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Ex-soldier meets tragic end
Chandigarh, July 19 Inside laid the maggot-infested body of a soldier, who had completed his full term in the Indian Air Force. The flesh on his body had given way at several places; the wounds were too open, too awful to digest. His lower limbs were barely held together by a few weak strains of flesh, which maggots had attacked with a vengeance. The terrible stench was not surprising though everyone who saw the body wondered how Ujagar Singh had tolerated so much pain. Not only had he tolerated it, he had even made his wife immune to his suffering. The old lady, now in a state of shock, never complained about the mess in the house (it had not been cleaned in ages) nor in her husband’s room, invariably splattered with fluids and blood oozing out of his putrefying wounds. “He did not allow anyone to enter the house let alone clean it,” said Col Nijhawan (retd), President, Residents Welfare Association, Sector 34. For several days, neighbours had been complaining of a foul smell in the area. It was traced to Ujagar Singh’s house. Efforts were made to convince him to seek treatment and clean up the house. An officer from the Sainik Welfare Board was called but the latter started vomiting on entering the house. The police tried to evacuate him but failed. Medical Officer Health, Chandigarh MC, was contacted but he extended no help in the matter. For his part, Ujagar Singh also severely resisted the attempt to take him closer to life. His neighbours said he was in pain due to the separation from his sons. “He had lost the will to live. We tried to force him out of this self-imposed isolation but he would not listen. He was a broken man because of his separation from his sons who are settled abroad,” said Nirmal Singh, a neighbour. Most of Ujagar Singh’s neighbours testified that frequent calls had been made to Ujagar Singh’s sons, informing them of his plight but they did not turn up. “When the last call was made this morning, one of his sons said he was unable to come immediately but he could send money. How much money do you need for a dead man?” said Mr R. Chopra from the locality. Ujagar Singh himself was drawing a pension of Rs 10,000 and was living in his own house. It was not the material things he wanted. It was something else - something which his surviving wife Balbir Kaur is still looking for. The only emotional support the couple had was from Guddi, their domestic help and the only one allowed entry to Ujagar Singh’s house. She told The Tribune today, “I cooked food for them. Yesterday, saab had not eaten anything so I made him have juice. But I can’t tell you what kind of a man he was. He had bad wounds in his legs but never saw a doctor. Five months ago, he had a swelling in the legs. Consequently, the wounds ruptured and decomposed. He cleaned up the dirt once, but most of it remained.” The same was visible today when the police and neighbours evacuated the body. Some people said he was an extreme case of TB and perhaps had a renal failure. Whatever the truth, the old man went to the funeral pyre alone, with none of his sons in attendance.
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Scientist commits suicide
Chandigarh, July 19 A police official said the deceased in a suicide note had mentioned that he was ending his life as his wife could not take care of him. He further wrote in the note that nobody should be blamed for his death. The death of the scientist came to light when he did not report at his office in the morning. Security staff had to break the door after the scientist failed to respond to their calls. He was found hanging with a cable wire. Meanwhile in another incident, Junathan Bhasla (40), a lecturer of chemical engineering from JB Pant Polytechnic, Delhi, was found dead in the premises of the National Teachers Technical Training Institute, Sector 26, here this morning. The deceased had come on a week’s training at the institute. A police official said the victim was staying in a room on the third floor. The victim apparently fell while putting out clothes to dry. No suicide note has been found. According to the official, since the victim fell on a soft floor, there was no blood on the spot. The scene of the mishap was also examined by experts from the Central Forensic Science Laboratory.
