The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

NARCO TRAP
City enters dark alley of drugs
Youngsters hooked to smack; 104 smack peddlers arrested in 8 months
Varinder Singh
Tribune News Service

What the police say

Police officials said that there was no doubt that poppy husk still ruled the roost in rural areas, but urban areas were swept by smack. “It is a different matter that presenting a total picture is very difficult,” remarked a police official. If police records are to be believed, the majority of smack peddlers (30) of Doaba region were active in Jalandhar, followed by Kapurthala (10) and Hoshiarpur (8).

Newly acquired affluence brings with it vices and, in case of Doaba, it’s addiction to smack. Smack has almost driven away the once very ‘popular’ cough syrups and, to some extent, even charas, heroin and poppy husk out of the murky drug trade. It’s an open secret that this heartland of Doaba region is notorious for drug trade, thanks to more and more youngsters falling prey to drug abuse.

With the purchasing power of youngsters shooting up, partly thanks to NRI influence, youngsters — mostly college-going boys and girls — are going in for smack. Hardly any upper class youngster takes those sugary cough syrups available in the market for Rs 25- Rs 30. These syrups were popular in the entire northern region till about three years back.

Instead of gobbling up 200-250 ml of liquid substance to get an “average” kick, drug-addicted youngsters of the city and surrounding areas now prefer a pinch of smack and its “powerful and blasting” puff. No worry even if they have to spend nearly Rs 300-Rs 500 on fetching one gram of smack. They are not even bothered about the devastating ill-effects of smack, which is said to be freely available in city through some “very smooth” channels.

“Drugs such as cough syrups and smack are freely available and in some cases ‘dealers’ have their roaming outlets around educational institutes,” admits a police official. Dealing in smack fetches ‘big’ money to drug peddlers. “If peddlers manage to get one kg of smack from UP for a price ranging between Rs 1 lakh and Rs 1.5 lakh, they can sell it the very second day in Punjab for Rs 3 lakh to Rs 5 lakh. All what they have to do is to bring the contraband from UP or Rajasthan and smuggle it into Punjab,” says the police official.

“Smack tops the drugs and the narcotics available in and around Jalandhar. Though we keep chasing and arresting drug peddlers, it all depends upon secret information and its accuracy. We have the information that youngsters prefer smack to any other kind of drug these days. We arrested 104 smack peddlers between April and November this year,” says Mr Gurpreet Singh Bhullar, who was earlier the SSP here. He asserts that more stringent steps would be taken to curb the vice of drug addiction and for this the help of all sections of society would be taken.

If the preference of drugs among youngsters is listed, smack tops the list. It is followed by poppy husk, opium, charas, psychotropic drugs and cough syrups. “Hardly anyone tries cough syrups nowadays. All are for smack. But as far as my personal choice is concerned, it is poppy husk. I earn money for buying it,” says Surjit Ram, a 42-year-old alleged drug peddler, based at Nawanshahr. This drug-peddler was arrested by police for alleged drug peddling.

Almost similar is the perception of Geeta, a 19-year-old smack peddler of Silkiana village near Nawanshahr. She was arrested with a consignment of 50 gm smack, which she had allegedly smuggled from Delhi to sell it in Punjab. “There is a very high demand of smack and one can earn good amount of money if one is successful in getting it transported from UP, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh to Punjab,” says Geeta.

According to Dr Manjit Singh Saini, a de-addiction expert from Jalandhar, “The smack intake among youngsters has doubled during the past five years. What is more worrying is that youngsters in the age group of 18 to 30 years are falling prey to it. The reason for their allurement towards smack is its easy availability. Moreover, in today’s ‘happening’ world, some youngsters want to experiment with something new, even though it may end up ruining their lives. Peer pressure also drives them to this murky lane.”

