R E G I O N A L   B R I E F S

PUNJAB

Amritsar
COURSE: The Deputy Director, Army Welfare, Lt Col S.P. Singh, on Monday said a pre-recruitment course would be started for wards of ex-Army officers and their widows from September 25. He said the minimum eligibility for applicants in the general category was 45 per cent marks and 33 per cent for the Schedule Castes in Matriculation examination respectively. Accommodation would be provided to outstation students.

Fatehgarh Sahib
GOVT FLAYED: Capt Kanwaljit Singh, former Finance Minister, said here on Tuesday that the Congress government in the state had failed on all fronts and people were fed up with it.

Fazilka
VISIT: Ms Sabinder Lamba, president, Army Wives Welfare Association (AWWA), Sudarshan Chakra Division, visited Fazilka Military Station on Monday. Ms Balwinder Kaur Sandhu, president, local AWWA, appraised various welfare projects carried by the AWWA and the medical facilities being provided to the families of the Army personnel.

Kot Kapura
NO SEWERAGE: The Municipal Council has made no arrangements for sewage disposal in Indira Colony on the Jalaleana road forcing its residents to take up the work on their own. The residents of the colony said they had been facing the problem for the past several months. The residents rued that the sewage water flowed in front of their entrances and they had to dispose it before leaving for work.

CRUSHED: Simranjeet Singh (7) was killed and his brother Satnam Singh (10) injured when a tractor-trailer ran over them on the Deviwala road here on Monday. Sources said that the kids were on the way to Prem Nagar on a cycle when the vehicle coming from the opposite direction hit them. The driver of the vehicle has been arrested.

Moga
BOOKED: The police has registered a case under Sections 323, 324, 148 and 149 of the IPC against lady constable Archana Chauhan and four others, Parveen Kaur, Sheela, Raja, and Channa Singh, for allegedly assaulting Mr John Christopher and his son Pankaj over a land dispute.

KILLED: Goldy, a wholesale vegetable trader, was killed and Balwinder Singh was injured when a Canter in which they were travelling over turned after one of its tyres burst near Singhawala village here on Monday.

SENTENCED: Additional District and Sessions Judge Sukhdev Singh has convicted four persons in a case of kidnapping and rape. While the main accused, Karamjeet Singh, was sentenced to 10-year imprisonment with a fine of Rs 10,000, the others including a woman, Jagir Kaur, were sentenced to seven-year imprisonment with a fine of Rs 5,000 each.

VOTERS’ LIST: The work to revise the voters’ list in the district will begin on Wednesday. According to a press release, those willing to get their names included in the list could fill the requisite forms for their claims and objections. A special drive would be launched on September 18 and 19 and October 9 and 10 to guide the public. 

Nawanshahr
PROTEST MARCH: The district unit of the Dehati Mazdoor Sabha, Punjab, held a protest march from the local railway station to the office of the Deputy Commissioner and staged a dharna and rally on Monday. They were protesting against the anti-labour and anti-poor policies of the state government. Mr Baldev Nurpuri, state vice- president of the sabha, said the government had withdrawn the facilities like pensions, shagun scheme, 150 units of free electricity and stipends. Mr Harpal Singh Jagatpur, Mr Sohan Singh Slempuri, Mr Sarup Singh Rahon, among others also addressed the rally.

Pathankot
ELECTED: Mr Vibhuti Sharma of the Congress was elected senior vice-president of the Pathankot Municipal Council here on Monday.

AWARD: Young scientist Priyanka Guleria, a student of local Him Shikha High School, has been conferred with the “excellent award” for her unique project “Herbal pesticides for storage of grains”. President of India, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, conferred the award on Priyanka at Rashtrapati Bhavan recently.

Sangrur
ARRESTED: A police party of the NDPS Act Cell, led by Mr Jagjit Singh, arrested Ved Parkash and seized 1.5 kg of charas and 500 gm of opium near the Haripura Basti here on Monday. A case has been registered.

Tarn Taran
BOOKED: The Border Security Force has arrested Mohammad Saheen, a resident of Harishpur, Chhitagong district, from Kulwant post falling under the Valtoha police station after he crossed over the border from Pakistan. A case has been registered.

