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Around 100 more seats available at PEC now
Chandigarh, January 6 PEC has also changed the eligibility criteria for admissions to these courses. Only those students who have secured a minimum of 60 per cent marks in the qualifying examination ( plus two examination) would be eligible for admissions. However, the percentage would be lower for candidates belonging to the reserved categories. This percentage would be fixed in keeping with the one fixed by the IITs. Earlier, there was no specific percentage limit to the qualifying examination. The proposal of allowing only those candidates who have passed the qualifying examination in the current or preceding year would be eligible for admission was not passed by the board following a similar veto decision by the Panjab University in this regard. The number of students which would be admitted to PEC would be increased from the current 385 in various engineering courses to 483. “The increase in admissions is being done to ensure that no seats are left vacant after the first counseling for admissions. There would, as a result, be only a single counseling for admissions to PEC,” said the PEC Director, Prof Vijay Gupta. Three extra admissions would be done to the Aeronautical Engineering course, 25 to Civil Engineering, five to Computer Science, 15 to Electrical Engineering course, five to Electronics and Information Technology, 15 to Mechanical Engineering, 15 to Metallurgical and 10 to Production Engineering. Professor Gupta made it clear that the number of seats had not been increased but more students would be admitted to ensure that no seats went vacant in case some of the admitted candidates left after the first counseling. Sources added that no permission from AICTE was required to make such a change since PEC was a deemed university. The Director added that PEC would also admit international students on merit based on the SAT-2 examination following the pattern suggested by the UGC. These admissions would be different from admissions to the NRI quota seats. The eligibility conditions would include that the candidate had done his Classes XI and XII in a foreign nation. Earlier these admissions were being done following nominations done by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
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In wrongful confinement for 18 hours
Chandigarh, January 6 The SSP, Kapurthala, in a fax message to the SSP, Chandigarh, communicated that the writer, Ajmer Singh, was a Proclaimed Offender (PO) wanted in two separate cases registered in 1970 at Kapurthala and sought his arrest. The forwarding officer did not verify that the man had been acquitted in both the cases in 2001 after the then state government withdrew its complaint in both the cases. Without verifying, the Kapurthala Police forwarded the name to Chandigarh Police which swooped down at the Sector 44 house to arrest him. While arresting, the sleuths did not listen to his plea that he had been acquitted. It was only in the morning that the Lawyers for Human Rights International (LFHRI) contacted the SSP, Chandigarh, Mr Gaurav Yadav, to know about the whereabouts of the writer. “The SSP told me that Mr Ajmer Singh was in the custody of crime branch and there was nothing to worry. For the entire night the police did not reveal the whereabouts of the writer”, said Mr Navkiran Singh, general secretary of the LFHRI. Officials of Chandigarh Police, claimed that the lady living at the ground floor of the house was informed about the reasons for the arrest. “When we were shown the papers, we released him after producing him in court,” said the officer. The Judicial Magistrate, Mr R.K. Bhankar, ordered his release from the police custody. Later, addressing a press conference, Ms Navkiran Singh said the manner in which the police swooped down at the house to arrest him needed to be probed. In case of murder and an Arms Act, he was acquitted by the court in 2001. The LFHRI is planning to file a suit for damages.
