The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Chandigarh Stories

EDUCATION

Students apprised of benefits of e-governance
Tribune News Service

Dera Bassi, April 4
A national seminar on ‘‘E-Governance:Pathway to Progress’’ was organised at the Sri Sukhmani Institute of Engineering and Technology here today.

Addressing the seminar, Mr Vivek Attray, Director, Information Technology, Chandigarh Administration, outlined various e-governance initiatives taken for the benefit of common man. After the success of the jan-sampark centres, the Chandigarh Administration proposed to introduce e-jan sampark centres in the city, he informed.

Dr M.S. Grewal, Registrar of Punjab Technical University(PTU), Jalandhar, stressed the importance of e-governance in the development of the rural and urban areas.

Dr K.L. Johar, a former Vice-Chancellor of Guru Jambheshwar University, Hisar, Mr N.S. Kalsi, Secretary, IT, Government of Punjab, Major-Gen Surjit Singh (retd.), an IT expert, Dr J.K. Sharma, Principal of the SPCET, Lalru, talked about various facets of e-governance.

Mr B.P.Chopra, General Manager, Punjab National Bank, Ms Neena Singh, Regional Manager of the HDFC Bank, were among those who spoke on the occasion.

The SSIET Chairman, Prof Avtar Singh, said the seminar would prove beneficial for the entire community in general and students in particular. Earlier, Dr I.P.Singh, Principal of the institute, welcomed the participants.

Placement week at NIIFT

Mohali, April 4
The Northern India Institute of Fashion Technology (NIIFT) here is holding a placement week. Beginning yesterday, a host of companies are visiting the NIIFT campus.

Yesterday, a total of 41 students (out of 90) were successfully placed, the placement coordinators— Ms Poonam Thakur, Ms Deepti Kaushal and Mr Kamal Rana said.

Today almost 60 per cent of the students were offered jobs. The following companies picked up students today: Nagpal Exports, Ludhiana; Ravels, Delhi; Rmx Joss, Delhi and Kapsons, Chandigarh. — TNS

COURTS

Forum directs HDFC to pay relief
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 4
While holding the HDFC bank guilty of deficiency in service regarding demat services, the District Consumer Forum-II has directed it to pay Rs 5,000 as compensation and Rs 2,500 as costs to a demat account holder.

Earlier, Ravi Kumar Bahl of Sector 21, Chandigarh, had filed a complaint alleging that he had deposited 50 shares of State Bank of India with the HDFC Bank for the purpose of dematerialisation on September 20, 2003.

However, he did not receive the required response within the specified time as per rules nor were the shares credited to his account as dematerialised.

The bank in its reply stated that the shares could not be dematerialised due to the mismatch of signatures of the complainant as reported by the registrar of the SBI. However, the physical shares were not received back by the bank from the registrars even though the latter said that it had sent the certificates back.

After going through the records the forum observed that the bank and the registrars of the shares should resolve their inter controversy regarding where the physical shares are lying. However, for the purpose of the complainant, the HDFC bank was directed to execute a bond of indemnity in favour of the registrars to enable them to issue duplicate shares, with the cooperation of the complainant.

The District Consumer Forum-II, headed by Mr L.R. Roojam, president, while allowing an accidental death claim, has held that the "chemical examination report of the viscera of the deceased is not necessary to establish death by accident".

Earlier, the legal heirs of the deceased Karnail Singh, including his widow, Ms Sukhwant Kaur of Fatehgarh Sahib, had filed a complaint alleging that the deceased had opened a "Sehkari Bank Bima Yojana" with the Punjab State Cooperative Bank , wherein he was entitled to Rs 1 lakh claim in case of accidental death. During the currency of the policy, Karnail died on December 3, 2001, as a result of grievous injuries sustained in a road accident.

Inspite of completion of all formalities, the United India Insurance Company repudiated the claim on August 8, 2004, for want of "viscera report".

The complainants alleged that they had furnished all relevant documents such as FIR and postmortem report which easily established the cause of death as accident injuries.

After going through the records, the forum held that in the face of overwhelming corroborative evidence such as the post mortem report and statement of various witnesses, the insistence of the insurance company upon the chemical examination report was totally unjustified.

The forum has directed the insurance company to pay Rs 1 lakh along with interest at a rate of 6% per annum along with costs of Rs 2,500.