshop on October 14 and 15, in the institute here. Dr Ram Chand, head of the dairy extension division and convenor of the workshop, said as many as 200 delegates from all states, union territories and military farms were expected to take part in the workshop.

Kurukshetra
FLAYED: Former Haryana minister Tejinder Maan has criticised the Haryana Government for not caring for farmers’ problems in the state. He was addressing a press conference at the PWD (B&R) Rest House at Pipli on Saturday.

Sonepat
DISPENSARY: Arya Samaj leader Swami Dayanand Saraswatiji Maharaj inaugurated a free dispensary in the Sri Ram Market on the Gohana road here on Sunday. The function was presided over by Mr Rajiv Jain, general secretary of the state unit of the Haryana Vikas Party and Mr Devi Dass, a former BJP MLA, was the chief guest.

YOUTH FESTIVAL: A three-day youth festival, sponsored by Maharshi Dayanand University (MDU), Rohtak, of the Sonepat zone will be held from September 23 to 25 on the premises of Hindu College. According to Dr S.S. Goel, principal of the college, students from 21 colleges of the zone will take part in the youth festival.

BODY Identified: The body of an unidentified youth, recovered from the fields of Chhatehra village in this district on Friday, has been identified as that of Omvir or Vidyanand Colony, Panipat. He was a taxi driver. According to a report, three unidentified youths had hired his taxi on Thursday for Israna village. They are reported to have murdered him and thrown his body in the fields at Chhatehra village before fleeing with his Indica car.

HIMACHAL PRADESH

Bilaspur
ORDERED: Judicial Magistrate Rajesh Chauhan here has ordered the Station House Officer, Bilaspur police station, to register a case on the complaint of Bablidevi of Tanboul village near here. The woman had complained that a Congress leader had tried to molest her in a room in the Market Committee complex here.

AWARDED: Ms Disha Awasthi, working at the NTPC Kol Dam Project at Barmana near here was adjudged ‘best human resource officer’ from a batch of executive trainees and was awarded a gold medal at a function in Delhi. Mr R.V. Shahi, Secretary (Power), presented the award.

Jawali
PROTEST: Members of the Himachal Pradesh Forest Corporation Workers Union, under the banner of the Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh, held a demonstration here on Saturday, in protest against the retrenchment of the daily wage earners who had completed more than seven years in service from the Fatehpur Forest Corporation division. The workers took out a procession and gave a memorandum to the Subdivisional Magistrate, Jawali, demanding reinstatement of the workers.

Nahan
BLOOD DONATION CAMP: Forest Minister Ram Lal Thakur called upon social organisations to hold forestation and plantation activities regularly so that a positive approach towards environment could be generated. He was speaking at a blood donation camp organised by the Rajput Sabha here on Saturday.

Nurpur
DECIDED: The doctors of the local Civil Hospital decided to support the HP Medical Officers Association (HPMOA) in opposing the recent notification of the state government to delink non-practicing allowance (NPA) from the basic salary. The decision was taken at a meeting held here on Saturday. Dr Subhash Thakur has been nominated as co-ordinator.