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Sukhi eager to strike right note
THE sun is up and shining fiercely. Droplets of perspiration are forming on her face. The Congress (I) candidate from Kapurthala Assembly seat, Ms Sukhjinder Kaur, better known as Ms Sukhi Rana, is eager to strike the right note. With the CM and the gathering. Her diamond earrings and nose pin gleam, as she says her rather well rehearsed speech about her party's promises and achievements.
These are busy days. Travelling and meeting people, she hardly gets four hours of sleep. Her sports shoes, now dust-sodden, have been her signature style ever since the campaign started.
She has to get the message across the people. She cannot afford to get a word wrong or misplaced. The right effect has to be created. "It's the first time that a woman is contesting from this seat and our party gets the credit for it…." she peppers her speech with this pro-women info, though her rather mellow style fails to keep up with her message. It's past noon and she still has a long day. Her kajal-laced orbs rarely show the unmistakable gleam seen in a politician's eyes. But she knows the importance of the day. Party workers are being mobilised in the presence of the CM. The noon is inching away. As the meeting dissolves, she snatches a few bites, sharing her grub with a few women, who cluck protectively around her. Her eyes have lightened up. A man comes up to her and with an imperious wave signals all those around her to let him have her audience. "…don't tell this to anyone," he can be heard saying smugly. "People wanted me to come into politics. Public 'sees' work; it doesn't 'see' party. People want a good leader," she tells us. So, she's sure of winning? "Yes," she says, her glance fixing on her hands. A ring with a biggish green stone adorns her finger. "Winning-stone?" we cannot help asking. "No, it's for a stomach ailment," she answers, not ruffled in the least. Suddenly, her busy schedule decides that the tête-à-tête must end. Her relative, who accompanies her, asks us to 'ask' Ms Sukhi Rana about her "plans as an MLA". "I will try my best to wean away youngsters from drugs. Focusing on Punjabi virsa will be my mission," is Ms Rana's quick response that is seconded vociferously by her companion.
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Door-to-door canvassing is Raghbir’s style
Mr Raghbir Singh, the Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) candidate from Kapurthala Assembly segment, is a busy man these days. He begins canvassing at 7 am, goes from village-to-village and door-to-door, reminding residents of the "efforts he had put in for the development of the constituency twice" as an MLA of Kapurthala and also as Transport Minister, Punjab, during Mr Parkash Singh Badal's tenure. The work goes on till late night. In most of his campaigns, the candidate is joined by the party supremo, Mr Badal, and Bibi Jagir Kaur, SGPC President. Last Saturday, his rally was addressed by Ms Uma Bharti, former Madhya Pardesh Chief Minister. His wife and two sons and the eldest daughter-in-law are running independent campaigns for him. They hold small get-togethers daily in the city to woo urban voters.
As he and his supporters interact with the public, they talk of various "developmental works" undertaken by him. He also talks about "deterioration of law and order". Then, it's time to take on the rival candidate's "political inexperience", while adding a bit about his own "involvement" with the people. Mr Raghbir Singh is eager to point out to his supporters, "We belong to Hothian village that falls in Kapurthala Assembly segment. My father was an active member of the SGPC. I had my school education here. I am a graduate from Nawab Jassa Singh Ahluwalia Government College here. I am also a law graduate from PU." During his campaign, he does not forget to tell the people that he is all set for winning the elections. "Victory will be ours. Not winning is impossible! I have been panch, sarpanch, member of block samiti and zila parishad, MLA and minister. My work speaks for me."