Fickle finger of fate made DMU driver swap duty
Deepkamal Kaur and Minna Zutshi
Tribune News Service

How they wished the day had never dawned. The darkness of cold night was far better than the sun-tasseled morning of Tuesday. The family members of Avtar Singh, the driver of the ill-fated Jalandhar-Pathankot DMU, feel that fate conspired to snatch their loved one from them. The dead driver’s house looks gloomy; the coldness of death is still perceptible there. Avtar Singh’s widow, Charanjit Kaur, is too distraught to talk. How can she ever forget that her husband was not scheduled to drive the DMU on Tuesday morning? As per his duty chart, he was to drive a DMU to Nawanshahr in evening that day. But a colleague’s request to swap the duty with him made him leave his home at 8.30 am. A little before the mid-noon, the news of the accident reached his home.

Two of his four sons rushed to the accident site at Harse Maansar village, 10 km beyond Mukerian, and found that the winner of the “Best Locomotive Driver Award-2003” was no more. Their father’s mutilated body was found in the mangled remains of the train engine.

Fifty-eight-year-old Avtar Singh had just one more month in service. His retirement was due the next month. In his nearly 40-year-service, he had received a host of awards and certificates from the DRM of Ferozepore headquarters.

There are many “ifs” that flit across his family members’ minds. If only he had not gone that day, if only he had retired a month earlier, if only the signals between Mirthal and Bhangala stations had not been dysfunctional. But the stark reality of having lost their family member hits them hard every moment.

“My father was a very alert driver. The track had a turn and both train drivers coming from opposite sides could not see each other. Otherwise, my father may have done something to avert the tragedy,” says the deceased driver’s son.

Surprisingly, no senior official from the railways has yet visited this driver’s house or sent any condolence message. However, the family is grateful to their father’s colleagues, who have assured them of full support. The family is yet to receive any ex-gratia amount. The railway personnel had, however, come to their home to obtain the signatures of Avtar Singh’s widow, who was told that the amount would be deposited in Avtar Singh’s bank account.

The train accident left two other city residents dead. Fate cut short the life journey of Naresh Kumar, a resident of Basti Gujan, and Surinder Dhillon, an employee of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL). Naresh was shifted to Dayanand Medical Hospital at Ludhiana where he succumbed to his injuries.

But there are some who thank fate for being kind to them. Among them is Mehboob (23), a plumber from Santokhpura who was travelling in the first bogey of Jammu Tawi-Ahmedabad Express. He escaped with minor injuries and is now recuperating at the Jalandhar Civil Hospital. Recalling that “horrifying moment”, he says he was standing near the door of the train when he saw the other train coming from the opposite side. This was just a split second before the accident.

“There was an earth shattering noise and a huge cloud of smoke. I jumped out of the train and ran away from the site as fast as my legs could carry me,” he says, adding that what he remembers next is about a villager serving him water. Then he realised that his friend, Narayan (32), with whom he was travelling, was not there. Thankfully, the villagers had managed to save Narayan who was trapped in the rubble. The close call with death still has these young men shiver.

For rickshaw puller Chetan Mandal (25), a resident of Lamma Pind, it was sheer providence that saved him. He cannot thank enough the good Samaritans who heard his frenzied cries and took him out of the mangled bogie.

Encroachment by police; MC Commissioner says notices to SSP drew a blank
J.S. Malhotra

The district police is in news again. And for wrong reasons. It has been illegally occupying shops of Jalandhar improvement trust and the local municipal corporation. What is even more startling is that it has been in occupation of these shops for the past two decades. These shops, worth crores of rupees, are being used to run police stations.

Police station number 5 was set up in a JP Nagar market during the days of terrorism. Earlier, the police station was set up in a rented building, which was vacated following an order of a lower court. The then-district police authorities, in an oral agreement with the local improvement trust, were allowed to occupy six shops for a period of only six months to run the police station. According to the agreement, after six months, the police was supposed to make an alternative arrangement for the police station at some other place.

The shops were given to the police without any rent or lease money. The reasoning was simple — “The police needs requisite infrastructure to maintain law and order, particularly to combat terrorism”. But with the passage of time, the police authorities occupied all shops in the newly- built market, even though they had no authority to do this. The question of vacating the six allocated shops did not arise in such a scenario. Repeated communiqués from the authorities concerned to vacate the market failed to elicit any response from the district police.