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Bundh on Ghaggar: farmers stage dharna
Dera Bassi, July 19 The protesters assembled at Grain Market, Banur, this morning and reached outside the SDM's office in tractor-trailers, scooters and motorcycles. A delegation of protesting farmers under the leadership of Mr Jaspal Singh gave a memorandum, seeking redressal of their grievances to Mr Narinder Sangha, SDM. The irate farmers have been protesting against the temporary bundh constructed by the Irrigation Department on the Ghaggar riverbed for diverting the river water through a canal. They have also been resenting the state government's move on constructing a pucca bundh on the same location. They said their agriculture land worth 60,000 acres would be rendered barren after the construction of the bundh at Chhat village. Since agriculture was the main sources of their income, the pucca bundh would spell doom for them, claimed Mr Jaspal Singh. The protesters alleged that the Irrigation Department had been giving them step-motherly by not releasing water from the temporary bundh for the their paddy crop. Repeated representation to the Deputy Commissioner, officials of the Irrigation Department and even to the SDM have proved futile. The protesters complained that the local administration at a meeting attended by the tehsildar, the DSP and the Executive Engineer of the Irrigation Department had assured them the release of water for villages on the downstream of the river from Chhat village after June 30. But they failed to fulfil the promise. Mr Jaspal Singh said the farmers broke the makeshift bundh on June 7 when officials of every department ignored them. Following this, criminal cases were registered against 15 farmers on the complaint of the Irrigation Department. When contacted, the SDM said maintaining law and order was his duty. The violators were booked as per the law. He also claimed that the state government has proposed a bundh on the Ghaggar river at Chhat village. “Since the case was related to the irrigation so problem would be solved by officials of the Irrigation Department,” claimed Mr Sangha. Mr Gurdial Singh, Executive Engineer, Irrigation Department, was not available for comments.
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Preparing for the world stage
Chandigarh, July 19 In Chandigarh to hand out degrees to students of the National Institute of Fashion Design today, the Marathi lass spoke in a familiar tone — a tone which most Miss Indias tend to acquire post pageants. “I am touched by the pain of elders, of abandoned children and others who live their lives on the edge. In Mumbai, I spend a lot of time visiting NGOs and shelter homes, and try to help people in whatever way I can,” says the beauty queen whose social role is not to be missed. It is another matter that she does not have much to say about the Mumbai blasts. “I have not been able to meet the victims. I was caught up at a shooting schedule with Hemant Trivedi. However, I have extended some monetary help by way of social welfare fund collection agencies,” clarifies
Amruta, the second runners-up at the Miss India contest held recently. Social welfare apart, Amruta has other vibrant interests, including
“rangoli”. A way of life for Marathis, “rangoli” is to Amruta the very synonym of life. “It is representative of nature and its manifestations. Name a mood and we have a colour for it,” says the girl, who looks like the one next door. However, there’s something about her name, which she rushes to mention, “It is derived from the Sanskrit word ‘Amrit’. And true to my name, I am very honest to myself.” Perhaps it was this honesty that helped Amruta sail through a tough contest, which has paved the way for another major one. Busy preparing for the international Miss Earth pageant, which Amruta feels is the toughest in terms of screening procedures, she adds, “I am concentrating a lot on speech and diction. There is a lot of ‘gymming’ in my schedules which are tightly packed. As for foods, no oily stuff, anymore. I am living on boiled vegetables and a single chapatti in a day.” At peace with her hectic lifestyle, Amruta is thoroughly enjoying her new-found fame. No wonder she is keeping Bollywood flicks in her oeuvre, for use in future. “No films for two years, as I have to complete my graduation. However, I would certainly be open to the idea of movies once I am academically settled with at least a basic degree in hand,” says the girl, who knows her assets well. About the forthcoming Miss Earth pageant, she is more than just confident. “Most girls one is competing with are tall. I am confident as far as height goes. I am 5’ 11”.” On a query about how much of a chance Indian beauty queens stand in international pageants, Amruta said, “Preferences change with every passing year because judges change. In any case, beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder.” How much of beauty does she exude on world stage remains to be seen.
