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Clean drinking water a distant dream for Kapurthala residents
‘Parents responsible for most broken
marriages’
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‘Time factor crucial in treating coronary heart disease’
Laughter is the best medicine
Medico couple gets fellowship
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Clean drinking water a distant dream for Kapurthala residents
Politicians may make tall claims of development, but the fact is that several localities in almost every city are deprived of basic amenities like clean drinking water, pollution free air to breathe and calm
environment to live peacefully. Kapurthala city is no exception to this. Residents of nearly a dozen localities
situated in the city have been getting contaminated water for the past two years, thanks to the water pump situated in Niranjan Nagar, falling under ward number one represented by none other but the president of Kapurthala
Municipal Council, Mr Sudesh Agarwal. Actually, the lubricating oil pump was installed there about forty years ago. It is now not in good working condition. Off and on, lubricating oil is given to its shafts to ensure proper working. That oil gets mixed with water and thus contaminated water is supplied to nearly a dozen
localities.
The localities that are facing this problem of contaminated water include Sheen Pura, Jat Pura, Sher Wala Gate, Purana Hospital area, Prakash Avenue, Adarsh Nagar, Niranjan Nagar, Shalimar Avenue, Lakshmi Nagar and Guru Teg Bahadur Nagar. Clean potable water has become a luxury for the residents here, as most of the houses situated in these localities are being supplied contaminated water. When Jalandhar Plus team visited the affected localities, Mr Naveen Kumar from Sheen Pura showed a transparent plastic bottle filled with dirty water. “We had been getting contaminated water from time to time for the past two years, but the problem has increased since the past two months,” he said. Naveen Kumar said they had been left with no option but to use this water for drinking, though they boiled it. Diarrhoea and stomach aches were common complaints, he added. His neighbour, Ms Kailash, said they used cloth to filter out suspended impurities in water. Similarly, Om Prakash Chawla from Jat Pura locality said, “We feel that the Municipal Council has not been performing its duty with full sincerity. Otherwise, such problems can be tackled easily. After all, it is a matter of the health of the people.” Almost similar were the views of Sukhjinder Kumar, Rajesh Kumar and Ravi Kumar from Sher Wala Gate and Surendra Sharma from Sheen Pura Mohalla. Saying that not all residents could install water purifiers at their homes, they expressed the fear that if the Municipal Council did not wake up from its sleep at the earliest, these localities could be the hotbed of water-borne diseases. Interestingly, the house of the vice-president of Kapurthala Municipal Council, Mr Baksheesh Singh Labha, is located in Jat Pura locality, and contaminated water is supplied there also. When Jalandhar Plus contacted him, he said that the pump from which the water was supplied was out of order and it required to be changed at the earliest. He refused to comment on other queries.
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‘Parents responsible for most broken
marriages’
Most marriages in Phagwara have been breaking up because of parental interference, say counsellors. Eighty per cent of the broken marriages take place because of interference of parents or in-laws, reveals a survey conducted by Jalandhar Plus seeking views of the city-based counsellors.
