Jalandhar, January 29
Hectic political activity is being witnessed in the local Youth Congress circles. With efforts on to name the new DYC (rural) chief following the arrest of Sukhmeet Singh Deputy in the sensational Gagan Nanda, alias Mikky, kidnapping case, various contenders have thrown their hats in the ring.

As many as six persons have reportedly approached PYC president Vijay Inder Singla to stake their claim for the post.

A meeting of the block presidents and workers was held here under the presidentship of Singla. Those present apprised him of the demoralisation among the rank and file of the party following the arrest of Deputy.

Many activists complained that Deputy had been indulging in anti-social activities at the cost of the party work.

No meetings had been held and even when they were held only those close to the former district chief were called. Even our genuine suggestions and feedback were ignored, they alleged.

They pointed out that only a politically active youth from the rural area should be considered for the post. This would help in strengthening the unit at the grassroots level, they added.

Talking to The Tribune, Singla said there was no option but to remove Deputy from the post after he was arrested in the case. He had brought a bad name to our organisation that prides itself on appointing meritorious workers to party positions.

He said he had convened a meeting of the block presidents yesterday where he listened to their feedback on the suitability of various contenders. “We will ensure that a person with an impeccable record is appointed in the coming days,” he added.

The PYC chief said he would be recommending a couple of names to the IYC chief who would select a candidate.

Singla also added that various programmes had been chalked out so that the party policies could be brought to the notice of the people. “I will also be going round the state to meet and remove the grievances of the party workers,” he added.

Jalandhar, January 29
Though the municipal corporation has spent more than Rs 30 lakh to construct two parallel bridges on the GT Road across DAV College to clear the traffic bottlenecks, the funds seem to have gone down the drain. For the past two years these bridges have not been used owing to serious obstructions here.

The bridges have been constructed exactly on the right side of the old bridges, which are quite narrow, making the sites quite prone to traffic jams. While one bridge falls on the DAV canal, the other is on the Kala Sanghian drain distributary.

However, the new portion on the right side of both the bridges is not being used owing to non-alignment of the division between the bridges with the dividers on the road. As a result, passers-by continue to use the old, left side of the bridge making the narrow area accident-prone.

To add to the obstruction, nearly half-a-dozen trees and poles standstill for those who even try to use the right side of the bridges. Owing to the hindrance caused by the trees, the construction of approaches of the new bridge on drain distributary could not be completed for the past few months.

A businessman, Gurbaksh Singh, said, “I wonder why the corporation officials have failed to rectify the obstructions. The project has been on for so long but has failed to yield any benefit to us. As I have to pass through this route almost four times a day and I often see motorists jostling with one another on the narrow bridge.” Almost everyone prefers to cross through the old portion as the passage through the new bridge is very risky, he adds.

Meanwhile, Kulwinder Singh, SE (B&R), MC, said he was pursuing the matter with the officials of the forest department as far as trees were concerned, while the issue of shifting poles was being taken up with the Punjab State Electricity Board. “Since it is a lengthy procedure, residents have to wait for another few months before we can correct the alignment,” he pointed out.

Jalandhar, January 29
Imagination has been the foundation of almost all the things that we see around us. It was basic hints like trees, birds, lightning or even a tea kettle which brought mankind to the threshold of creation of sophisticated implements and means.

Not everybody is a Newton, a Tagore or a Picasso, but years of literature carefully stored away in books can certainly inspire lesser mortals like us to aspire and do something outstanding like them.

The city that we live in, buzzes with people who know pretty well how to make good use of the creations of our ancestors. The food joints are always choc-a-bloc with people, the wedding resorts throb with men and women partying away in the chilly January nights, teenagers flock the malls and markets and the sunny days keep the children busy flying colourful kites.

But the missing, unhappy link that separates this generation from the preceding one is that they hate reading. TV and internet have somehow kept them away from the treasure of books which is a more burden for them than a means to enhance their imaginations. A tete-a-tete with the men who deal with books tells us much more about it.

Ajit Rakheja of Universal Book Depot at Mai Hira Gate says, “The state of affairs shows that the reading pattern of the citizens is going from bad to worse. Only 25 per cent of the total sales that we initially used to have are left. We had expected to sell at least 500 copies of the latest version of Harry Potter, but it sold just about 100 copies. Matters have come to a point that we now keep only 10 to 20 copies of books from authors even like Sidney Sheldon which used to sell like hot cakes earlier.”

“A man comes in a big Mercedes and all he asks for is a second-hand book. It's not just about money people are basically not interested in buying books anymore. The only kind of books which sell are curriculum books or controversial stuff,” adds Rakheja.

Upinder, a BCA (final) student of KMV College who had come to buy a book at the store, says, “We do not have time to do extra reading because the curriculum books themselves keep us very busy.”