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UT to network health care facilities
Chandigarh, January 6 Sources in the Administration said that in the initial phase, the process of networking for a common database would be done only in case of the government health agencies. “Our aim is to link the primary health centres in the colonies with the top-class medical faculties available at the PGI and the government hospitals for benefit of the doctors and the patients alike”, the official said. In the second phase, an attempt would be made to bring all medical-care centres, including the private ones in primary, secondary and tertiary care, on a common platform. It was pointed out that in the first stage the programme for the integrated data of the medical field was being worked out by the experts. “Doctors will be willing to give us the information, however, we first need to identify the details of what information is required and in what format it is needed to be stored for easiest availability to the doctors and patients”, the
official said. Recommendations for network linking form part of a report submitted by a special committee of the UT Administrator on application of Information Technology in medical education and healthcare. The committee with Director Principal of Government Medical College and Hospital, Chandigarh, as the convener, has underlined the need for automating of registration, billing and discharge of the patents, at the earliest. The hospitals, particularly government, ones would soon be working out the patient load for different departments, specialities and optimal use of medical resources. Electronic tagging of the patient records had been pointed as vital for maintaining all details of a patient. The X-rays and other reports would be archived on pictures. The hospitals would be required to work on details of having a tele-medicine facility and would soon be implemented so that doctors could be consulted more easily. Another important aspect of capturing data had been pointed as deployment of electronic modes which would be taken care by the administration. Certain other key areas where the Administration would be working on health in the city include: ‘smart cards’ containing personal details for all; access of all data to agencies like the Municipal Corporation, voluntary organisations and private practitioners; a central control room with trained staff and para medical personnel to deal with road accident trauma and other emergency cases; and yellow cards for people belonging to weaker sections of the society on whose presentation the hospitals could waive off certain amounts.
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PU centre gets grant
Chandigarh, January 6 On the basis of recommendations of an expert committee constituted by the UGC for providing financial assistance to augment the existing computer centre, the UGC has approved the proposal of the university. The Computer Centre currently provides e-mail, Internet and related facilities to various departments. The university is already in the process of establishing GigaBit technology for speeding up the data transfer rate and providing Internet connections to new and left out buildings, including hostels through fiberoptic connectivity. Some of the areas in the university will also be made Wi-Fi (wireless) where users can access facilities provided by the university. The Computer Centre through the PU library is providing online access facility to many journals under UGC-Inflibnet programme.
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I can’t be Mallika Sherrawat: Perizaad
Chandigarh, January 6 In Chandigarh to promote the movie showcased in 10 international film festivals across the globe, along with producer K.D. Singh, Zorabian admits she is not a big success commercially. “Yes! I have the satisfaction of making choices, of doing what I want in life. But then the fact remains that I am not making tons of money,” she says with an amiable smile. True. But any regrets? “No, not really,” she says confidentially. “Even if I want to, I cannot force myself to do a bed room scene. Though there was a kissing scene in ‘Bollywood Calling’, I was just not comfortable with it”. But why? After all, almost all the movie stars are doing it. And then you cannot deny the fact that remix-song videos with pretty dames exposing more than they reveal are a huge success, commercially. “Agreed, but then each one has his or her own image, and of course appeal. For instance, Kajol’s USP is absolutely different from that of Bipasa Basu. As for me, I have an image of a credible artist, shy of exposing her body…. I just cannot become a Mallika Sherrawat”, she asserts. As the interview
progresses you realise that this beauty is not without brains. She has done her masters degree in business management in marketing and finance from New York before completing an acting course from renowned Lee Strasberg School of Acting. To master the Bollywood the jhatkas, she had a stint with dancer Shiamak Davar too. But even before Bollywood came calling in the form a movie, she was forayed into the world of glitz from her dad’s poultry business through her brilliant performances in small-screen serials, including ‘Hum Pardesi Ho Gaye’. A trained ballet dancer for 12 years, she has also twirled her way into the hearts of so many people through her role in exciting music videos with greats like Asha Bhonsle, Lucky Ali, Aryans and others. Back to ‘Devaki’, Zorabian says the movie does not demand exposure. Even the rape scene has been filmed artistically. “More candid then candied”, she says, “No, I am not doing the movie just for a social cause. I am not even doing it to win awards. I was simply moved by the script revolving around the real-life story of a woman sold in an auction for just Rs 5,000 in Madhya Pradesh before being raped continuously by her own brother-in-law”. Zorabian is hopeful that the movie will click with the audience.
Awards not motive behind ‘Devaki’: K.D. Singh
“Winning awards was not the only motive behind making ‘Devaki’ in the times of masala films,” says producer K.D. Singh. In Chandigarh, along with the ‘Devakis’ cast, for the movie’s promotion, he says: “It’s an honest reflection of life. The intention was to tell the world about the existence of sordid realities of life. We want the people to understand and react”. The producer adds, “The movie captures a moment, but does not offer solutions. “Life does not provide answers, so how can a movie!” he exclaims, insisting that they were not portraying a sad India, but a humanity in its complete nakedness.