“Every time, during district level meetings, we raise the issue of vacating the shops. But the police has now started asking us to make available another suitable site to construct the police station. This is in contrast to the assurance on the basis of which shops were allotted for a period of six months only,” a senior improvement trust official revealed, adding that they were going to take up the matter with the state home department, as the present cost of the entire market was more than Rs 1.5 crore.

This is not all. The law-enforcing agency has set up a police post in a market, developed by the municipal corporation at Garha locality, to maintain a vigil on far-flung areas of Jalandhar South and Jalandhar Cantonment. The police post was later converted into a full-fledged police station number 7 by the state Home Department about two years ago.

Interestingly, the authorities at police station number 7 were found consuming power directly from the electricity poles of the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) by using “kundi” connections on several occasions.

The road in front of the police station is being used to park impounded vehicles or case properties, causing inconvenience to residents.

“The police station should be removed from this place as it is a nuisance. It should be housed in a proper building having all facilities,” a resident of Jaswant Nagar locality said.

When contacted, the Commissioner of the local municipal corporation, Mr Satwant Singh Johl, maintained that he had written to SSP, Jalandhar, on several occasions, but to no avail. “Recently, I met the Principal Secretary, Local Bodies Department, who assured me to take up the issue with his counterpart in the state Home Department. Shops worth more than Rs 30 lakh are in illegal possession of the police,” Mr Johl added.

SSP, Mr S.K. Asthana, however, not available for comments.

Guru Nanak National College, Nakodar, caters to 125 villages
Minna Zutshi
Tribune News Service

More than 30 years ago, some like-minded people got together to give shape to their dream. Big lawns…a well-stocked library…an impressive playground…youngsters learning about life itself.

They wanted to build a college that would cater to rural populace. It was not just a swanky college equipped with modern facilities that they had in mind. They wanted the college to be a place where students could learn the sanctity of education, a place where youngsters could develop their latent abilities. Discipline was meant to be imbibed from within and not enforced by any external agency.

With this by-no-means-modest dream, Sardar Channan Singh, Sardar Darbara Singh, Sardar Umrao Singh, Jathedar Pritam Singh Shrin, Sardar Resham Singh Sandhu and Sardar Kishan Singh got together and in the year 1970, Guru Nanak National College, Nakodar, came into existence.

Spread over sprawling 35 acres, the college is equipped with all modern facilities. Computer labs, sports grounds, library — the college offers students a fairly good choice of subjects, too. The courses available here include PGDCA, diploma in computer science, BSc in computer science, BSc in economics and post graduation in Punjabi, apart from the routine humanities and science courses. Rural development and sports science are available as subjects at the undergraduate level. The college plans to start new courses, including those in communication skills and functional English, BSc Medical and MA Physical Education.

It offers a variety of evening courses also. “Information Technology is the thrust area. Without adequate knowledge of computers, students cannot aspire to compete in the IT-driven world,” says Dr Jaspal Singh, Principal of the college.

But it’s not just academics that is the forte of the college, sports also receives equal attention here. The college won university level wrestling championship recently. Since the last two years, it has been lifting trophies in basketball and volleyball competitions. The college students have been doing consistently well in kabbadi, too.

The college encourages its students to participate actively in co-curricular activities. Be it NSS, NCC, youth clubs, literary club, sports committee, NRI sabha, the students of the college take active part in all these. A health club, with special emphasis on alternative systems of medicine, is on the anvil.

Unlike most other colleges, this college does not have the problem of “delayed salaries” of lecturers. Perhaps, the credit for this goes to the successfully-running self-financing courses and the strong, well-financed management. Yet another enviable distinction of the college is that it caters to 100-125 villages.

It was fairly recently that the college started admitting girl students also. At present, it has strength of about 750 boys and 80 girls. “Our aim is to provide quality education to students and we are working assiduously towards it,” says Dr Jaspal Singh.

Residents rue lack of public transport facility
J.S. Malhotra

The city has earned fame for being the hub of sports goods manufacturing units, modern hospitals and educational institutions. The population of the city has already crossed one million mark. But its residents are still facing hardship for want of a very common facility — public transport — to commute within the municipal limits.