S.K. Sharma of Reader's Paradise, Model Town, is relatively satisfied with the sales but he has his own story to tell. “Most of the customers buy books for gifts. We have a very limited number of customers who are regular buyers and read books due to their personal interest.”

“There are more hotels in the city than book shops. For a person who is interested in buying big bucks, book selling is certainly not the right business,” Sharma adds.

Satish Kumar of Sethi News Agency in Shastri Market is another man bothered by the dwindling readership of books. “About 10 years ago I used to sell Hindi literature and books but now I have taken to selling just magazines. Even magazines are selling lesser than they used to earlier.”

Jalandhar, January 29
The Focal Point Extension, home to some of the big industries and export houses in the city, is a complete picture of neglect. Considered as business hub, this recognised industrial zone lacks basic amenities, including streetlights, sewerage and roads. The successive governments have done nothing apart from making tall promises.

The absence of proper sewerage has turned the roads in the area into a slush causing problem to the commuters. Nearly all the businessmen rued that the poor conditions of the roads had affected their business.

“It is really miserable that area which accounts for Rs 1,000 crore export businesses is lying in shambles. Though we have been making repeated requests to the local politicians and the MC officials in this regard, nothing has materialised till date,” said Narinder Singh Saggu, president, Jalandhar Industrial Focal Point Extension Association.

It was during the Congress regime that Rs 80 lakh was spent on the construction of Focal Point and Focal Point Extension, of which Rs 70 lakh was raised by former MLA Avtar Henry and Rs 10 lakh by industrialists for the development of the area. Before the last assembly elections Henry once again announced Rs 30 lakh for the repair of the roads. Tenders were also invited but the work was left midway.

“We are completely helpless. The streetlights had not been functioning for the past three years because the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) has disconnected the power supply following failure of the Punjab Small Industries and Export Corporation (PSIEC) to pay the electricity bills,” said Rajan Gupta, owner of Kohinoor Metal Industries.

Another problem faced is the continuous blockage of the sewerage which leads to stagnation of water on the roads. “The problem does not end here. The PSIEC has installed three tubewells for potable water, but only one is functional due to which water shortage is a common problem,” said Gupta.

Owner of Taj Carpets Vikas Katyal said, “We have been facing denials by the successive governments as well as MC officials. Even the PSIEC is a mute spectator to most of our problems.”

When contacted, Jalandhar (North) MLA K.D. Bhandari said, “We have sent a plan, amounting to Rs 4 crore passed by the PSIEC, to finance minister Manpreet Badal and expect development work to begin within a couple of months.”

Jalandhar, January 29
The Hind Sewa Samiti, a city based NGO, has been serving society for the past 19 years. Set up in 1989, the samiti has been providing ration regularly to 18 needy families of the city for several years.

Every winter it provides blankets to the poor, celebrates festivals like Lohri and Divali with destitute persons, apart from contributing generously to the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund, especially during natural calamities or wars.

Talking to The Tribune, samiti president Sunil Sharma said, “It’s been three years since the NGO has been providing ration, including 10 kg of wheat flour, 1 kg of pulses, 1 kg of rice every month, along with two pieces of soap to 18 needy families.”

In the wake of the Kargil war, tsunami and the Gujarat earthquake, the samiti contributed Rs 4 lakh, Rs 2.5 lakh and Rs 2 lakh to the PM’s Relief Fund, said its chairman S.D. Chugh and general secretary Rajat Mohindru.

Jalandhar, January 29
Mayor World School paid tributes to the nation by celebrating “India Week”. Students participated in a week-long series of competitions which began with a dance performance in “nritya utsav” by students of different classes.

The art competition saw the entire school busy painting and sketching in the grounds of the school with instrumental music in the background lending a touch of tranquillity. The celebrations culminated with a programme called “Glimpses of Punjab”, depicting the ethnicity of the state.

A typical Punjab village with a tractor and a traditional mud wall decorated with paintings, girls performing the giddha and fields with a scarecrow added to the ethnicity. The dhabas were an added attraction and lent a touch of authenticity to the entire scene. A Baisakhi mela replete with fortune tellers with their parrots and traditional “halwais” set the scene in motion.

The Republic Day celebrations were held at DIPS School, Karol Bagh, where students recited patriotic poems and presented group songs on patriotic themes. Students presented dance items on various numbers as they held small Tricolours in their hands.

The toddlers raised slogans “Bharat Mata ki jai”. Principal Sarvesh extended greetings and discussed with them the importance of the day. The celebrations concluded with the singing of the National Anthem.

Kendriya Vidyalaya Suranussi celebrated the day by hoisting the National Flag. Students presented a cultural programme. Principal Gurjit Singh Sethi delivered the speech recalling the valour of the soldiers who laid down their lives to safeguard the country’s borders.

Dr Lakhwant Singh, reader in the department of physics of Guru Nanak Dev University, explained different regions of electromagnetic spectrum and their applications in elucidation of molecular structure. He emphasised on introduction of new experiments related to spectroscopy.