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85 file nominations for Mohali civic poll
Mohali, July 19 As many as 85 persons filed their nomination papers with the area remaining jampacked for most of the day. The scene was marked by great enthusiasm and drum beats as prospective candidates with garlands trooped the council office. For many of those who could not file their poll papers today, it was a great disappointment as the ‘mahurat’ had been determined for today. Several would-be candidates had to return due to heavy rush and are expected to return tomorrow, the last day of filing nominations, to file their papers. Following are the names of the prospective candidates who filed their nomination papers today. (The ward number is given in brackets): Ms Deep Kaur Sian (28), Mr Lakhwinder Singh (29), Mr Amrik Singh (17), Ms Baljit Kaur (25), Ms Monika (25), Mr Kamaldev (29), Mr Harcharan Singh Tulsi (26), Mr Gurinder Singh (23), Mr Narinder Singh Lamba (11), Ms Manjit Kaur (4), Ms Manmohan Kaur (6), Mr Amrik Singh (6), Ms Surinder Kaur (19), Ms Gurmit Kaur (19), Mr Kawaljit Singh (2), Mr Sarwan Singh Badal (12), Ms Ravinder Kaur Badal (12), Ms Amteshwar Kaur (16), Ms Surjit Kaur (16) Ms Surinder Kaur (13), Mr Mohinder Singh Mann (2), Mr Baldev Singh (2), Ms Indu Sehgal (4), Mr Kulwant Singh (15), Mr Naurang Singh (14), Mr Chander Mohan (20), Mr Mohinder Chopra (3), Ms Jyoti Sharma (1), Mr Ram Murti Kalia (8), Mr Mukandi Singh (24), Mr Ram Chander (24), Mr Narinder Singh (24), Ms Manju (25), Mr Kuljit Singh Bedi (27), Mr Amrik Singh Bhatti (27), Ravideep (23), Mr Sukhminder Singh (18), Mr Hakam Singh (18), Mr Gurmeet Singh Walia (21), Mr Kulwant Singh (17), Mr Surjit Singh Garewal (27), Mr Sukhdev Singh (24), Harsh Sharma (27), Mr Jaswinder Singh (2), Ms Raj Rani (19), Mr Rishiv Jain (20), Mr Gaurav Jain (20), Ms Gurmeet Kaur (18), Mr Balraj Singh (30), Mr Gurmukh Singh (5), Mr Kuljit Singh (12), Mr Harmanpreet Singh (8), Ms Gurdeep Kaur (19), Ms Gurnam Kaur (19), Mr Nirmal Singh (18), Mr Rajinder Singh (6), Mr Baljinder Singh (6), Ms Jyoti Walia (28), Ms Harvinder Kaur (19), Nirmal Kaushal (11), Jatinder Anand (11), Ms Anita Devi (31), Mr Bir Singh (29), Ms Parkash Wati (13), Ms Subhdara Devi (13), Ms Usha Rani (31), Ms Biasa (13), Ms Monika (13), Ms Ranjana (19), Ms Amarpal Kaur (7), Ms Inderjit Kaur (21), Ms Ravinder Kaur (16), Ms Baljit Kaur (29), Mr Harpal Singh (26), Ms Harvinder Kaur (10), Mr Rajinder Singh (8), Ms Charanjit Kaur (20), Mr Surinder Singh (21), Mr Karnail Singh (2), Mr Gurnam Bindra Singh (15), Mr Bharat Bhushan (2), Ms Kamaljit Kaur (4), Mr Ajit Singh (8), Ms Suman Garg (4), Mr Balwinder Singh (20).
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Use of loudspeakers restricted during MC poll
Mohali, July 19 It is learnt that keeping the Supreme Court directions in mind those contesting the elections will be told to keep the volume of the loudspeakers at a low pitch so that residents did not get disturbed. The candidates would be allowed to make use of
loudspeakers only from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. However, Deputy Commissioner, Tejveer Singh said that clarifications about the timings for the use of loudspeakers would be sought from the State Election Commission. The Municipal Council and PUDA have been directed to ensure that no defacement of public property was done during the elections . Both agencies have been asked to form teams for different areas to keep a watch that candidates did not indulge in defacing public property. In case such cases were found, the police should be informed immediately so that action could be taken against erring persons. Mr Tejveer Singh said no misuse of official machinery would be allowed during the time of civic body elections. It would also be seen that residents of the town were not put to any inconvenience. He said the law and order issue was discussed with the SSP, Mr Naunihal Singh, at a meeting today. Plans were being chalked out to ensure smooth and fair elections in the town.