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Tarsem riles against “manuvadi” forces
His favourite one-liner is about the "manuvadi forces". He holds meetings with his supporters and party workers at a common village place. Mr Tarsem Singh Thapar, the BSP candidate from Kapurthala Assembly segment, favours "nukkad" type of campaign. The Tribune team found Mr Thapar addressing a small group of villagers, most of them middle aged and old, on the outskirts of Bhandal Dona village in the afternoon. Participants were sitting on the ground. There were no loud speakers, plastic buntings or big flags. It was an informal interaction with the people. After spending more than two hours in the village "seeking blessings" of villagers, he went to Wariaha Dona village. His supporters managed to get the villagers assembled on "shamlat" (common place), while Mr Thapar started the same tale of the "non-implementation of the 85th Constitutional Amendment, inflation, unemployment, hike in power tariff by the state government, delay in release of old age pension" to impress upon the people, mainly dalits, the need to "get united for fight against the manuvadi forces". "The Bahujan Samaj needs to put up a brave front against the atrocities of the state government. Since the Congress has failed to fulfill its poll promises, the time is ripe to teach them a lesson," he alleged, while harping on his "having no extra money to spend on poll campaign". "I have no option but to contact the voters personally. I leave my Dhaliwal Dona village residence early in the morning to visit three to four villages daily." Mr Thapar, who got elected as sarpanch of his native village in 1993, joined the BSP in the year 1987. He held various posts, including that of the president of Kapurthala unit of the party to finally become state general secretary in June 2003.
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City my emotional weakness: Yash Chopra
"Jalandhar is my emotional weakness and I still remember every nook and corner of the city perfectly well," reminisces ace filmmaker and showman Yash Chopra, for whom Jalandhar is not only his hometown, but also a place that is close to his heart.
He has a special affection for "old city", that he calls "a city of young dreams". This affection is so intense that even after a lapse of half a century, his memories are as fresh and fragrant as his films. He left the city for Mumbai following the footsteps of his elder brother B.R. Chopra. "I am full of loving memories of my people living in and around Gobindgarh Mohalla, where we still have our ancestral home. I can recognise each landmark of not only my mohalla, but also other parts of the city. The memories have been surrounding me since 1951, the year when I passed out as a graduate from Jalandhar's Doaba College," says an emotional Yash Chopra, while talking to this correspondent over phone from Mumbai, where he was busy with his latest movie, "Veer Zaara". The film has evoked a huge pre-release interest, as it is said to be the first film in which music of a music director has been used 30 years after his death. So unique is the experiment that Yash Chopra himself is excited. His excitement could be felt during his telephonic talk. "No doubt, this is the first venture of its kind. The compositions of well-known music director Madan Mohan (who also incidentally belonged to Jalandhar) used in this film have never been used earlier. This effort has the complete cooperation of the late Madan Mohan's son Sanjiv Kohli. Madan Mohan's golden compositions have always been a great source of inspiration to me and I have been dreaming all the while to get an opportunity to use these in one of my films. Finally, the day has come and these compositions have been recreated. I have high hopes from this film," observes Yash Chopra. Asked whether being a Punjabi, he would ever make a Punjabi film or a film on Punjab, Yash Chopra says, "I am keen to make either a Punjabi film or a film on Punjab, but these days I am very busy in the release of my latest venture "Veer Zaara". Only after the release of this film can I think of some other project." He adds, "I am interested in Punjab, as it is my home."
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Punjab State War Memorial all set for new look
COME December and the Punjab State War Memorial here may wear a new look. Officials are awaiting the release of a grant of Rs 2.5 lakh from the district administration for re-tiling and re-lighting an old war tank that stands neglected in the tapering corner of the building.