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Cold wave claims life, Jalandhar coldest in region
Chandigarh, January 6 The victim, identified as Bittu Singh, a migrant labourer, succumbed to cold in Bathinda district of Punjab early this morning, a report from Bathinda said. He was resident of Udham Singh Nagar in the town. With this death, the cold wave sweeping the region has claimed lives of 14 persons in Punjab, Haryana and Himachal while nine others were killed in fog-related incidents during this winter. Many areas in the region had dense fog in the morning reducing the visibility to zero at Jammu, Adampur and Sarsawa and up to 100 metres at Pathankot, 200 metres at Ambala and 500 metres at Palam in Delhi. The fog dissipated as the day advanced. There was cold wave as the temperature hovered two degrees to seven degrees Celsius below normal at many places in the region. There is possibility of ground frost at many places in Punjab and Haryana during the next two nights,
according to the Weather Office here. The cold wave has already claimed the lives of 13 persons in Punjab, Haryana and Himachal while nine others were killed in fog-related incidents during this winter. A biting cold wave continued to sweep Punjab with people braving the coldest night at Jalandhar recording minus 2.6 degrees Celsius. The minimum dipped by five degrees below normal at Amritsar and by seven degrees at Ludhiana, respectively registering minus 0.7 degrees and minus 0.5 degrees Celsius. The mercury further dropped by two degrees to five degrees below normal in Haryana. Karnal with 2.1 degrees, five degrees down, was the coldest in the state, followed by Hisar recording 2.8 degrees and Ambala 4.5 degrees, two degrees below normal. There was no let up in the cold wave in Himachal with the temperature further plummeting in the state. Bhuntar in Kullu district recorded 1.3 degrees and Sundernagar in Mandi district one degree. However, the capital town of Shimla showed rise in the temperature to 3.8 degrees, two degrees above normal. A severe cold wave swept Chandigarh and its adjoining areas as the temperature declined by four degrees below normal. The city, which reported mist in the morning, recorded the minimum at 3.4 degrees against 4 degrees registered yesterday. Temperature also dipped at Delhi recording 4.5 degrees, two degrees below normal. The entire Kashmir Valley was in the grip of severe cold wave with Srinagar showing 1.8 degrees. Jammu reported five degrees below normal temperature at 2.7 degrees. Cold wave to severe cold wave conditions are likely to continue in Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh for next two days while the weather will be mainly sunny in region, Weather Office said.
— UNI
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Haryana to make NRI marriage registration mandatory
Chandigarh, January 6 The ministry has published a draft booklet to prevent NRI men from taking Indian women for a ride in the name of marriage. The Haryana Government has decided to circulate the booklet in the state and has also decided to make the registration of marriages compulsory if one of the parties of marriage, especially the groom, is an NRI. The booklet — prepared by the MOIA together with the Human Rights Law Network — starts with the grim warning that instead of a gateway to heaven, marriage with an NRI may lead a girl to “step into a living hell”. The ministry advises people against blindly trusting any bureau or agent or middleman in finalising a marriage. Falling for any scheme to migrate to another country through marriage and having the marriage solemnised in a foreign country are also in the “don’t” category. For “doing it right”, the ministry’s advice is to have a social marriage ceremony side by side with the registration of the marriage. The partners should meet as many times as they feel necessary to make up their minds, advises the MOIA and asks the partners to “rely on the gut feeling” to sense if something is wrong or amiss. For verification of antecedents of the groom, the MOIA asks the girl’s family to obtain the groom’s tax return for the past three years, his bank account papers and details of his property. The Indian Embassy in that country and the employer of the boy should be contacted by the family to verify whether information provided by the groom is correct. However, an ordinary man, who is not a crook, may be taken aback if his future father-in-law asks for his bank papers, property documents and tax returns, and also rings up his employer and the local Indian Embassy to find out about his antecedents. What he must keep in mind is that it is a just a drill the girl’s family is going through in view of the increasing instances of exploitation and abuse of Indian women by NRI men in the name of marriage.