“We receive about three to four cases of broken marriages in a month and 80 per cent of disputes are because of the interference from the parents’ side,” informs Radhika Kapur, counsellor with the Society for Social Health. “Money is the reason in most cases. Due to this, in-laws interfere in the happy life of couples and that’s how disputes occur.” A growing generation gap is also supposed to be one of the key causes of break-ups. Counsellors from the Women and Child Support Unit, inform, “A transition is on. Women are educated, but today’s in-laws still have a traditional mindset. They keep a check on what their daughter-in-law wears, what she eats, where she goes. This causes arguments and disputes. Mostly problems come from couples who are not the only ones to blame. In fact, in many cases, the girls’ parents become over-protective and interfere in the happy married life of their daughters, which ultimately leads to a break up. “One of the major causes of broken marriages is the over-protective nature of the girl’s parents, which results in interference,” affirms Dr Deepak Jaitley, a counsellor from the Society for Social Health. The Society for Social Health has received around 10 cases of marital maladjustment during the past six months. Main causes included personality differences, interference of parents, extra marital affairs, alcohols, drugs and economic problems. It is very difficult to change the mindset of parents, but counselling sessions are provided to the affected couples. This makes them understand when and how to maintain an appropriate involvement of parents. |
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Young World Deepkamal Kaur Tribune News Service Sarvpriya Chopra, a student of Hans Raj Mahila Mahavidyalaya, has topped in MA-II (Hindi) examination conducted by Guru Nanak Dev University this year. She has got 615 marks out of 800. Karate contest An inter-club karate contest was organised at Baba Attar Singh Nagar, Sofi Pind in Jalandhar Cantonment, during which the contestants from different belt groups participated. In yellow belt category, Nitin Jotwani, Kankana Banerjee, Rajinder Singh and Harminder Singh were declared winners. In orange belt group, Sushil Kumar, Preeti Pandey and Ravi Vasyal won prizes. Ikjot Singh and Parminder Singh won prizes in blue belt category, while the green belt group winners include Samandeep Singh, Gurdeepak Singh, Ramandeep Kaur, Harinder Singh, Gajraj Singh and Kamaldeep Singh. In purple belt category, Sanjay Kumar, Rupinder Singh, Sujay Kumar and Karandeep Singh won prizes. Lakhan Kumar was declared winner among brown belt group contestants. Students honoured Nearly 123 students of Prem Chand Markanda SD College were honoured for achieving top ranks in the examination conducted by Guru Nanak Dev University during an inaugural function of the college on Wednesday. Havna yajna was performed on the occasion. Ms Kiran Arora, principal, addressed the students and acquainted them with glorious traditions of the college. She inspired them to inculcate high moral values, discipline and sincerity. Workshop A workshop on leadership qualities was organised at Ambika Modern School by JC’s Club on Thursday. The workshop was conducted by Ms Gunjan Suri, chairperson of the school, and Ms Manpreet Oberoi, professional trainer. Various activities were conducted by them to adjudge the leadership qualities of students. They were also given tips to boost their morale and help them take initiative on different fronts. Colonel R.S. Kahlon, principal, and Ms Navita Puri, Vice-Principal, also shared their views with the students. |
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Students design low-budget, hi-tech bike
It gives you a thrill of a high-end racing bike at a speed of 190 km per hour. You also need not worry about fuel efficiency as its average is far too high at 35 kms per litre. The two-stroke bike gives an additional advantage to the riders, as they can easily drive it down in the city by lowering the speed.
The bike with its unique specifications has been designed by Dheeraj and
Rajwinder, students of Diploma in Mechanical Engineering, CT Polytechnic College, all at a cost of Rs 48,000. The college management now plans to send the bike for the forthcoming motor show at New Delhi. The boys said that they designed the bike by getting various parts from here and there, modifying them and then assembling them as per their design. “We took an RD 350 engine, now rarely available. We increased the piston size to get 450 cc power. Its carburetor jet was also changed and the number of clutch plates was increased from four to nine. The torque of the bike also got multiplied as a result of which it takes just 3.93 seconds to catch the speed from 0 to 100 km per hour which other racing bikes do in 11 seconds,” the boys claimed, adding that the gears of the bike were designed by Mr Ashwini Sharma, Head of Mechanical Department in the college. The boys also made it a point to combine high speed with a powerful braking system. The drum brakes of the bike are much larger in size and leather shoes used in it were actually those of an Escort Tractor. “We tried using ordinary shoes earlier, but those gave away