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MC throws wet blanket on Sector 22 market fest
Chandigarh, October 14 The cheque enclosed by the association with their application for permission was sent back with directions that the podium, stalls and tents should be removed by 6:30 pm today failing which the Enforcement Staff would be asked to step in to carry out the dismantling of the podium. They were asked to comply with the orders till the time the permission was granted by the MC. While the association is in dispute with the MC over the clearance for using the parking space to set up their stage, display prizes and hold lucky draws, the association and the booth owners of the market, too, do not see eye-to-eye in the matter. A delegation of booth-owners met the Municipal Commissioner, Mr M.P. Singh, and urged him not to allow the association to set up a stage. Their grouse was that the shopping festival was limited to 15-odd shopkeepers of the market who pooled their own resources for the “grand show”. They stated that this was not a shopping festival for the entire market as was being made out by the association and the over 50 booth-owners were not involved in any way. “In fact, they set up the podium in front of their own shops, blocking the view of our shops and affecting our business prospects during the festival season. We don’t want this podium at all,” a shopkeeper said. Even as the meeting was on, at the Sector 22 market the shopping festival was inaugurated amidst celebration and fanfare by cricketer Dinesh Mongia. The first lucky draw was also held as per schedule and the shops were decked up with flowers to welcome customers. However, by evening, some of the shine of the festival had worn off due to the tussle and the association decided to comply with the orders of the Municipal Corporation regarding the removal of the podium and tent. When contacted, Mr Arvind Jain, President, said they had removed the podium. “The MC was formed only eight years ago and we have been here for the last 52 years. Even though we had paid the rent for using their space last week and submitted an application for permission, they just chose to sit over it for five days. The MC officials are being misguided by these booth-owners. The shopping festival will go on as scheduled,” he added. The association has also sent a legal notice to the Police Department for harassing them last night by asking for the permission letter of the MC while preparations for the festival were on. “What business does the police has to intervene? It is the duty of the Enforcement Staff to check permissions and not that of the police,” Mr Jain said. Meanwhile, sources in the MC office said the permission was denied to them keeping in view the grouse of the booth-owners and the fact that the association was taking the MC for granted. “They just can’t order us around and, more so, when there in no unanimity among the shopkeepers of the market. Also, it leads to traffic chaos,” he said. The Municipal Commissioner, said the shopkeepers had been asked to dismantle the podium and remove the tents in the parking area till the MC gave its nod. “We will decide the matter shortly. Till then, the association has been told that the MC would take serious view of any encroachment in the parking space by them,” he added.
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Holes in Estate Office land deals
Chandigarh, October 14 This was revealed during the investigation of V. P. Goel, who was recently booked by the Vigilance Department for allegedly owning assets disproportionate to his known sources of income, sources told the Chandigarh Tribune here today. In an apparent case of insider trading, Goel, allegedly used to buy the land which the government planned to acquire as he had the required information beforehand. An FIR was registered against Goel on August 24 but he has not been arrested so far. He has been booked under Sections 13/1 E and 13/2 of the Prevention of Corruption Act by the Vigilance Department. The anticipatory bail of Goel was rejected on October 13 by a local court. The Estate Office employee had allegedly acquired properties worth Rs 16 lakh in Sector 44, Hallo Majra and Kumbra villages either in his own name or that of his relatives. The sources said the value of these could be higher than the registered value. The properties were allegedly acquired by Goel during his stint with the Estate Office between 1992 and 1997. He had been suspended after a probationer IAS officer, Mr Ashish Kundra, discovered that the former had claimed compensation for a piece of land on the day it was registered. Goel has a house in Sector 44-C, 1 bigha and 2 biswas at Hallo Majra, 2 kanals, 2.14 marlas and 4 kanals at the Kumbra village. The sources said Goel had bought the properties under benami deals. He could not produce any documentary evidence of his known sources of income.