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BJP to seek Brinda’s arrest
Panchkula, January 6 Addressing mediapersons here, he lamented that Ms Brinda Karat and her party had lowered the credibility of centuries old rich yogic and ayurvedic traditions of India which have gained immense acceptance and popularity the world over. The advancement in yogic research and herbal medicinal growth by many Indian entrepreneurs, especially by a staunch yoga proponent Swami Ramdev had, in fact, upset business interests of so many multinational companies, close to Mrs Brinda Karat, Mr Sharma alleged. The public having faith in Indian vedic and ayurvedic systems across the country in general and the people in Haryana state in particular, to which the Swami belongs to, stand in solidarity with him, he said. Born in a poor farming family of Said Alipur village in district Mahendergarh, Ramdev had his education at Khanpur gurukul and later at Jhajjar gurukul. The residents of the area, including BJP workers will stage a rally and organise a dharna before submitting a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner to press their demand for arrest of Mrs Brinda Karat. The agitation will be intensified if satisfactory action was not initiated. The BJP leader claimed that the party will touch new heights under the leadership of new president Rajnath Singh and Haryana unit will give the first welcome to the party chief shortly. Mr Ram Bilas rued the performance of UPA government which, he claimed had failed on all fronts. Their ministers were involved in scams. He said the Congress had amassed a commission of whopping Rs 628 crores through Mr Natwar Singh. The Haryana government is sitting silent over the SYL canal and other issues. In reply to a question, Ram Bilas admitted that the six tainted MPs from BJP had lowered the dignity of the party. But the state treasurer Gian Chand Gupta demanded that the videos covering all the 62 MPs in the operation should be shown to the
public. ML Grag and Sanjay Ahuja also participated in the deliberations.
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Mauli Jagran fails to impress Rodrigues
Chandigarh, January 6 The Administrator had gone see for himself the conditions of the inhabitants and availability of various infrastructural facilities there. He was accompanied by his wife Jean Rodrigues, senior officers of the administration, including Director Rural Development, Chief Engineer and MC Commissioner. General Rodrigues went around the village and expressed displeasure at the unhygienic conditions, scattered garbage, poor sanitation, ill-planned development, damaged streets and roads, faulty drainage system and poor maintenance of infrastructure there. He asked the Director Rural Development, MC Commissioner, and Chief Engineer to coordinate and prepare a comprehensive action plan for the construction of roads, internal streets, brick lining of the drainage system, disposal of garbage, concreting of internal and circular roads, pavement of streets and other infrastructure for upgrading the quality of life of the residents and making the place a model village. He asked for the preparation of blueprint of the action plan within 15 days and its implementation within six months and asked the panchayat and the action group of professionals to extend their partnership and active participation in its implementation. He said it required a lot of hard work, commitment and dedication by the village panchayat and emphasised the need for establishing an institutional mechanism for proper monitoring and maintenance of the infrastructure. He said the administration would provide necessary funds, with technical know-how, to extend guidance and support. The ultimate responsibility laid with the people, he stressed. Following the directive of the Administrator, Director Rural Development and Panchayat Amar Nath called a meeting of sarpanches of all villages to actively join in the movement launched by the Chandigarh Administration in the planning and implementation of various programmes.
