Chandigarh, November 19
Tennis has become synonymous with Chandigarh, thanks to the world class stadium at Sector 10 which has become a tennis hub in the region. The next two months will witness two international tennis tournaments in Chandigarh, — the ITF Men’s Future $ 10,000 Tennis Tournament from December 5 to 9 and ITF Juniors (Grade-3) Tennis Tournament from January 2 to 6. This was stated here today by Mr Rajan Kashyap, Chairman, Chandigarh Lawn Tennis Association.

Players from more than 20 countries will take part in the Men’s Future Tennis Tournament, which carries a prize money of $ 10,000. The qualifying rounds featuring 64 players will be played on December 3 and 4. Of these, eight players will qualify for the main draw. The main draw will have 32 players of which 20 would get direct entry on the basis of their (ATP and ITF) international points. The tournament committee will offer four wild cards for the most promising young players in the country. This tournament carries valuable points that will enable the players to move up the ladder in their would ranking and also entitle them to handsome prize money. Doordarshan Sports will telecast live the semifinals and finals.

The ITF (grade-3) Tennis Tournament in January 2006 for boys and girls under-18 years has been an annual feature in Chandigarh for many years. When this tournament was last played in January, 2005 as many as 61 foreign players and 82 Indians had participated. This year also CLTA expects a similar strong field of top ranked juniors.

Mr Lalit Sharma, Adviser to the UT Administrator expressed full satisfaction with the elaborate arrangements for hospitality as well as the technical conduct of the prestigious tournament. He assured all assistance of the UT Administration for the infrastructure as well as local arrangements.

According to Mr SM Sharma, Secretary, CLTA, the matches will be played on all synthetic courts at CLTA. The meeting of the organising committee was attended by Mr S.K. Sandhu, Finance Secretary, UT and Mr Satish Chandra, I.G. Police, Chandigarh, besides senior officials of the CLTA.

Panchkula, November 19
Spice XI beat HFCL XI by five wickets in the league match of 6th Cry Cadence Corporate Cricket Challenge played at Tau Devi Lal Sports Complex, Sector 3, here, today.

Brief scores: Spice XI : 107 for 5 in 17.4 overs

Manan Dogra 42, Sudhir 31, Arun Madan 2/20.

HFCL XI: 104 all out in 22.1 overs.

Harsh Goyal 22, Mandeep 16, Manan Dogra 5/13, Naveen 2/16

Manan Dogra, captain of Spice XI, was declared the ‘man of the match’ for his splendid show.

In another match, Airtel XI won the match by three wickets beating Infosys XI.

Brief score: Airtel XI: 137 for 7 in 22.2 overs.

Kanav Verma 37, Vinay Bhardwaj 30, Rahul Panda 3/21, Sachin 2/29

Infosys XI: 136 for 5 in 25 overs

Sumit S Arora 46, Nitin 22, Rohit 3/22, Yudhveer 1/15. Kanan Verma was declared ‘man of the match’.

Panchkula, November 19
Removal of encroachments from the market places, changing of PVC water-supply pipelines, cleaning of road, and fencing of HUDA land to prevent encroachments and stray cattle from grazing were some of the problems listed by residents at an open darbar organised today.

These problems were highlighted by residents of Sector -9 and 17 during an open darbar organised by the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) here today.

The Estate Officer, Mr S.P. Arora, presided over the darbar. Officers from Civil and Electrical wing of HUDA were also present.

Ms Jalmegha Dahiya, councillor, said though HUDA had approved that the PVC water pipeline be replaced, it had not done so for several years.

“As a result, there are frequent water pipeline bursts,” she said.

Ms Dahiya also complained of the dilapidated condition of the community centre and the site for government dispensary being used as a garbage dump. 

Chandigarh, November 19
The Chandigarh Administration has decided to extend the route of tableaux during the carnival this year on November 26 and 27, even to the interior residential areas so as to involve all the people in the festival spirit.

It was decided at a meeting held here today under the chairmanship of Mr Krishna Mohan, Home Secretary, to review the arrangements of the carnival. Apart from all the government departments, Taj Hotel, Alliance Francaise, Institute of Hotel Management, Foodcrafts Institute and Centre for Media and Entertainment Studies will also participate to make it a mega event.

It is for the first time that a mascot has been selected for the forthcoming carnival. Likewise the theme fun, frolic and France of the carnival are also based on foreign theme. The tableaux will be prepared by the DPI schools and colleges and their routes will be finalised in consultation with the Police Department to prevent any traffic hazards.

The Chandigarh Industrial and Tourism Development Corporation, Taj Hotel, Institute of Hotel Management and Food Crafts Institute will cater the food street and prepare varied cuisines to suit the taste buds of all visiting the carnival. NIFD will present a fashion fiesta and the NZCC will be presenting folk performances of the region during the day.

Star nights of renowned artists will be held on both days. There will be a carnival parade on the inaugural day and a temporary mini film city will be erected at the carnival site. There will be a special corner for senior citizens and children and routine performances such as puppet shows, comedy and magic shows will also be organised.

Others who attended the meeting included Mr Jasbir Singh Bir Managing Director of the CITCO, Mr O.P. Popli, Additional Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, and Mr D.S. Mangat, DPI (schools), besides others.