The tank was constructed way back in 1987. Visitors to the memorial said that it used to present a beautiful spectacle till the last decade. The beautiful fountains projecting out of the tank were eye-catching and used to draw many a visitor. But all that was a gone story now, added the visitors. The officials are also planning to regularly light the lamp at the centre of the memorial where names of soldiers, who have been winners of Param Vir Chakras, Shaurya Chakras, Kirti Chakras, Ashok Chakras and Vir Chakras, have been embossed on the granite stone. The lamp will emit a dim light in mornings and evenings. The tiles around the fountains at the centre of the garden are also being cleaned. The gardens are being landscaped to give a new look. Hundreds of saplings of chrysanthemums have already been planted in pots and in ground near the boundaries of the garden. All this is simply being done to attract more visitors. The officials admit that there have been very few visitors to the memorial that stands as a symbol of valour and glory of the armed forces. At present, only a few army officials, families of jawans, school students and teachers frequent the memorial and that too with prior appointment. Otherwise, the officials get together there on the Flag Day in the honour of war heroes. Lt Col Manmohan Singh, Deputy Director, Sainik Welfare, said that he had spent as much as Rs 17 lakh in renovating the memorial by making use of funds arranged by the administration and the Vajra Corps. He said that at the time when he joined the office, there was no boundary wall or gate. This used to give an unrestricted entry to trespassers who misused the lawns and the basement. The officer said that some valuable artifacts that represented the valour of the army had been pilfered by the trespassers. However, as of now, all donations made to the memorial were insured, he added. Lt Col Manmohan Singh added that two attached halls had been constructed in the basement of the memorial, as a mark of respect to the gallant soldiers who laid down their lives during war operations. In the Hall of Fame, names of soldiers from Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Bathinda, Patiala, Ropar, Faridkot, Ferozepore, Hoshiarpur and Sangrur, who sacrificed their lives in various operations from Independence Day onwards, have been written. The portraits of three war heroes - Flying Officer N.S. Sekhon, Sub Joginder Singh and Capt G.S. Salaria, who received Param Vir Chakras posthumously, have been arranged along with the description of the battle scene. Besides, various trophies, emblems and statues donated by several units of the Vajra Corps from time to time have also been preserved in the hall. The trophies are worth seeing. Some of them depict paragliding skills while others depict scenes from army life. In the adjoining hall, photographs of the 24 martyrs from the district who laid down their lives in Prakram, Trishul, Rakshak and Rhino operations have been put up. The pictures include men from various regiments of the army, the BSF, the ITBP and the CRPF.
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Philately: A hobby for all times
Ask children about their hobbies and most of them will come up with a reply that they hardly have any time for it. The rest will have say something about dance, music, computers or video games. There will hardly be a case when a child would talk about philately.
Philately is believed to be one of the highly educative activities that can be pursued from a very young age. But youngsters these days find the Internet to be the easiest and the most convenient means of gaining knowledge. Pen friends have been replaced by Net friends. The old practice of posting letters, collecting stamps and arranging them has been forgotten by the youngsters. With an aim to revive the hobby of philately, the Department of Posts, Jalandhar, has been running a Philately Bureau under which as many as 2,023 members have been enrolled. Going by the figures, the response to the scheme has been encouraging, as the number has increased from barely 146 to the current figure in the past few years. Many new members are being added almost every month. As a member of the bureau, a philatelist can open an account by paying an amount of Rs 200. As soon as the department releases new stamps, each such stamp along with the first day cover and an information brochure, is dispatched free of any postal charges to all members. The price of the stamp, the cover and the brochure is automatically deducted from the account. As and when the amount in the account is reduced to Rs 20, the members have to refresh their account by paying Rs 200. Giving these details, Ms Meenu Kalia, Postal Assistant with the bureau, said that there were a few members who preferred buying stamps of their choice. She said that the bureau maintained the stock of the six-month-old stamps for such members to choose from. She said that some members showed their keenness to buy only the stamps and did not want to go for the covers and the brochure. Incidentally, almost all members of the bureau are also the members of the Jalandhar Philately Club being run with the efforts of the local stamp lovers. The club holds a meeting on the first Sunday of every month in the Department of Posts. The members discuss the significance of the latest stamps, dwell on novel ways of arranging them, decide on strategies to be adopted for increasing the interest among the younger generation and make plans for holding philately exhibitions from time to time. Mr Nawal Kishore Khera, secretary of the club, said that he had been initiated into the hobby when he was an intermediate student. He said that had a good number of post cards and stamps in his collection, the oldest ones dating back to the year 1886. "When I was in college, I had subscribed for the Illustrated Weekly that gave a list of persons who wished to be pen friends. I picked up those who had interest in philately. This was how I managed to collect so many post cards and stamps." Mr Khera has segregated his collection into various categories such as birds, animals, flowers, space travel, means of communication and railways. He said that he always encouraged his son to pursue the same hobby. "As a child, he started collecting stamps of aircrafts and now he too has a good collection," he added. However, the most precious collection of Mr Khera is the first set of four stamps on Mahatma Gandhi printed in Switzerland in the year 1948. "Most of the people who have the set say that it is in damaged condition. But the set that I have is fresh. The face value of the stamp is Rs 12 but now it is almost priceless," explained the philatelist. Mr Khera said that his unique collection of stamps with errors was also very dear to him. He said that while some had printing errors, others had errors in colour scheme and there were still others with perforations that went zigzag instead of being in line. Mr Sunil Jain, President of the Philately Club, has a large collection of stamps on flags. He also has been instrumental in promoting the hobby among the youngsters. Mr Charan Singh, Senior Superintendent, Post Offices, is also a member of the club but he said that he was not able to spare much time for the hobby. He said that it would be perhaps after his retirement that he would manage to spare some time for this activity.