The residents are forced to hire either cycle-rickshaws or auto-rickshaws to commute within short distances in the absence of the local bus service. The residents rue that rickshaw-pullers and auto-rickshaw drivers charge the fare according to their whims, as the latter know that there is no public transport system for commuters.

During a survey conducted by The Tribune team, it was found that a rickshaw-puller charges something between Rs 15 and Rs 20 from the main Bus stand to Guru Teg Bhadur Nagar (a distance of 4 km), while an auto- rickshaw charges Rs 50-Rs 85 from the railway station to Guru Teg Bhadur Nagar (about 7 km). Most of the residents complain that over-charging is a very common problem. “We have little choice but to bargain with the rickshaw-pullers and auto drivers. The authorities concerned should issue a fixed fare list, at least for auto-rickshaws, to save people from being over-charged. Or better still, let there be the metre system,” says Mr Tarlochan Singh, a resident of Model House.

Though mini buses, few in number, are plying on some routes, most of these buses cater to the rural population. Also, there are no earmarked bus stops in the city, where lakhs of persons commute daily. Besides, most of the commuters are not even aware of the timings of the so-called local buses and their routes. The frequency of these buses is also very less.

The student community particularly is the worst affected. Conductors of the buses plying on inter-district routes usually discourage students with monthly passes to board the public vehicle. “Mostly, the conductors ask us not to occupy any seat and we have to keep standing. The behaviour of the conductors towards students is very rough. It’s like living in pre-Independence era,” alleges Ms Simran Randhawa, a student, adding that the state government should make necessary arrangements for public transport.

The local municipal corporation had introduced the local bus service way back in 1980. A fleet of 43 buses was pressed into service, while conductors and drivers of the Punjab Roadways Department were placed at the disposal of the municipal corporation. At that time, most of the city areas as well as the far-flung areas on the outskirts of the city were duly covered by the local bus service.

Despite incurring heavy loss every year, the municipal corporation authorities managed to continue with the bus service till 1994, when it was finally decided to hand over the reins of the local public transport to the Punjab Transport Department. The main reason for this decision was the demands of the Punjab Roadways’ employees. They were demanding equal pay scales, promotions and bonuses from the authorities. Besides, the corporation employees, at that time, were not entitled to pension. Some of the employees even moved the court seeking early settlement of their demands.

When contacted, General Manager, Punjab Roadways, Mr Parneet Singh, maintained that according to state transport policy, most of the routes had been allotted to private contractors, who were plying mini-buses on those routes.

From the Schools
Deepkamal Kaur
Tribune News Service

Management, staff and students of Lawrence International School, GT Road, celebrated their 5th annual day on Saturday.

Ms Gurkanwal Kaur, Minister for Social Welfare, Punjab, was the chief guest. She gave away prizes to winners of sports, academics and co-curricular activities. She exhorted the students to work hard and make a mark in their lives.

Mr Jodh Raj Gupta, Chairman of the school, welcomed the chief guest and highlighted the sacrifices made by her family for peace and prosperity of the state. This was followed by a colourful programme of folk dances, choreography, group songs, plays and skits by the students of nursery up to class X. Principal, Mr G.S. Bajwa, highlighted the achievements of the school while presenting its annual report.

Inter-school debate

Students from nearly 10 schools participated in an inter-school debate competition organised at the Vajra Central Hall under the aegis of the Station Health Organisation, Jalandhar Cantonment, on Friday.

The topic of the debate was — “Should the declaration of HIV status be mandatory prior to marriage?” A furious battle of words raged between the speakers of both for and against the motion.

The first prize went to the team of Army Public School, Jalandhar, and the second prize was bagged by the team of Kendriya Vidyalaya No.1. The best speaker for the motion was Priya Kanda and the best speaker against the motion was Maninder Kaur.

Prize distribution function

The third annual prize distribution function of Apeejay School, Rama Mandi, was held on Saturday.

Mr Satwant Singh Johal, Municipal Commissioner, presided over the function. The cultural programme began with Saraswati Vandana. The theme “National Integration” was highlighted by the students, who performed dances of various states.

