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Patiala, January 21
In accordance with directions issued by Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, Patiala deputy commissioner D.S. Grewal called upon Gurcharan Kaur, the ailing daughter of renowned freedom fighter and a leader during the Praja Mandal Movement Sewa Singh Thikriwala, along with a team of medical experts here today.

Grewal was accompanied by medical superintendent of Rajindra Hospital Dr. Surinder Singh and civil surgeon Dr. Avtaar Singh Jarewal, who medically examined 90-year old Gurcharan Kaur. The DC assured her two sons Jagbir Singh Jeji and Captain Amarjit Singh Jeji of all help during her treatment. Gurcharan Kaur also shared memories of her old days with the team. 

Patiala, January 21
On a call given by the United Forum of Bank Unions, employees and officers of the State Bank of Patiala held a demonstration in front of the bank head office on the Mall Road, here today.

The employees wearing black badges protested against the merger of public sector banks.

State Bank of Patiala Employees Union Punjab unit general secretary Sushil Gautam said if their demands were not met, the employees would observe a nationwide strike on January 25.

They would further strike work on February 25 and 26, he added. If the issue still remained unresolved, they would go an indefinite strike.

The rally was addressed by Punjab Bank Employees Federation Patiala unit president N.S. Grewal and State Bank of Patiala employees union treasurer Yadavider Gupta.

Banur, January 21
Panic gripped village Rampur today, as a wild animal slaughtered 40 sheep belonging to three persons yesterday night.

Rabbi Ram, one of the three, was shocked to see the sheep lying dead inside their enclosure today morning. While some of the sheep had been killed, others were badly injured. A number of them were lying dead in one of the pits along the enclosure. Villagers said these sheep must have tried to escape the attack by jumping into the pit. Around 17 lambs were also killed. The matter has been reported to the police.

Rabbi Ram, Kaka Singh and Surjit Singh, who owned the sheep, stated that there were around 70 sheep in the enclosure and they had suffered a loss of around Rs two lakh.

Villagers are apprehensive that the animal might attack them also. They said the matter has being taken up with the district administration as well. 

Chandigarh, January 21
Rajnish Sharma of Panjab University emerged winner in the 73 kg category on the second day of All-India Inter-University Judo (Men) Championship. The meet is underway at Panjab University Gymnasium Hall, here.

Kuldeep Kumar of MDU, Rohtak, got second place while the third place was jointly shared by Syed. Mohd. (Osmania University) and Ravish Ohri (GNDU).

Results:

60kg: 1 Hardeep Singh (Panjab University), 2 Hardeep Singh (Kurukshetra University) and 3 Katkar Sudhir (Dr Babasahib Ambedkar Marathwada University) and Pavel (MDU). 66kg: 1 Parvender Hooda (MDU), 2 Amandeep Singh (Panjab University), 3 Sanjay Kumar (GNDU) and Ram Rattan Nain (Delhi University).

73kg: 1 Rajnish Sharma (Panjab University), 2 Kuldeep Kumar (MDU), 3 Syed. Mohd. (Osmania University) and Ravish Ohri (GNDU). 

Panchkula, January 21
Trials to select ATC-XI (under-19) cricket team probables for the forthcoming Twenty20 nationals to be held at Hyderabad from February 18 to 22 will be conducted on January 26 at Hansraj Public School, Sector 6, here at 11 am. The interested players should report to Jai Kapila, the cricket coach.

According to the working secretary of the Association for Twenty20 Cricket (India) (ATC-India), Amarjit Kumar, 25 players will be selected for the coaching camp and final selection will be made on the basis of performance during the camp. 

Chandigarh, January 21
In Northern India, judo was quite popular among the youngsters but there was a need to prepare players for big events with specific game plan, felt Parminder Hooda, one of the topmost judokas of the country.

The 21-year-old Hooda, who participated in the Asian Games at Doha in 2006 and Asian Championship (senior) at Kuwait last year, said the judokas could not manage medals in big international events due to limited financial resources. They donot have much-needed exposure as top judo countries like Japan, Korea, Mangolia, England, Germany and France.

Besides, number of judo competitions being held in the country is quite less. This is also one of the biggest hurdles in growth of the game”, said Hooda while talking to TNS at Panjab University. He is here to participate in the ongoing All-India Inter-University Judo (men) Championship.

Living up to expectations, he clinched gold medal in 66 kg category during the championship for Maharshi Dayanand University.