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Devotees throng Mansa Devi shrine
Panchkula, October 14 The prasad shops wore a festive look and devotional music and hymns in praise of the Goddess reverberated all along the road leading to the steps of the temple. The vendors vied with each other to attract devotees who began queuing up to offer prayers since 4 am in the morning. The Haryana Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, being amongst the first ones to pay obeisance and perform “yajna” at the Shrine. The flow of devotees was restricted for about half- an- hour during which the Chief Minister along with his wife, Ms Snehlata, offered prayers before leaving for the Khulla darbar at Naraingarh. He was accompanied by the Haryana Urban Development Minister, Mr Subhash Goyal, Chairman of the Haryana Tourism Development Board, Mr Pradeep Chaudhary, and the Secretary, Urban Development, Dr Harbaksh Singh, The President of Municipal Council, Ms Seema Chaudhary, the Chief Administrator of the Mansa Devi Shrine Board, Ms Neelam Pradeep Kasni, the Secretary, Ms Vandana Disodia, the Superintendent of Police, Ms Mamta Singh were also present. A team of the District Public Relations Department sang devotional songs in the open area in the morning and evening. After offering prayers, the devotees partook langar at the bhandara organised by the Mahamai Mansa Devi Charitable Bhandara Committee and relaxed in the open spaces within the precincts of the shrine complex. During the day, the students of the kindergarten class of St John's school also offered flowers and prashad at the Shrine on the first day of the mela. While special buses plied to ferry devotees from and to Mata Mansa Devi, elaborate police arrangements had been made to maintain law and order.
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Rent for PGI sarai rooms may go up
Chandigarh, October 14 The charges which range between Rs 5 to Rs 10 per day are lowest in the first 15 days of stay of the patient but are marginally hiked after a fortnight. The rent of a dormitory at Hari Sarai is Rs 5 per day for first 15 days, goes up to Rs 8 after another 15 days and remain Rs 10 per day for the rest of the stay. The rents in the Janta Sarai range between Rs 10 to
Rs 20 per day. Sources say that the matter is being reviewed by the finance committee as two letters have already been written to the PGI administration for the need to jack up the rates. “It is being considered to charge at least Rs 25 to Rs 50 per day for a bed which is a lowly Rs 5 per day. An amount of Rs 50 is not much but it should go a long way in checking the limitless stay of people in the rooms,” revealed an official. While increasing the charges may not be a popular move with the patients, but the saria managements feel that given the unscrupulous elements taking advantage of the meagre rents, the move would help the genuine cases. “A couple of months ago we had to throw out an alcoholic man who was staying for over a year in the
sarai. He was a nuisance as he would occasionally fight with the staff. And these cases are not isolated examples,” says R. K. Gupta, president of the Lifeline Sarai at the PGI. Barring genuine cases, the caretakers at these shelters reveal that many patients have been staying for over a year, some of them have even acquired mobile phones and a few drink and eat lavishly within the premises. “We are giving free accommodation to the patients who are certified poor by the doctors. But those who can pay should be made to pay for the basic services, at least. But now, the patients get the rooms at such cheap rents and once they are in, it becomes impossible to send them out for several months. In such a scenario, the genuine cases always suffer as our rooms remain occupied forever,” said a member of the Hari
Sarai.
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Noise levels under
scanner
Chandigarh, October 14 The purpose of this exercise is to educate the organisers and the general public about the sound levels being generated by the use of loudspeakers and other music systems. The Chandigarh Administration had, yesterday, appealed to the organisers of Ram Leellas to play the loudspeakers and amplifiers at low pitch to maintain decent sound levels, which have already been notified by the Administration for different category or areas.
