Jalandhar, July 6
Set up by Punjab Technical University in a joint venture with Caparo group, owned by Lord Swraj Paul, the PTU-Caparo School of Excellence for Manufacturing and Material Technology seems to have failed to get a good response from the CET toppers.

Counselling for general category through the PTU-CET began at Government Polytechnic here today. Of the top 500 students, only one student with rank 396 filled the option for the PTU-Caparo school.

The school is offering three streams - electronics engineering with specialisation in manufacturing electronics, in mechanical engineering with specialisation in manufacturing technology and in information technology with specialisation in process planning and control on its campus on the Jalandhar-Kapurthala road with training in the use of high-end applications in laser drilling, inert gas welding and plasma welding.

A total of 40 seats are being filled in each of the three streams with 50 per cent of these on the basis of merit in the CET and the rest will be filled later on the basis of performance in the AIEEE.

PTU officials, however, blame it on students’ psyche saying that many people do not just want to give it a try. “It takes a lot of time to convince the students who actually first want to see the things running well for a year and then think of giving it a try the next year”, said PTU dean (academics), Dr V.K. Arora, adding that he hoped that the seats would get filled soon. There were others who blame it on poor publicity.

Fortunately for the officials, the PTU-CET saw very close to 50 per cent attendance by the candidates unlike previous years when it was nearly 25 per cent. A student with the ninth rank took the first seat at Giani Zail Singh College, Bathinda. The second one went to the Chitkara Institute at Rajpura and the third to Guru Nanak Dev University.

After Guru Nanak Dev University and Punjabi University, Chitkara Institute was the top preference that too in the fields of computer science and engineering and electronics and communication engineering. All general category seats in computer science and electronics on Punjabi University campuses were filled by this afternoon.

After Chitkara, other top preferences were Guru Nanak Dev Engineering College, Ludhiana, DAV Institute of Engineering and Technology, Ludhiana, and Chandigarh Engineering College, Landran. A few seats at Government Colleges, Banda Singh Bahadur College, Fatehgarh Sahib and Lovely Institute too had been filled. As many as 2,700 seats that had fallen vacant in reserved category too were being filled by general category candidates.

Jalandhar, July 6
On a call given by three labourers’ unions, Dihati Mazdoor Sabha Punjab, Punjab Khet Mazdoor Union and Pendu Mazdoor Union Mashal, a large number of landless labourers held a dharna outside the office of the Deputy Commissioner here today. It was the first dharna in a series of an agitation planned at all district headquarters.

Earlier the protesters, including women, gathered at Desh Bhagat Yadgaar Hall and marched to the DC’s office. They also raised slogans against the SAD-BJP government.

Addressing the gathering, mazdoor leaders Harmesh Malri, Darshan Nahar and Baldev Nurpuri said the Punjab government was running away from its poll promises, including the atta-dal scheme. They said the government had rendered 98 per cent of the labourers ineligible for the atta-dal scheme by imposing the condition of bringing only those under the scheme who were below the poverty line. The government was silent on free domestic power to mazdoors, allotment of residential plots, to double the pension, shagun scheme, supply of drinking water and education, health and employment facilities.

They submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister through the district authorities listing the demands, including implementation of the atta-dal scheme and giving 75 kg of wheat per month, to make those eligible for the scheme whose annual income was Rs 60,000, not to realise the electricity bills for domestic supply, allotment of 10-marla residential plot each to mazdoors, waiting off loans and implementation of shagun scheme. Among others, Harpal Bittu, Harbhajan Singh, Sukhjinder Lali, Paramjit Randhwaa, Nirmal Malsian and Darshan Pal Wadala also addressed the gathering.

Jalandhar, July 6
Ravi Inder Singh, president, Shiromani Akali Dal 1920, has said his party would submit a memorandum against the Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal to the Governor and the Punjab State Human Rights Commission for allowing activities of Dera Sacha Sauda head aimed at hurting sentiments of the Sikh community. He alleged that the chief minister was anti Sikh and called on the community to force him to drop his anti Sikh policies.

He lashed at both Congress and the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal for disturbing peace in the state by encouraging activities of Dera Sacha Sauda head for their vested interests. He was addressing mediapersons after chairing a meeting of the party working committee at Model Town Gurdwara here today.

Party workers would join in the protest march organised by the Khalsa Action Committee against the CM on July 9 from Gurdwara Amb in Mohali to the CM residence. He alleged that Congress workers indulged in vandalism along with Dera supporters on May 13 and 14.

He alleged that ruling Akali Dal allowed situation in the state to deteriorate by not arresting murderers of Kamaljit Singh and not taking action against dera supporters who disturbed peace in the state. He said party workers would hold meetings at Mansa, Jeera, and Barnala and meet district officials there in this regard. — TNS 

Hoshiarpur, July 6
Shri Snatan Dharam Sangharsh Samiti Dhanoya (Mukerian) today urged Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal to cancel the auction of land of the village temple in the government record.

It also demanded dismissal of village sarpanch Bishan Singh and a case against him under Section 295-A of the IPC for hurting the religious sentiments of the villagers.

The samiti, which has got the support of Jan Shakti Party, continued their agitation including dharnas and blockade of vehicular traffic for the twelfth day. Shambhu Bharti, Shiv Nandan Sharma, Raminder Jain and Narinder Sharma, all members of the samiti and Thakur Jai Singh, president Jan Shakti Party said the SAD-BJP government can’t remain a silent spectator on the issue. — OC