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Skipping for Guinness Book of World Records
When he skips, he skips in a sprinting style. The string becomes invisible and only a stormy, rustling, shrill whistling sound is heard. The 43-year-old well-built Mr Ranjit Pal got his name entered into the Limca Book of Records by skipping rope 136 times just in 15 seconds! Sounds unbelievable? But Mr Pal has prepared a CD of his performance and he claims to have improved upon his own record. He now skips 150 to 160 times in 15 seconds, he claims. He has sent his claim for entry into the Guinness Book of World Records. When told that skipping was mostly a domain of girls, he said that as a young boy he started with wrestling. "As I was doing a diploma in an ITI, my institute's timings clashed with my wrestling practice. Then I decided to go ahead with body building," he explained, adding that he took to skipping very late. He said that his interest in skipping was aroused when he was asked to be a judge of a skipping competition held at a Jalandhar college in 2002. "The contestants were skipping 130 to 170 times a minute. I did not say anything there but felt strongly that the skipping rate was not impressive. After returning home, I started skipping and in the very first attempt, I skipped 250 times in one minute," he claims. Then he improved it to 350 times a minute after two months of practice. He contacted the Limca Book of Records but was told to show his performance for a short period of time. He showed it to the Phagwara SDM, Mr Pritam Singh, and the Nagar Council President, Mr Malkiat Singh Ragbotra. But a problem surfaced - he skipped so fast that the number of skips could not be counted. With great difficulty, only 136 skips could be counted in 15 seconds and the certificate authenticating it was sent to the Limca office. After crosschecking, his name was entered into the Limca Book. But Mr Pal still insists that he can skip 150 to 160 times in 15 seconds. He has sent his claim to the Guinness Book of World Records. He practises for two hours daily. He gives the credit of his success to his parents, members of the Punjab Amateur Body Building Association, of which he is the State Joint Secretary, and members of the Leo Club, Phagwara. He does not fail to mention the name of power lifter Gobind Dhiman, who brought him into the field of bodybuilding.
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Waiting for a mishap
Chandani, student of IV class, fears a tragedy any time, as she knows that the century-old school building in which she studies was declared unsafe by authorities long time back. Still, she, like her other schoolmates, has no option but to continue with her studies in an unsafe building of Government Primary School situated at the crowded Rainak Bazaar here, thanks to sheer indifference of the state education department officials.
The PWD (B&R) Department had declared the building of the school as unsafe more than eight years back. The building of the school comprises 10 rooms, the main passage and the entry gate of the school. Though the danger of the building giving way looms large in the minds of the students and the employees, they have no way out. The students, mostly from poor families, have left it to God, as they tell us. The primary school has only 21 students on its rolls for the current academic session. While three students each have been enrolled in the II and the III classes, there are six students in I class, four students in III class and five students in IV class. All students are put up in a single classroom, while the remaining rooms remain locked. The students also face problems during rainy season, as water start pouring down from the leaking roof of the verandah in front of the classroom even during a short spell of rain. The ground at the school is overgrown with Congress Grass. It poses a serious health risk to the students Some of the tiny tots, however, are blissfully unaware of the danger. "I don't know that I am studying in an unsafe building," comes a polite reply from the five-year-old Priyanaka. The neglect of the school became even more pronounced after the declaration of the building as "unsafe" by the authorities concerned. Though the state government had sanctioned funds for the construction of additional rooms for Government High School, a part of the same complex, nothing has been done for the primary wing during the past several years. "We have time and again asked the PWD (B&R) authorities to remove the unsafe structure, but to no avail. All this is very risky. But what can we do, if the officials concerned are not taking any action? Besides, I had asked the in charge of the school to shift the students to the building of Government Secondary School in the same complex. Strangely, this proposal is yet to be accepted," says Ms Prem Lata Nanda, Principal of Government Secondary School. On the other hand, the single teacher posted in the primary wing, Ms Meenu, maintains that they have been asked to shift to the first floor of the building meant for the secondary wing. " The students are too small. It is not possible to shift them to the first floor. We are demanding that a classroom at the ground floor be made available for the primary wing. We have already reported the matter to the senior officials," she adds. Seems that authorities are waiting for a mishap to occur before they swing into action.