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Differences come to fore in BSF-Rangers talks
Chandigarh, October 14 The Pakistani delegation, led by Director-General Rangers (Sindh), Major-Gen Javed Zia, stuck to its guns, refusing to accept the 200-km stretch of border between J&K and Pakistan other that the LoC as the IB, instead referring to it as the as a "working boundary" "Our stand is clear that the common border between the two countries in the state other than the LoC is a working boundary and not the IB," General Zia quipped when confronted on his way out of the conference hall where he, along with the BSF Additional Director-General, Mr A K Mitra, were addressing a joint press conference after the conclusion of the BSF-Rangers biannual conference. In fact, it was a question posed to him on cross border infiltration that made the Pakistani general abruptly get up and leave the conference hall, with the other 14 officers in the delegation following suit. The BSF officers were apparently caught off-guard and had no explanation to offer for their guests' sudden departure. Mr Mitra said that the other point of difference was constructions near the IB. "The Pakistanis are objecting to just about every structure which comes up in the vicinity of the IB, terming them as violations of ground rules," the BSF chief said. An agreement on border constructions was made in 1965, but we have repeatedly told them that after the 1971 war these rules were no longer applicable," he added. The two sides, however, agreed upon a host of other issues, including joint efforts to check trans-border crimes, and strengthening of patrolling and surveillance to prevent illegal crossing. "Our special focus is to check drug smuggling and we would be exchanging lists of known drug runners and other relevant information," Mr Mitra said. A joint survey of the IB in connection with repair and maintenance of border pillars would be undertaken. Local commanders would be meeting more often to sort out local issues occurring on a day-to-day basis. Steps would also be initiated for the return of civilians who have crossed over inadvertently in the shortest possible line, doing away with lengthy and complicated repatriation procedures. Further, quick verification would be done by either side about persons reported missing. Since March, when the first round of talks was held between the BSF and Rangers in Lahore, India had returned 57 tresspassers, while Pakistan had returned 39. Each side would also inform the other at least 24 hours in advance about any firing exercises to be undertaken at ranges close to the IB to ensure precaution and minimise risk to civilian population. Terming the development as a "happy beginning", Mr Mitra said that the difference between India and Pakistan were so wide that results would not be noticeable overnight. "If we take small steps and keep the windows of deliberations open, it would be a great achievement," he said. In his formal remarks before his hurried departure, General Zia said that the confidence building measures initiated by both the governments had greatly improved the atmosphere and brought normalcy at the border.
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Education Dept grooms poor kids for trade
Chandigarh, October 14 The UT's Education Department has embarked on a unique project to arm the children of the lower strata of the society, aged between 6 and 14 years, with business acumen and skills while studying at school. Introduced at the Government Girls High School, Sector 25, the students learn vocational skills and generate business while studying at school. By the time they pass out, employment can be a reality for the avid learners who show sharp marketing skills. The beneficiaries are school drop-outs, enrolled under the Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan, and regulars at the school. "The project has ensured that the parents of the drop-outs insist that their children attend the school. It was these parents who had earlier discontinued the studies of their children as they did not see any prospects of gainful employment", said the DPI (Schools), Mr D.S. Mangat. Impressed with the novel project, officials in the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) invited the UT officials to give a presentation on the project at a recently held meeting of education secretaries of different
states. The states have been asked to follow the model. To add more personal touch to the training aspect, the department has employed professionals from the Kumhar Colony, and adjoining slum areas where most of the learners live. The department is paying them around Rs 3000 for four months to teach for eight hours in a week. On voluntary basis, some teachers of the school are also imparting training in the vocational skills. "After we launched the project, the environment of the school has changed. Parents talk to us with respect as we are training their children for free", said Ms Devinder Kaur, Principal of the GHS, Sector 25. She said the project had a become a reality due to keen interest shown by the DPI(Schools) and the Assistant Director (Vocational Education), Ms Prithpal Kaur. It was heartening to see that the torchbearers of the silent revolution were the slum children who were proving to be avid learners. Within few days of working on computers, the children who had never seen computers were proficiently hitting at the keyboards. They have mastered the commands in their own way, said their trainer. The skills being imparted to the kids were tailoring and stitching, hand enbroidery-mukaish, machine cutting, hair cutting, plumbing, book binding, flower making, making paper bags, toy making and pottery. In the class of making paper bags, an elementary teacher, Mr Surinder, had learned the skill first and was further training his pupils. The school had already got an order of 1000 bags from a boutique. In the hair cutting class, Mr Fakeer Chand, a barber from Panjab University, was busy teaching the finer skills of hair cutting. At the end of the session, the school plans to give space to the students to run business once in a week. In over a month of training, the bookbinders have started making drawing book covers. The school Principal said she would request the higher officials to adopt the finished products in the offices. She hopes to get order from shops. The school also plans to allow the schoolgirls, learning mehndi application, to put a stall during Karvachauth in sector 15. The students would also be sent to market their product. To test the skills of the learner, a test would be conducted in December. Those failing the test would have to undergo training for another session. The training classes are held at the end of the school to ensure that their studies did not suffer.