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Mother reunited with abandoned baby
Chandigarh, July 19 Only a few days ago, the PGI Child Line volunteers had shifted the child to the Missionaries of Charity for temporary shelter. From April 23 to May 30, the baby had been lodged at the PGI’s Advanced Pediatric Centre where he was found abandoned by one of the doctors on duty. The case is not the usual one in which parents move on after leaving their child in the lurch. In this case, Reshma, the mother first delivered the premature baby in General Hospital, Sector 6, Panchkula. Weak as the baby was, he was referred to the PGI while the mother developed serious complications. Says Kulpreet Kaur, from Child Line, “The father who called himself Bajinder came to the PGI along with Reshma and admitted the child. We even made their registration card. But while the child was being attended to, the parents disappeared. It was not until the end of May that the father appeared on the scene again and started claiming the child. We had our doubts because he brought no proof of his address.” Meanwhile, the child was being attended to by volunteers sent by the All-India Women’s Conference and the Society for Disowned Humans and Animals. Kulpreet, who has been coordinating the case, further informed Chandigarh Tribune, “We shifted the child to the Missionaries of Charity on May 30. The sisters even got him a blood transfusion and helped him recover completely. It was a few days after Bajinder had come that we started receiving calls from Reshma about the child. She told us not to hand over the child to Bajinder as he was mentally unstable and had abandoned the child in a fit of stress.” After completing all the formalities, the mother came to Chandigarh from her village yesterday. Today, she was reunited with her son.
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Projections allowed in marla houses
Chandigarh, July 19 The relaxation would be subject to the condition that it should be at least three feet away from the common wall, not exceeding half the width of the plot and not exceeding three feet from the building line. The relaxation has been allowed subject to the structural stability. No projection has been allowed at the terrace level and provision of glazing or windows on projection has also not been permitted. While further giving major relief, the administration has allowed coffers/pergola up to 9 inches below RCC slab of the projection at the first and second floor level in frame control marla houses provided it is sanctioned in the building plans. Earlier, additional covered area up to 150 sq ft, inclusive of the area of existing permissible green house, was allowed in the rear courtyard in marla houses and one kanal houses as per the architectural standard design. Now, it has been permitted as per the requirement of the house owner provided it conforms to the minimum area of the courtyard and there is a provision of light and ventilation and the building plan shall be sanctionable by the plan approval committee (lower). The architectural standard design which was mandatory earlier shall not be compulsory now. However, it can be adopted as an option and shall continue to be valid if the building plan is sanctioned according to it.
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Citizens’ council for action against PUDA officials
Mohali, July 19 Mr Naurang Singh, president of the council, wrote a letter to the Estate Officer, PUDA, on June 19 in which he stated that the council had taken up the issue regarding the running of a Related Instruction Centre (RIC) of the Department of Technical Education and Industrial Training, Punjab, from a residential accommodation in the area. He said the house was owned by a senior IAS officer of the Punjab Government. He further said that in pursuance of the efforts of the council, Mr Jagdish Singh Garcha, the then Technical Education and Industrial Training Minister, had stated in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha that the matter of shifting the RIC to a non-residential area was under consideration. The statement was issued in 2000. After a span of six years, the PUDA authorities concerned issued a show-cause notice to Mr Ripudaman Singh Roop, chairman of the welfare council, instead of issuing it to the owner of the house in which the RIC centre was being run. The president said that the show-cause notice was issued “just to harass and humiliate him with a mala fide intention”. The council also demanded that the RIC should be shifted from the residential area as it had become a source of nuisance for the public. The Additional Chief Administrator, PUDA, Mr M.S. Narang, said the show-cause notice must have been issued by PUDA officials by mistake. It would be withdrawn and sent to the person who had indulged in violations.
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Vehicles without reflectors banned
Mohali, July 19 He said vehicles like cycles, rickshaws,
tractor-trailors and other such type of vehicles using reflectors were not visible to other vehicles moving on the road. It resulted in serious
accidents. The Punjab and Haryana High Court had directed that reflectors should
be installed on such vehicles. Exercising the powers conferred upon the District Magistrate under Section 144 of the CrPc 1973 (2 of 1974) , Mr Tejveer Singh has directed that no vehicle without reflectors would be plied in the district. The order shall remain in force from July 11 to September 10.
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Awareness camp for Kumhar Colony residents
Chandigarh, July 19 The main objective of the camp was to educate the colony residents about the benefits of various schemes, including pension for the old, disabled and women of weaker sections of society and financial assistance to the disadvantaged people for setting up their own business The Social Welfare Department organised the camp along with other organisations. Ms Rodrigues said similar camps were scheduled to be held in other parts of the UT. Ms Rodrigues distributed loan cheques to the beneficiaries under various self-employment schemes, and asked them to make good use of these loans.