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They knew not about winning,
It was a special sports event. For special children. Their faces flushed with the sheer joy of holding the centre-stage, the children tried to make sense of it all. Many of them could not grasp the import of the hullabaloo—men and women milling around, cajoling teachers and parents, the chalky tracks, the loud claps. But they somehow instinctively knew that it was for them, as a 14-year-old boy Shangu told us with a broad, knowing grin that he would run fast in the race. Teenaged Ishwinder and Jasjeet Kaur, too, seemed to know that if they did what was being told to them, they would get a pat on the back, though these girls answered the race-related queries in monosyllables. Mental illness versus
mental retardation
Mental illness is different from mental retardation. Mental retardation refers to a deficiency in the intelligence of a person. Mental illness, however, is an illness of mind. A mentally ill patient may be of average or even above average intelligence. For most of these 200 children from Amritsar, Hoshiarpur, Balachaur, Pathankot, Jalandhar Cantonment and the city, who participated in this Zonal Pre-Olympics, the body willed while the mind played truant. The programme was organised here under the aegis of the District Special Olympics Association, Jalandhar and the Chaanan Association for Mentally Retarded. The special children took at a shot at various sports events, including races, walk, jumps, weightlifting and cycling. The winners would be eligible for participation in the 7th Punjab State Special Olympics to be hosted in the month of November. Non-Olympic games like carom and cards were also arranged.
Don't keep it under wraps
Many parents feel it is best to "keep their child's problem under wraps". This, unfortunately, complicates the matter, as the child who is denied expert care during the formative period is seldom able to make up for the initial denial. "The special children may be deficient in intelligence, but they are emotionally very receptive," says Ms Seema, a city-based tutor of a special child.
Interestingly, these children displayed some sort of camaraderie (cynics might shrug it off as imitation) during the competitions. The "go signal" was not enough; only if their companion standing next to them sprinted off, did they budge from their position. "It seems the norms of competition have been rewritten. As they don't understand what winning is all about, they enjoy the very act of participation," said Ms Sunita Rani, mother of a participant, with a sad smile on her face. However, barely 10 parents had turned up for the event. Some parents erroneously thought it was no good to "waste time and money" on these children, Mr Amarjit Singh Anand, President of the Chaanan Association, told us. "There is a misconception that mentally retarded children can never be integrated into the mainstream. The fact is that there are degrees of mental retardation. Those on the borderline can do fairly well if they are given expert care during the initial years," he explained, adding wryly, "It seems most of the parents 'give up' on these children. They are willing to spend lakhs on their 'normal' children, but when it comes to the special children, they would rather have them subsist on charity."
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Arya College caters to rural education
"Woman empowerment" is the USP of Banarsi Dass Arya Girls College here. In this era of spiritual and moral bankruptcy, the college strives hard to inculcate ethical values among students to ensure latter's progressive development, say college authorities. B.D. Arya Girls College, as it is commonly known among locals, came into existence in the year 1970, when Lala Bishambar Dass, a philanthropist, signed an agreement with the Arya Samaj to set up a full fledged educational institution. With an initial strength of 80-90 students in 1970, the college now has more than 1200 students on its rolls. The college authorities maintain that they are primarily catering to rural areas. Students from as many as 84 adjoining villages are presently studying in the college. From a single-faculty college about 34 years ago, it has progressed to become a multi-faculty educational institution, which offers courses in humanities, fine arts, science, economics, computer sciences, non-medical, clinical nutrition and dietetics and commerce. Besides, the college also offers vocational courses, including functional English, mass communication and video production, fashion designing, dramatics, arts and post graduate courses in political science and Punjabi. The college, during the current academic session, started Masters in Dance, M.Sc. in Computer Sciences and B.Com (Professional), reveal the college authorities. Three computer labs, an audio-video studio, a home science lab, a well-catalogued computerised library having more than 20,000 books on various subjects - all are used to ensure better and effective learning among the students, says Ms Sawraj Mohan, Director of the college, who served the institution as its principal for more than two decades before joining the present post. Several students' clubs and societies have been formed, including the Newton's Club, the English Literary Society, the Sarav Sahitya Sabha, the IT Students' Association, Biz 'n' Buck, Kala Surbhi, the Chanakya Club of Social Sciences, Sur-Taal Sangam and the Media Links Society, she informs. "It is mandatory for every student to become a member of at least two clubs or societies," Ms Mohan maintains. Going down the memory lane, she reveals that soon after joining the college in the year 1980, she used to go door-to-door to persuade parents of girls to send their wards to the college. "The rural people, at that time, usually were not in favour of sending their girls to colleges. However, our efforts bore fruit," she adds. The NSS unit of the college has adopted various developmental projects in the nearby Chandpur village. Besides, the college regularly holds seminars in adjoining villages on various topics, including drug de-addiction, adult education, AIDS, women empowerment. "We don't want our students to be bookworms. Their awareness about the problems faced by the people will certainly help them understand the true picture of the society. Our aim is to empower women," Ms Mohan adds.