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Mohali woman makes it to Mrs Gladrag contest
Mohali, October 14 An MBA from Himachal Pradesh University, Mrs Brar has never been into modelling. Though she was interested in it, her parents were against it. “I do not want to join the world of glamour but just wanted to vie for the crown,” said Mrs Brar. She said her husband was also ‘apprehensive’ about her participation but it was her mother- in-law who persuaded her to go ahead. Mrs Brar said the contestants would be shortlisted at the scanning programme for the north zone on October 16. In all 30 contestants from all over India would take part in the final event that would be held in Mumbai later this year. She said she just came across an advertisement in September and she filled a form and sent it across along with her photographs. She got the surprise of her life when invited for the contest. She plans to open a school where she would hold classes for personality development and other skills. “I want to acquaint people with skills which are not taught in schools and colleges but helps one later in life,” she adds. Married for four years now, Mrs Brar has a two-year-old son.
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Seven couples tie knot
Mohali, October 14 While six couples got married according to Sikh rites, Nikah was organised for the seventh couple at a mazaar in Phase II. The newly married couples were given gifts worth Rs 30,000 each. These included household items like beds, sewing machines, dressing tables, fans, beddings, and clothes. Three of the girls married off today were from Gigemajra village and one each from Manauli Surat, Santemajra, Radiala and Jandpur villages. The ceremony was organised by the Dalit Chetna Manch, Punjab. The newly weds were blessed by Mr Rakesh Ahir, Deputy Principal Secretary to Punjab Chief Minister, Mr M.L. Sharma, SDM and Mr Harpreet Singh, DSP. among others.
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SPIC bid to promote corporate culture
Chandigarh, October 14 "Chandigarh has been known as a city of the old, tired and the retired where the pace of life is slow and industrial activity next to nothing", observes Mr Vivek Atray, Chief Executive Officer of SPIC who is also Director, Information Technology, UT Administration. "Most aspects of the city's life have been dominated by government employees, serving and retired. The City Beautiful is also known to go to sleep by 10 P.M. But all this has undergone a change in recent years. A big chunk of Chandigarh's population is now composed of young people who are educated and eager to start a productive life. In the absence of adequate job opportunities here, they have to leave the city and go elsewhere. "But we are trying to change all that by projecting Chandigarh's a new profile. It is a happening city with a vibrant social and cultural life. Some of the world's biggest brands have set up shop here. And it no longer goes to sleep by nightfall. Visit any of Chandigarh's hotels and
restaurants in Sector 17 or Sector 35 and you will find them crowded. It has a large, educated, professionally trained manpower which can be relied upon to make a success of any project. This is what has attracted some of the biggest names in the Information Technology sector to the city's IT park. And now that brands like Infosys, Convergys, DLF etc besides big names in the banking and insurance sector, have set up shop in the IT park, it has been discovered that there is hardly any corporate culture in the city. "While professionals from different disciplines meet and interact on formal and social occasions, there is no organisation where
professionals can meet and interact and discuss matters relating to their professions periodically. Hence, the
initiative taken by SPIC to promote "corporate culture". An IT Club has already been set up in Chandigarh and has been operating for the past six months. Programmes like C-TOSS (Chandigarh Training in Soft Skills) have also been launched and efforts are being made to involve the maximum possible people. Attempts are also being made to involve other professional bodies like the Chandigarh Management Association (CMA) and create a network with professional bodies in neighbouring towns like Mohali and Panchkula as also in other parts of the country. As part of its efforts to promote corporate culture in the city, SPIC has now launched a new project called "XquizIT", a quiz competition designed to provide both national and
international perspective on various issues and ideas. According to Mr Charanjit Singh, President of CMA, its members will also be participating in the quiz which will be held on October 16.