very soon,” they said. The boys said that the bike when ready had a very shabby look as all the parts used in it were old ones. “We then got its nickel chrome finishing done from outside and it now wears a brand new look. Wherever we go, people gaze at our bike and wonder what model it is. Our friends keep on asking for a ride. We allow them to drive our bike, but with a word of caution at it is priceless for us. It has been adapted so much that no one else can now repair it besides us,” owner of the bike, Dheeraj said. The duo said that they were soon about to come up with another chopper bike using a bulky engine of 800 cc Maruti car. The boys said that the new bike would take them a month or so. Thereafter, they will get the finishing done. “The next bike will be owned by me,” said Ludhiana-based
Rajwinder, adding that they would also keep on exchanging their bikes. The boys said that they came up with the idea when they were together doing training at Balak Autos, a Mahindra’s showroom and service station in Ludhiana. “That was two years back when we were first year students at CT Polytechnic College. We both were fond of bikes and we would keep on discussing them endlessly. I owned Hero Honda’s Charisma and he had Bajaj’s Pulsar. But we thought why not design our own bikes and soon we took up the job,” Rajwinder recalled. The boys said that they also won applause when they recently drove their bike to RPM Biker’s Club in Ludhiana. “Many onlookers have expressed their readiness to purchase the bike from us for a much higher demand, but we cannot part away with our creation, which they even got registered from the transport department,” they said. “But we may not be able to get the new 800 cc bike registered, as the engine will come from car and chassis will be that of a bike. We have asked out department professors to get in touch with the
DTO. In case, we do not get a registration number, it would not be able to drive it. Getting an insurance done is yet another problem with these bikes,” they added. Both the boys also showed their inclination towards pursuing modification and designing of bikes as their career, but they added that it was simply a far-fetched idea. |
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‘Time factor crucial in treating coronary heart disease’
Coronary heart disease has assumed epidemic proportions in northern India, and abysmal lack of awareness is further compounding the problem. According to Dr Raman Chawla, an intervention cardiologist and Director of Oxford Hospital, Jalandhar, the modern lifestyle is an open invitation to heart diseases.
“These days, there’s an imbalance between physical exercise and food intake. A few decades back, women did not have push-button gadgets to do household chores. And men had to sweat it out. Two-wheelers and three-wheelers were a rarity. Cycling was more common than driving. But today, things are very different. And the fast food fad has given yet another unhealthy dimension to the already sick lifestyle,” he says. Dr Chawla explains that Asians are genetically predisposed to heart diseases. But earlier, the genes were not manifesting themselves because there were hardly any external factors to provide a fertile soil for them to manifest. To cap it all, he says, patients often come too late for treatment. Mostly, the patients are not aware of the initial symptoms of a heart attack. The overall heart functioning depends on heart muscle, and it’s not easy to resuscitate the dying muscle. “If the patients consult a cardiologist on time, 95 per cent of the cases can be treated successfully. With each passing hour, the success rate drops, so much so that after six hours it comes down drastically,” he informs us, adding, “In case of strokes, too, the warning bells ring at least four-six days before.” Very few people go in for regular medical check-ups, observes this cardiologist. Either they are simply not interested or they feel they are too busy to be bothered with these ‘inconsequential things’! And even among those few who are health-conscious, the health awareness is restricted to a few catchwords like lipid profile, cholesterol levels. The holistic approach is missing. “Also, people need to know that advances in medical field are happening daily. The diseases that were not treatable a few years ago are treatable today,” he says. About the use of stents , Dr Chawla says medicated stents reduce the chances of blockage at the same spot to a mere five per cent. “In medicated stents, medicine acts locally at the site where the stent is put. This drug-eluting stent doesn’t allow blockage at the same spot in 95 per cent cases.” However, there should be no compromise on the quality of the stents used, he stresses. “The stents should be safe and effective; and in no case should the patients or their relatives opt for sub-standard stents that may cost less,” he adds. |
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‘Jaspal Singh Hanjraw was a multifaceted personality’
Jaspal Singh Hanjraw, a reputed writer, teacher and singer, passed away on May 26. Art and culture experts say that he was a multi-faceted personality. He was born in a tiny village near Fatehgarh Churian in January 1953.