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From the schools
Students from eight schools affiliated with the CBSE participated in an inter-school yoga contest organised by the Sahodaya School Association at Army Public School, Jalandhar Cantonment on Tuesday. Boys and girls participated in two separate categories of age groups of 8-11 years and 11-14 years. As many as 24 students from Police DAV Public School, PAP Campus, displayed their skills and participated in the event. The host school's team (girls) in the age group of 8-11 years won the first position. Individually, Ishpuneet bagged the first prize in boys' team in the age group of 8-11 years. Prabhjot Singh clinched the second prize in boys' team in the age group 11-14 years. Komal bagged the second prize in girls' team in the age group of 8-11 years, while Sukhpal Kaur won the third prize in the girls' team in the age group 11-14 years. Police DAV Public School won the overall runners' trophy. Dr Rashmi Vij, Principal of the school, congratulated the winners and yoga teacher, Ms Rupa Basak, for their achievement. Night camp
Students of Eklavya School had an altogether different experience this Saturday, when a night camp was organised for them. A bonfire was arranged. Various games, including antakshri, music and dance items, were organised. Dinner was served to the students, after which they went off to sleep in the school campus. The students got up at 6 am. After a short walk and the playing of a few games, it was time for them to be back home with their parents, who came to pick them up. Ms Sapna Bakshi, Principal, said the students enjoyed the night stay so much that they were insisting on having another night camp soon. She said the students seemed very confident and excited. Ms Seema Handa, Director, said that such a programme helped the students in personality development.
Examination fever
Students of almost all schools in the city remained busy with their half- yearly examination this week. With the examination now nearing the end, the students are excited about their results scheduled to be declared the next week. The declaration of results will be followed by an autumn break of nearly 10 days, school principals informed.
Gandhi Jayanti
preparations
Even as the students remained busy with the examination, preparations for the Gandhi Jayanti celebrations in most of the schools here continued in full swing. October 2 being a holiday in most of the schools, the celebrations have been scheduled for Friday instead. While Delhi Public School is planning to hold a special prayer in the morning, the staff of Sant Raghbir Singh School is planning to organise a sports day on the occasion. Mr G.S. Bajwa of Lawrence International School said that a short cultural programme was being planned for the day.