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Army showcases equipment for general public
Chandigarh, January 6 A large number of school students were invited . The star attractions for them were the battle tanks as they were allowed to climb inside Vijayanta and T-72 and see the interiors for themselves. The Army's latest acquisition, T-90 which was also displayed alongside, however, was kept off-limits. As many as 39 different systems have been displayed. These included various types of bridging equipment and track-laying and mine-clearing equipments, engineering vehicles, mortars, machine guns, rocket launchers and anti-aircraft missiles. It is after a gap of several years that such an exhibition has been organised here. Visitors, specially students, were allowed to feel, touch and handle some of the equipment under supervision. They were also given a demonstration of the agility of the Bofors 155-mm Howitzer and some anti-aircraft guns. Troops stationed alongside addressed their queries and explained the characteristics and functioning of the equipment. A demonstration of air defence radars tracking over-flying aircraft also attracted attention. A band show, equestrian events and a dog show are the other highlights of the exhibition. Giant posters depicting scenes from the 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pak wars have also been displayed. A motivation stall to guide aspirants for the Army has also been set up. The exhibition is being organised as part of the Army Day celebrations. Army Day is observed every year on January 15, when Gen (later Field Marshal) K.M. Cariappa was appointed as the first Commander-in-Chief after Independence. Besides showcasing the technology and might of the Army, it is also aimed at motivating the youth to join the Army. The exhibition was inaugurated by the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Command, Lt-Gen Daljeet Singh. Similar exhibitions are being organised in other major military stations in the region.
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Automated thermal sights for anti-aircraft guns
Chandigarh, January 6 The Army has also selected a foreign thermal sight to be retrofitted on the air defence guns. The upgradation process will be carried out indigenously, with the Defence Research and Development Organisation and the Ordnance Factory Board also being involved in the project. According to Army Air Defence (AAD) officers here, the 40-mm L-70 guns will be upgraded first. These guns are of the 1970 vintage, which replaced the earlier L-60 guns. The 23-mm ZSU-23 twin-barrel guns are also proposed to be equipped with thermal-imaging sights later. Though officers are tightlipped about the number of guns to be upgraded, a senior AAD officer said the number was “quite large”. The Army is reported to have about 2,000 L-70 guns, which equip a number of AAD regiments. “Presently, gunners have to manually track a hostile aircraft and engage it by determining its height and speed by using mechanical sighting system along with a set of complicated algorithms. This requires a high degree of human judgment,” an officer said. “With thermal sights, the dependence on human judgment will be considerably reduced and their capability greatly enhanced,” he added. Since it was formed after being bifurcated from the Regiment of Artillery in the early ’90s, the Air Defence Artillery, as the AAD was then known, has been involved in several projects to upgrade its guns, missiles and radar equipment. It was re- christened as the AAD last year. Other ongoing projects include the upgradation of the ZSU 23-4 tracked self-propelled radar-controlled gun system and the OSA- AK anti-aircraft missile system. While the ZSU guns are being upgraded by Bharat Electronics Limited in collaboration with Israel, the OSA systems are being upgraded with Polish assistance. Both involve improvement in the systems’ radar, fire-control systems and electronics.
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Centralised registration facility for disabled sought
Chandigarh, January 6 The recommendations were finalised following a group discussion, chaired by the former Chief Secretary, Punjab, Mr P.H. Vaishnav, held on the last day of the course on the “Community-based Rehabilitation and Independent Living Skills”. It was organised by the Indian National Portage Association (INPA) in collaboration with the Centre for Adult and Continuing Education, Panjab University. The participants felt that there should be a centralised registration facility for the disabled where doctors and other officials could take up cases and make their cards. The venue could be a community centre, panchayat ghar, school or a government dispensary. The same card should be valid across the country to avail the various concessions and facilities for the disabled. It was also recommended that television air time be compulsorily set aside by channels for the telecast of short awareness films about the disabled and these films should be shown before the start of feature films on the big screen. The council has also demanded that excise and custom duty be waived off on all aids and appliances which are of use to the disabled, including the two-wheelers and four wheelers which are custom made for the disabled. The appliances are expensive as these are imported. The INPA president, Dr Tehal Kohli, said it was observed from the experiences narrated by the participants that many schools refused admission to disabled children on the pretext that they did not have enough infrastructure to cater to their needs. “Licences for running such schools should be cancelled and strict