CHANDIGARH

PARTY: Nishat was selected as “Miss Fresher” and Shiv as “Mr Fresher” at a party organised by students of the National Institute of Fashion Design here on Tuesday. While Parminder Kaur bagged the title of “Miss Personality”, Aashima was selected as “Miss Talented”. Students of all the three departments — fashion, textile and interiors — took part in the competition. 

HARYANA

Ambala
sadbhavna yatra: The Bhai Kanhaiya Sadbhavna Yatra reached Ambala on Tuesday. It was welcomed at Kakkar Majra village by the district administration, religious leaders and the Sikh community. Water from Bhai Kanhaiya’s village in Pakistan was the highlight. The yatra had been flagged off from Panchkula by Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala. It was accorded a warm welcome at Shahzadpur, Dhanana, Chajjumajra, Handesra, Tasimbli, Baldev Camp, Ambala City, Ambala Cantonment, Shahpur and Mohra.

Karnal
WORKSHOP: The Small Industries Services Institute (SISI) organised a one-day workshop on rice-based value added products here on Monday. Mr Suresh Yadvindra, Director, local unit of the SISI, said the workshop was organised to acquaint the rice millers with various modern technologies to manufacture rice and husk based products.

Panipat
DEMANDED: Mr Shiv Kumar Jain, state president of the BJP commerce cell, demanded that the value added tax (VAT) system should be abolished from the state as it had not benefited the business community of the state. Talking to mediapersons here on Monday, he said small businessmen and industrialists of the state were unable to fulfil the requirements laid down under VAT.

Sonepat
INJURED: Vinod, a juvenile offender, sustained injuries when he was attacked by another inmate, Mahabir, with a razor in the Bal Sudhar Graha here on Monday. The police was investigating the matter.

SUICIDE: A youth, Rajbir, committed suicide by consuming some poisonous substance in his house at New Kabirpur village, here on Monday. A family dispute was stated to be the cause of his extreme step.

HIMACHAL PRADESH

Bilaspur
ELECTED: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Parents and Teachers Association of Government Postgraduate College: president-Ms Suresh Kumari Sharma; vice-president-Mr Sabardeen; general secretary-Prof Surender Singh; joint secretary-Dr Chitranjan Anand; finance secretary-Dr Ashwani Dogra and chief adviser-Mr S.L. Sharma.

WARNED: The Bilaspur sadar unit of the Bhartyia Janta Yuva Morcha has warned the state government of an agitation if it did not scrap the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed with the Centre which has harmed the interests of the youth and employees in the state. Mr Rooplal Thakur, president of the morcha, condemned the government for rising inflation and inordinate increase in the power rates.

Kulu
OFFICE-BEARERS: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Sutardhar Kala Sangam: president-Mr Dinesh Sen, senior vice-president- Mr Yaninder Kapoor; vice-president-Mr Varinder Singh; general secretary-Mr Sunder Shyam Mahant; finance secretary-Mr Vijay Goel; joint secretary-Mr Rajesh Kumar (Shanu) and press secretary-Mr Sanjeev Verma.

Kumarhatti
TROPHY WON: Dagshai Public School has won the runners-up trophy in a state-level inter school and colleges declamation competition held at Shimla on Sunday. According to a press release here, 12 students of the school participated in five different categories of the competition that was organised jointly by the Rotary Midtown, the Inner Wheel Club and the Rotract Club, Shimla. As many as 79 schools and colleges of the state took part in the competition.

LABOURER KILLED: A Nepalese migrant labourer was killed when a brick-laden mini truck met with an accident at Dharampur, 4 km from here, on Tuesday. According to an eyewitness account, the labourer was sitting on the bricks when the truck overturned on the road leading to Hardinge TB Sanatorium following brake failure. The labourer was buried under bricks.

Shimla
CONDEMNED: The Himachal Employees Confederation has taken a strong exception to the suggestion made by former Chief Minister P.K. Dhumal that employees should be penalised for flouting the two-child norm.