Earlier, he brought laurels to the country by winning gold medals in the South Asian Federation Games at Colombo in 2006 and South Asian Championship at Indore in 2005.

On infrastructure as well as talent in the country, the judoka was of the view that there is no dearth of talent here and even the infrastructure is up to the mark.

“In light weight category, we have judokas in abundance but there is need to increase the number of competitions to groom them properly. On the other hand, the government should also come forward to provide financial assistance as well as jobs to the judokas”, said Hooda.

Faridabad-based Hooda who took to the sport in 1999 is looking forward for the Olympics qualifiers.

“I had missed world championship held at Brazil last year due to injury. Now, I need to compete in the forthcoming international meets like the Europe Open Judo Competition, Asian qualifier tournament and Asian Championship. My performance there would ascertain about my Olympic eligibility”, summed up Hooda. 

Chandigarh, January 21
The Sycamore House received the sports trophy for 2007-08 at the annual prize distribution function of Saupin’s School at Sector 32 here today. The house has been performing splendidly under the constant encouragement and guidance of Yachika.

The day started with the final cricket match of boys. Clover House and Sycamore House were competing against each other. Clover house won the match.

Parnav (VII), Uday Sood (VIII), Simarpreet (VIII), Akash Rana (V), Chahat Arora (V) and Mehroz Pal ( VIII) were felicitated for bringing laurels to the school by participating in sports at the national level.

The PTA member of Saupin’s also awarded the academic achievers. The school’s cheer leaders’ squad had gathered up to cheer their teams. 

Panchkula, January 21
A 35-year-old man was found dead under mysterious circumstances at his house here today.

The deceased was identified as Rohit, a resident of Sector 12, who had been living with his mother and brother, while his father had tied in 2005.

His family members said Rohit was mentally disturbed and had consumed some poisonous substance.

The brother of deceased, Mohit, who is employed with a company at Sector 35, Chandigarh, said Rohit was an engineer and had left his job.

He was mentally disturbed and the death of their father in 2005 had aggravated his condition, said Mohit.

The mother of deceased had gone to her relatives in Chandigarh when Rohit allegedly committed suicide, said the family.

The police after registering a case sent the body for a post-mortem examination.

Chandigarh, January 21
The issues of upgrading the post of chief liaison officer in UT guest house, Delhi, and withdrawing free breakfast and dinner at Hotel Shivalikview were deferred at today’s meeting of the CITCO’s board of directors.

The meeting was held under the chairmanship of UT home secretary and CITCO chairman Krishna Mohan. CITCO also decided to initiate diversification of its operations.

The corporation officials decided to look for more opportunities both for CITCO and its partners in the hospitality and tourism industry.

CITCO would also provide scholarships to 10 meritorious students studying in schools in slum areas. Applications would be invited through NGOs concerned backed up by the education and social welfare department.

Also scholarships would be given to deserving poor children for excelling in their field of activities like sports and arts.

It was also decided to sponsor outstanding children to visit abroad for further honing their skills at the corporation’s expenditure.

CITCO managing director Jasbir Singh Bir said CITCO had expanded its profile as a brand franchisee and would offer to extend its brand name to a resort in Barog on revenue profit-sharing business model.

The corporation would also provide trained manpower and expertise for a mutually beneficial business relationship.

Chandigarh, January 21
The 15-day young artists sculpture camp, organised by the North Zone Cultural Centre (NZCC), concluded at the Kalagram here today. Each artist created a masterpiece with a perfect blend of textual and visual imagery radiating a profound sense of introspection. "These finished marvels will add to our collection of over 200 sculptures gracing the Kalagram complex which we have nicely documented in a catalogue," says NZCC director R.T. Jindal.

Coming from Ahmedabad, young Margi Patel virtually toiled for weeks to translate her perception of bonding female relationships through sharing. Her sculpture in black marble titled ‘Relations’, the two female forms, seemingly exhales the inner feelings of the females. A postgraduate in fine arts, Margi is a curator at 'M.F. Hussain's Ahemdabadni gufa' designed by eminent architect B.B. Doshi.

Bhopal-based Kuleshwar Kothle captured the essence of nature in all its manifestations in his work veritably titled 'Nature'. "The splendor of panoramic locales of City Beautiful under the beaming shadow of Shivalik foothills inspired me to create this sculpture," claims Kuleshwar, a freelance artist and postgraduate in fine arts from Indira Kala Sangeet University, Khairagarh. Chhattisgarh-based Mukesh Kumar Verma relied on the mythological ideology for his sculpture in black marble titled ‘Power’.