A dance-drama was also presented on the theme of conservation of trees. A dance-drill on Vande Matram was appreciated by the audience. An English play “A wise mother” and a Hindi play “Anand Nagar ki ekta” received much appreciation. The programme concluded with a Punjabi dance.

Mr R.K. Walia, Principal, and Mr Yash Raj Aggarwal, General Secretary, were also present on the occasion.

New branch inaugurated

The MGN Educational Trust opened a new branch of Montgomery Guru Nanak Public School at Urban Estate-II.

The trust has stated that the admission of the students for the new academic session would begin from April 4, 2005. Trustees have promised parents of providing quality education to their wards, besides providing the latter opportunities for stimulation of intellect, athletic excellence, environmental awareness, spiritual humanism and cultural participation.

Welcome dance

Students of Eklavya School here presented a welcome dance at the Vth Installation Ceremony of Jalandhar Gurlz Jaycees here on Friday. The students, dressed in bright Haryanvi dresses, presented the Haryanvi dance on the occasion. Nandini, Manisha, Muskaan, Navyashali, Ashmeet, Oshin of class I presented Shubha Mudgal dance number “Mera assi kali ka lehanga”, stated the school Principal, Ms Sapna Bakshi.

‘Hard work is the key to success’
Deepkamal Kaur
Tribune News Service

Under his captainship, the Punjab Technical University basketball team was able to make a mark in the inter-university tournaments held this year. The team, which had till now not got an opportunity to march ahead, was able to get selected for the quarterfinals under the leadership of Amritpal Singh Khaira, third-year B.Tech (Mechanical) student of the Lovely Institute of Technology here.

Six feet and two inches tall, Amritpal is also a high jumper of the university. He got the third rank in the inter-college PTU Athletics Championship held this year at Fatehgarh Sahib. Even as a student of MGN Public School here, he had played basketball at the national level. He was the captain of the Punjab team. He played the match against as many as 14 states in the open games.

Amritpal believes that getting selected for the quarterfinals is a big achievement for the students from a technical institute. “This is because the students from technical institutes cannot miss their classes as often as those from other institutes. The engineering students have to devote a lot of time to their classes, practicals and even self-study,” he explains.

He thinks hard work is the key to success. “I practise the game regularly in evenings for two hours. As the tournaments approach, the practice goes on for the entire day. There are fortnight-long camps also, in which as many as 16 to 20 probables of the game practise,” he says.

He was one of the two students from Jalandhar to get selected for the inter-university tournament. The other team member was a student from the DAV Institute of Engineering and Technology.

This ace basketball player believes that the college authorities played the major role in his success, as they ensured that the players had all necessary equipments for practice. “The college director even makes sure that there are extra classes for the players who have been away for camps or practice matches”, he explains.

Son of a police inspector, Mr Parkash Singh Khaira, currently posted at Ludhiana, Amritpal too aims at becoming a police officer. “Soon after my examination this year, I will start preparing for the IPS examination. After completing my graduation, I will be eligible to appear for the test. I am also planning to join a coaching academy in New Delhi next year so that I get through easily,” he adds. Interestingly, he feels that being a basketball player he would have an edge over other candidates.

Eating out
Eat fresh and fat-free at Subway
Deepkamal Kaur
Tribune News Service

It is an ideal eating joint for the calorie-conscious Jalandharites, if the claims of the local franchise owners of Subway, a US-based outlet known for its sandwiches, salads and cookies are to be believed. Situated at Model Town market here, every item available here is prepared using oil-free method.

The eatery claims that all vegetarian and non-vegetarian fillings are fat-free, barring a few items that include chicken ham, turkey breast and chicken breast that contain just 6 gm of fat when stuffed inside six-inch-long buns. All other buns, breads, cookies, patties, tikkas and seekhs are zero-fat items, it is claimed.

Coming with a logo “Eat Fresh”, the joint also claims using garden-fresh vegetables in various sandwiches and salads listed in its menu. This is being made possible as the joint has tied up with a local vegetable supplier, who delivers fresh vegetables everyday. Other uncommon vegetables like lettuce leaves come from Nainital daily.