Jaspal Singh was a litterateur par excellence. He did Gyani, M.A. and M.phil in Punjabi. An avid reader, he was doing his Ph.D. on ‘Punjabi war wich Adarsh de Badalde Paripekh’ just before his death. He also penned many stories, poems, songs and even sung them in his melodious voice. His analytical book ‘Pragtiwad’, a collection of short stories of Santokh Singh, created a stir among Punjabi scholars. Jaspal Singh had a genial personality, which brought him many friends even out of his circle. Jaspal Singh, a sympathetic writer, never hitched to lend a helping hand to the needy. He was working as Punjabi teacher at Government Secondary School, Vishoa. Though throughout his life he fought like a committed soldier, but the deadly disease of cancer eventually consumed him. He was a loving father and caring husband. He is survived by his wife Sukhraj Kaur, daughter Amanpreet Kaur and son Navpreet Singh. Jaspal Singh was general secretary of the Sahitya Sabha of Fathegarh Churian and an active member of Majha Sahitya and of the cultural society of Gurdaspur and Amritsar. He was also acting district president of Government Secondary School Teachers’ Union. He played an active role for realisation of teachers’ demand. He also courted arrest during the protest rally in Chandigarh in favour of Punjabi language organised by Punjabi Writers’ Forum. People were fond of his melodious voice and many famous singers were inspired by his way of singing Heer and Mirza. |
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Laughter is the best medicine
Laughter is the best medicine. The age-old adage goes beyond mere fallacy. As three Phagwara-based doctors try to keep their patients buoyed with light conversation, the intention is more than just humouring them. These doctors are exemplary in going beyond the call of duty to deftly apply humourous craft as part of the healing process. He is part of an organisation that is not ‘formally’ renowned to be good-humoured. But his patients remember orthopaedic specialist Dr Balbir Dass in the Civil Hospital, as a doctor with a funny bone. “When patients are waiting for the doctor for one to two hours, distress can just add to their existing woes. But since this is a set-up, those who come here cannot usually afford going elsewhere. In these circumstances, when a smiling doctor enters, relief is the first reaction,” he smiles. Dr Dass, who is also known for his wealth of jokes, also exploits his humorous proficiency to put the patient at ease. And this, according to Dr Dass, makes his work easier as the patient becomes forthcoming with his problems, apart from acting part therapeutic for himself. Though dermatologist Dr Mohan Singh from Hargobind Nagar, cannot ascertain clinical evidence for the therapeutic value of laughter, he is certain that medicine can act only on an internally strong body. And laughter boosts the internal strength. He adds, “Laughter is definitely a stress buster. It induces hormones conducive to the heart. When you laugh your nerves relax because of secretion of adrenaline.” General practitioner Dr Raman Aggarwal in Model Town greets his patients with a cheerful countenance. He believes laughter has the ‘placebo’ effect on people, tricking them into temporarily dislodging pain. He says, “Laughter is cent per cent effective in relieving pain. The entire mindset changes when one laughs. Laughter can be effective in prevention by enhancing body resistance.”
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Medico couple gets fellowship
Dr Anu Pal Goel, a local dermato-cosmetologist-cum-laser surgeon and her husband Dr Sanjiv Goel, an orthopeadic surgeon at Guru Nanak Mission Hospital here, have been selected for fellowships in St. Vincent’s Hospital at Melbourne in Australia in their respective fields.
While Dr Anu Pal Goel has been selected for the Observer’s fellowship in advanced dermatology, Dr Sanjiv Goel has landed a fellowship in joint replacement surgery at St. Vincent’s Hospital. Dr Sanjiv Goel has already left for Australia and has been sharpening his skills there as the first assistant to Dr Peter Choong, a world renowned authority on joint replacement surgery. According to Dr Anu Pal Goel, who was selected for a fellowship in advanced laser therapies and cosmetic surgery at the prestigious National Skin Centre of Singapore earlier last year, said that she and her husband wanted to be truly equipped with the latest and most advanced practices in their respective fields. “We wish to pass on the benefits to the people of our country,” said Dr Anu Pal. |
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Politicians may make tall claims of development, but the fact is that several localities in almost every city are deprived of basic amenities like clean drinking water, pollution free air to breathe and calm
environment to live peacefully. Kapurthala city is no exception to this.