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Big players enter used car market in Doaba
The recent entry of big players in the second-hand car market has created a flutter among second-hand car dealers here, even as they are trying to bank upon their USP - "low" prices offered by them. The entry of big players like Maruti and other companies, and dealers like Cargo Motors, Dada Motors and even some finance companies in the second-hand car sale market in this region has disturbed the calculations of those selling second-hand cars and other vehicles on the basis of commission. These sellers used to earn handsome profits. The entry of finance companies and the subsequent competition among them to offer vehicle loans at the lowest rates has further boosted the business of second-hand cars. Changing cars has, of late, become a fashion, particularly among young professionals and businessmen. "Yes, it has made a difference to the business and affected our margins drastically. Now, pricing has become more competitive. The only solace is the relatively 'higher' pricing of second-hand cars sold by the big players," admitted a second-hand car dealer, requesting anonymity. On the other hand, the easy availability of loans even for second-hand cars has encouraged businessmen based in the city and its satellite townships, including Goraya, Phagwara, Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala, Nakodar, to adopt the still-profitable second-hand car sale business. "The entry of big players in the second-hand car market has started affecting the traditional roadside commission agents. In my view, with increasing awareness about the importance of buying a second-hand car from a reliable source, people would be buying the cars from the big players only. The big players, who have already started setting up showrooms of second-hand cars, have much to look forward to. One thing is certain — the Doaba region would have exclusive second-hand car showrooms soon and these would be run by reputed companies that would sell reliable second-hand vehicles and not the shoddily reconditioned vehicles as is being done by the roadside commission agents. In that case, the roadside commission agents would have no say in the market," observed Mr Onkar Singh Thapar, General Manager of the Cargo Motors, Jalandhar. Mr Anil, a commission agent from Goraya, feels the entry of big players has already started affecting the business of traditional second-hand car sellers. At the same time, he maintains that young businessmen of Kapurthala, Nakodar, Goraya, Phillaur and Phagwara are taking to the business of second-hand cars, as it has still not lost its sheen completely. Mr Anil informs that people still prefer second-hand cars from Punjab as compared to those from Delhi, UP and Haryana. This is in spite of the fact that cheaper vehicles are available in these states. "Vehicles registered in Punjab still command a better price when compared to those registered in Haryana, Delhi, UP and Rajasthan, where second-hand vehicles are cheaper. The reason is the assurance about the veracity of documents which comes with a Punjab-based vehicle," he adds. Market sources reveal that if purchased from Delhi, vehicles like Tata Sumo, Indica, Tempo Traveller, Santro were cheaper by Rs 20,000-Rs 25,000. However, there was almost no difference in the price of vehicles like Maruti 800, Zen and Esteem.
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House Tax: MC tightens noose around
Has the local Municipal Corporation (MC) adopted one yardstick for state government departments and another for common residents? The answer is in affirmative, if we go by the MC's usual practice about house tax collection. The civic body spares no effort to collect house tax from city residents, while it conveniently glosses over the house tax that various state government departments owe to it. According to sources, state government departments here owe the MC lakhs of rupees as house tax.
While Municipal Corporation officials here have taken a strong note of house tax defaulters among local residents, it has miserably failed to collect house tax from various state government departments for years together. The civic body had proposed to collect Rs 10.5 crore as house tax in the budget for the year 2004-2005 as compared to Rs 8 crore during the 2003-2004 budget year. According to available information, MC officials have managed to collect a sum of Rs 3.75 crore from March to August 2004. Official records indicate that 11 departments owe house tax to the tune of Rs 85.19 lakh to the civic body. Punjab Roadways, with a whopping amount of Rs 51.50 lakh pending with it, tops the list of defaulters. The second major defaulter is the District Administrative Complex (DAC), which houses offices of Deputy Commissioner, Senior Superintendent of Police, Bachat Bhavan, District Welfare Officer, District Transport Officer, District Treasury Officer, SSP (Vigilance Bureau) and SDMs and tehsildars. City residents allege that the MC had attached properties and assets of several residents, who had defaulted in paying house tax in the past, but nothing concrete had been done to take these departments to task. However, official sources maintain that a complete list of defaulters has been sent to the local bodies' department.
Sources further maintain that there is a shortage of staff to monitor recovery process. There are presently nine inspectors posted in the House Tax Department as against the sanctioned strength of 10 since 1988. Besides, the population of the city has increased manifold during the past 16 years, whereas the additional posts of inspectors are yet to be sanctioned, sources add. When contacted, the Assistant Commissioner, Mr Ved Vyas, maintained that consistent efforts were being made to recover the house tax from these departments. "There is virtually no problem in the collection of tax from these departments. The delay in payment of tax is sometimes caused due to the shortage of funds. We have also decided to issue fresh bills of house tax to the BSNL due to a change in its constitutional status," Mr Vyas added.
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CLAD in a white kurta pyjama and a navy blue turban, he goes from village to village with his hands folded. His supporters, almost dressed like him, follow him in a convoy of cars.