To ensure that the customers enjoy healthy food, all non-vegetarian items are sterilised by the company at New Delhi and sent here at –80 centigrade temperature. Even the unbaked footlongs are sent at that temperature and baked on demand basis.

The trained staff of the Subway also makes sure that all eatables remain untouched and are picked only by gloved hands. One of the USPs of the restaurant is that one can go in for the fillings of one’s choice, as these are prepared at the see-through counters in front of the customers.

The Subway sandwiches include the “International cold favourites”, which includes fillings made out of Tuna fish, chicken ham and turkey breast.

Then there are “International hot favourites”, which include fillings like chicken meatballs, roasted chicken breast and smoked chicken ham.

Both hot and cold sandwiches come along with a variety of sauce, including sweet onion sauce, mayonnaise sauce, honey mustard sauce, mint mayo sauce and southwest sauce.

Even the footlongs, in which the fillings are sandwiched, are made of a variety of dough, including wheat, Italian and honey oat dough.

Adding tikkas, shammis kababs, patties and seekhs in the menu chart, the restaurant has tried to add an Indian touch to its food. Other baked items include cookies, brownies and cakes.

The visitors can also choose from a variety of salads, including Asiago Ceaser dressing, vinaigrette dressing or mayonnaise. Various hot and cold drinks that are served along with the food include frappes, hot and cold tea, coffee, tomato soup and Tropicana juices.

The restaurant also offers a special pack for the little ones that includes a sandwich, a drink, a cookie and a toy.

Says Mr Jaswinder Singh, owner of the shop, “Even though the joint had opened just 25 days back, it has started getting a good response.

The restaurant gets packed in the evenings, when families come out for evening snacks or dinner.”

He adds that the restaurant is planning to come out with attractive offers like “buy one get one free” on the occasions of Christmas and New Year.

Civil Hospital patients allege callous approach; hospital hygiene draws flak
J.S. Malhotra

The tall claims of the state government regarding the provision of better healthcare facilities at grassroots notwithstanding, patients at the local Civil Hospital have a different story to tell. These patients at gynaecology and maternity wards in the Civil Hospital here are allegedly facing hardship due to lack of facilities and callous attitude of the authorities concerned.

The Civil Hospital here, which was formally inaugurated by the then-Lieutenant-Governor of pre-Partition Punjab in the year 1909, is now a picture of neglect. During a visit to the gynae ward of the hospital, The Tribune team found the ward to be devoid of cleanliness. The floors had not been cleaned properly. Some broken beds were placed in one of the corners near the washroom.

There is no proper arrangement for drinking water, as the lone water cooler, placed near the washroom, is non-functional. “This is “khairati” hospital, where the patients have no option but to bear such hardships,” alleges a middle-aged woman.

The toilets, too, stink. The stench emanating from these toilets makes the patients very uncomfortable. The washbasin in the toilet is also broken.

The Punjab Health Systems Corporation (PHSC) had spent a sum of more than Rs 200 crore on the construction of a new building and the renovation of the old building of the hospital about four years back.

“The attitude of the staff here is not friendly. We are being treated like beggars. The staff is least concerned about our problems,” alleges another patient, requesting anonymity.

Interestingly, the entire staff was found missing from their rooms, when The Tribune team tried to ask them about the problems being faced by the patients.

The condition of the maternity ward in the hospital is no better. “Sweepers are the kings here. They have a very casual approach towards their work,” a patient alleges.

The patients revealed that the lower-rung medical staff demanded “tip” whenever a woman delivered a child. “We are ready to pay something, but at least the staff should adopt humane attitude,” they maintained.

When contacted, Medical Superintendent, Dr Ranbir Singh, Civil Hospital, admitted that the cleanliness of the hospital was affected due to the shortage of sweepers there. “The private contractor, who had employed 30 sweepers, left the job on November 30.

We are making all-out efforts to ensure proper cleaning of wards and washrooms. As far as the absence of duty staff from their room is concerned, you should talk to the in charge of the gynae ward, as according to our record, everybody has been present on duty,” he added. He said that a water cooler had been installed outside the gynae ward to provide drinking water to the patients.