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Stress on policy for ensuring standards
Chandigarh, October 14 He emphasised the need to establish a sound policy for ensuring standards and quality control within the country. Highlighting the importance of observing standards in the service industry, he said outsourcing had not only connected the countries but also led to an increase in employment opportunities. Jobs worth $ 57 billion will be created through outsourcing till 2008 for 65 lakh organisations have opted for outsourcing. BBMB would also apply for ISO certification in the near future. Mr Avtar Singh, Deputy Director-General, said the day was observed to raise awareness regarding the importance of global standardisation for economy and industrial development. He appealed to the participants to inform BIS about any violation in this regard. Mr Anil K. Aggarwal, Assistant Director, CSIO, presided over the technical session on the theme “Standards Connect the World’’. Director of BIS Bhupender Singh stated that 100 ISO licences had been issued by the northern regional office here. Among others who spoke on the occasion were Mr Avinash Mathur, vice-president, IDS Infotech, Mr J.S Bhatia, Director, CDAC, Mohali, and Mr Rahul Kumar, Director, BIS, Chandigarh.
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Airtel’s pre-paid service disrupted
Chandigarh, October 14 Dheeraj, Rajesh and Naveen said following the expiry of the time period of their card today, they wanted to get the same recharged but the facility number “123” they had to dial remain engaged. “Hence, we could not get our phones working all through the day,” they rued. One of the dealers in Sector 29, Mr Kamal Juneja said recharge services were suspended during the day as the number remained busy till about 8 pm. The service was restored only later in the evening. A senior official of Airtel, when contacted, said heavy flow of subscribers wanting to recharge their connections could have led to some delay, as they get in the queue and the software takes its time to clear the backlog.
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Former PGI doctor dead
Chandigarh, October 14 She is survived by two daughters and a son. A condolence meeting was held at the PGI yesterday in which Prof Bhushan Kumar, Head of Department of the Dermatology, Prof S.M. Bose, former Head of Department of General Surgery and Dr Sanjeev Handa paid tributes to the departed soul. Prof Surinder Kaur joined the PGI in 1962 and became the founder member of the department.
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Gang of car thieves busted
Chandigarh, October 14 Vijay Mallick and Navin alias Sonu, who were brought from Hisar on production remand, and remanded in the custody of the Chandigarh Police said they were selling a fake- numbered Zen car for Rs 50,000 and a Maruti 800 for Rs 40,000 to criminals to carry out their illegal activities without the fear of being detected through the registration number. This was disclosed by the DSP (Crime), Mr Om Prakash, while talking to mediapersons after the dreaded criminals were brought to the city from Hisar. These persons were selling the same cars in Nepal to persons of good record as they said the Nepal Police was not very strict about registration of vehicles brought from India. The alleged gangsters revealed to the police that they were hand in gloves with the Gopal-Raju gang of Nepal who are allegedly involved in fake registration of stolen vehicles. Mr Om Prakash said these vehicle thieves had identified different gangs involved in illegal activities and offered to provide them vehicles with fake registration numbers to facilitate their illegal activities. The gang used to lift cars early in the morning when the police presence was lean. The gang members would deliver vehicles to the criminals in their area of operation. They used to steal vehicles with master keys and were able to get fake registrations done anywhere in India and Nepal. They operated in Chandigarh, Delhi and Haryana. Navin who is facing four murder cases and Vijay Mallick belong to the Bhim Pattan gang of auto-lifters. The Chandigarh Police recovered a Scorpio (CH 23T3440) which was lifted in front of the house number 159 in Sector 18 on April 19, 2004. An accent car no (CH03M 2917) stolen from outside house number 643, Sector 16 was also recovered. The other gang members are Randhir Singh, Varinder Dabas, Krishan, Subhash Aggarwal alias Happy alias Gurmeet. They are accused of lifting several vehicles from the city. The Chandigarh Police expects to arrest the gang leader Bhim Pattan and Aggarwal. Sonu allegedly killed Bala and Mamta (both sisters) and his gang members Krishan Kumar and Varinder Dabas in Hisar.