action taken against the erring officials because integrated/inclusion education is the most convenient and economical way by which a normal person can understand and appreciate the problems of their disabled friends, classmates and schoolmates. Only very few severely disabled children require special schools,” she said. The participants also felt that while the government had thoughtlessly announced that 50 per cent concession on petrol and diesel would be given to those disabled persons whose salary was less than Rs 3,000 a month, the fact was that people in this income group would not be able to afford a vehicle in the first place. “This concession should be given to the disabled at the time of the purchase of a car,” pointed out Mrs Kohli. The participants also recommended the formation of an expert group for the identification and institutionalisation of 100 per cent skill-based courses for disabled children. Efforts should also be made to generate employment for those trained in community-based rehabilitation centres, they said. It was also recommended that public places in Chandigarh, government offices and public transport should be made disabled friendly. Later, during the valedictory session, the INPA president mooted the idea of the establishment of an institute of early childhood in Panchkula. Stating that portage and early intervention services should be extended across the country to help include disabled children in mainstream education, Dr Kohli said the institute would act as an early intervention training institute for serving mentally challenged children. Ms Meenaxi Anand Chaudhry, Chief Secretary, Haryana, who was the chief guest, promised to go through the proposal. She exhorted the participants to focus on the woman and para professional staff of hospitals in order to detect disability problems among new born children and make early intervention possible.
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Drive to check rats menace in Modern Complex
Chandigarh, January 6 Identification of rat holes and their movement has been carried out by the department. Campaign has already started and the rat holes are being treated with chemicals, an official press release said. Officers of the department are meeting the local residents and asking them to come forward and join hands in the mission. Devotees to religious places have been asked to keep cereals and other items in tight containers. The exercise is likely to continue for another fortnight, the release added.
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Shortage of water in Gobind Vihar
Zirakpur, January 6 While most of the residents complained of low water pressure. Residents of certain houses, including house Nos 6 to 8 and 133 to 138, said they were not getting any water supply at all. “Repeated representations to the Zirakpur Nagar Panchayat have failed to move the authorities,” alleged Mr Kailash Chander, a resident. A junior engineer visited the colony yesterday. However, the residents only got assurances from him. The authorities concerned should ensure proper supply of water in the area, residents demanded.
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Flights resumed; train for NR clerical exam
Chandigarh, January 6 The trains today were, however, on time. Meanwhile, a special train on Sunday (January 8) will run from Ambala to Chandigarh and back. According to sources, the Northern region Ambala division would run a special train from Ambala to Chandigarh on Sunday at 6: 30 am and will leave for Ambala from Chandigarh at 3 pm. According to sources the train is being run to help clear the rush the authorities are expecting due to enquiry clerk exam for the Northern Railways at Ambala. More than 30, 000 students are expected to appear in the exam.
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Documents, ATM cards lost
Chandigarh, January 6 A report in this regard has been lodged at the Sector 31 police station.
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Bootleggers injure 2 cops
Chandigarh, January 6 When the police personnel tried to arrest the liquor sellers, they were assaulted in which two policemen, Mohinder and Arvinder, were injured and an employee of the smuggler, Mukul Kumar, received head injuries. A case has been registered.
TNS
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Portal for small investors launched
Chandigarh, January 6 Launching the portal, Mr Sushil Muhnot, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, said the portal had been designed to empower the common investors with the information and analysis tools to take charge of their investing needs. Apart from the equity boom, the Indian market today also has a demographic advantage with the younger age group holding a dominant share in the 57 per cent of its working age
population. However, households have only 2 per cent of their savings in stocks and debentures compared to the much higher average around the world indicating substantial scope for increase in investment in this asset class, he added. And with high level of literacy, Chandigarh has grown to be one of the wealthiest cities in India. With the highest per capita income of Rs 57,612 per annum, the residents of Chandigarh are far more conscious about their investments. The investors of the 10th largest city in terms of volumes of equity trading will now have easy access to crisp, relevant and authentic information along with analytical tool on the portal, Mr Ketan Trivedi, Associate Vice-president and Head Marketing, and Mr Gaurav Goyal, Regional Sales Manager, North, added.
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