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Corruption encouraging infiltrators: Shanta
Chandigarh, July 19 He stated that from July 17 to July 24, BJP workers would go to villages across the nation and spread awareness on the issue. Earlier in the day, Ms Karuna Shukla, President, Mahila Morcha, BJP also addressed a press conference.
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CHB members highlight problems
Chandigarh, July 19 The chairman of the CHB assured them that the matter would be looked into. He further said that they had already recommended 52 changes/ relaxations in the existing building bylaws of the CHB to the UT Administration in May 2005 for approval but the same was awaited.
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Expert sees 40 pc growth in software exports
This was disclosed by the Director, Software Technology Parks of India (STPI), Dr Omkar Rai. He was talking to TNS here today on the sidelines of an international information technology conference. “In the last financial year, the software exports from the country were for Rs 1,00,965 crore, which was a drastic jump of 35 per cent from the previous year. This surge in exports dispels all fears that the software exports have reached a plateau,” he said. He said though the eastern block of European countries was getting a major chunk of outsourcing business, the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) and Knowledge Process Outsourcing (KPO) boom would continue. In order to attract more investment, the Union Ministry of Communications had asked the Ministry of Finance to continue the income tax incentives allowed to the IT industry beyond the sunset time of 2009. “Though almost 60 per cent of the exports are from the southern region, comprising Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad, and 25 per cent from the National Capital Region ( NCR), other tier II and tier III cities are now contributing 15 per cent of software exports,” he said. He pointed out that the software exports from STPI, Mohali (Punjab, Chandigarh and part of Haryana), had touched an all-time high of Rs 416. 47 crore this year, and by the end of this financial year would cross the Rs 650 crore mark. “Comparatively, software exports from Himachal Pradesh last year were worth Rs 10 crore, while those from Jammu and Kashmir were worth just Rs 5 crore,” he said. Dr Rai said more and more software developers and IT-enabled service industry were now moving to smaller cities in order to cut costs. “Reducing costs on employees and other infrastructure by moving to small towns has helped most of these companies to increase their exports. It is because of this that the STPI, which acts as a facilitator between companies and the government, now has base in 44 cities in the country. These include tier II and III cities, which have good infrastructure and education institutes. Because of the demand for setting industry, we are now expanding STPI centres at Patna and Bhiwadi (Rajasthan), and propose to open a centre at Gangtok,” he said.
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Quark, Infosys awarded for software exports
Chandigarh, July 19 In the Software Development Exports category, Infosys Technologies Limited, Quark Media House and Second Foundation India Private Limited bagged the first, second and third positions, respectively. Infosys had recorded exports of Rs 125.29 crore in year 2004-05, Quark Rs 115.6 crore and the Second Foundation had recorded exports worth Rs 16. 24 crore. In the ITES Exports category, Dell International got the first prize (with exports of Rs 55.77 crore) whereas the second and third prizes went to IDS Infotech (Rs 24.97 crore worth of exports) and Universal Cyber Infoway ( exports of Rs 5.84 crore), respectively. The collective export turnover from Chandigarh, Panchkula and Mohali region was Rs 461 crore in 2004-05, which was an increase of 60 per cent from the previous year. Meanwhile, the representatives of all three governments — Chandigarh Administration, Punjab and Haryana, presented the curtain raiser on ‘State Level Roadmap and Business Opportunities under National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) in the Northern States’. The interactive session provided a background to the collective endeavours that the state governments of Punjab, Haryana, and the Chandigarh Administration and the Software Technology Park of India (STPI) are making to create the right kind of environment for the Chandigarh Capital Region (CCR) to grow.
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SBI holds loan camp
Chandigarh, July 19 The Additional District Magistrate, Chamba, Shri Chaman Singh, who presided over the function, distributed 41 SBI Artisan Cards to the women artisans who are engaged in Chamba’s famous tila kadhai, carpet weaving, Chamba chappal, Chamba rumal and paintings etc. Under this scheme, the bank finances the artisans up to Rs.2 lakh without collateral security.
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BSNL shifts office
Panchkula, July 19 A press note issued by the Divisional Engineer (Phones) claimed that the new office would start functioning from July 21.
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Chandigarh, July 19