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Seven held for cheating lottery customers
Mohali, October 14 A team, comprising eight police personnel, headed by the Phase I SHO, conducted a raid and arrested the persons on charges of cheating and forgery. Mr Rakesh Agrawal, SP, said the persons instead of issuing lottery tickets to the customer used to give a number written on a blank paper. The agents did not have any tickets of the state government lottery. thus they not only cheated their customers but also the Punjab Government. They were operating from six shops in the area The arrested persons are Ajay Kumar Ahuja, Rishi Pal, Rishi Kumar, Ved Prakash Panday, Sanjiv Kumar, Vinod Pandey and Rajinder Kumar. The police has registered a case under Sections 420, 467 and 471 of the IPC.
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2 booked for impersonation
Chandigarh, October 14 According to the police, Mr S.S. Rana of the Geography Department, Panjab University, made a complaint that Varinderjit Singh Gill of Godrana village in Sirsa district appeared in place of Gurpreet Singh of Chanu village in Mukatsar district, in a BA III (supplementary examination) conducted by on September 27. The examination was held at DAV College here. Varinderjit Singh, allegedly changed the photograph of Gurpreet Singh on the Roll no-cum-admit card issued by the university and appeared in the examination. He also allegedly affixed his signatures on the attendance sheet. The observer on duty got suspicious as the signature did not match. On enquiry, Varinderjit was found impersonating. But Varinderjit managed to escape from the examination hall that day. The observer on duty filed a complaint to the police on September 27. The police after preliminary investigation registered a case under Sections 419 and 34 of the Indian Penal code against both the accused in Sector 3, police station. No arrests have so far been made.
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Man booked for cheating
Chandigarh, October 14 Harpreet Kaur of Narya Nagar in Faridkot district filed a complaint against Ravinder of Gungun Housing Development, Sector 34 that he allegedly took Rs 2.27 lakh from her assuring her to give a constructed house in colony near Chajju Majra village in Kharar. She alleged that he had given her a plot but did not construct any house on it as per the agreement. She reported the matter to the police four months ago. The police registered a case against him, in Sector 34 police station.
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Driver involved in mishap held
Panchkula, October 14 He was later produced in a court which granted him bail. Arrested: Irshaad, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, was arrested for gambling at Abheypur village in Sector 19, Panchkula, here on Thursday. The police also claims to have recovered a sum of Rs 520 from him. A case under the Excise Act has been registered against him at the Sector 19 police station.
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Hyponica assures good yield: Japanese firm
Mohali, October 14 This was disclosed by Mr Shigeharu Nozawa President, Kyowa Group, at a meeting with Mr Pardeep Agnihotri, Vice-Chairman, Foreign Investment Committee, Centre for International Trade and Industry (CITI), here yesterday. Mr Nozawa wanted that Japanese presence should be felt in the agricultural sector also where he thought that they could contribute in helping Indian farmers in diversification through hyponica technique (growing plant without soil) developed by his group for which they were looking for a joint venture partner. Mr Nozawa further added that hyponica cultivation technology was a new way of farming which gives a large harvest and high profit. Hyponica system had an unbelievable growing power. Some of the special features of this system were: the growing speed was several times higher than the conventional techniques, taste and quality were exceptional, productivity increased and minimum use of agriculture chemicals. Giving an example, he said that 10,000 to 12,000 tomatoes, 3000-3300 cucumbers and 90 muskmelons were harvested, respectively from a single plant. He invited the Centre for International Trade and Industry (CITI) to work closely with the Kyowa Group for exploring the possibilities of setting up few pilot projects in different states in the field of hyponica technology.
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Biz Clips
Chandigarh EXHIBITION: A four-day jewellery exhibition opened at a shop in Sector 7 on Wednesday. It has been organised by Art Karat International Ltd. The jewellery has been designed by Asha Kamal Modi.
— OC VIETNAMESE CRAFT: Traditional Vietnamese craft has been put on display at Fab India in Sector 9. Crockery items meant for every day use, were also on display.
— TNS FITNESS EQUIPMENT: A fitness equipment company, Sports Art of Taiwan, has tied-up with Grand Slam, to market its fitness equipment in India. Grand Slam on Thursday launched these equipment. Grand Slam's store in Sector 22-C also has a wide range of motorised treadmills.
— TNS
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