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TOP STORIES

Jaunt-y babus cost you Rs 50 lakh
Chandigarh, February 11
Austerity has no place in the cash-rich Chandigarh administration. So seems from the way it has been footing hefty foreign travel bills of senior bureaucrats, who live life king size when abroad.

Preity-Ness to visit PCA 
They were definitely worried when they learnt about the fire incident
Mohali, February 11
Bollywood star Preity Zinta and scion of the ‘Bombay Dyeing’ family Ness Wadia, will visit the Punjab Cricket Stadium here on February 17. The celebrities, who successfully bid for the Mohali team during the Indian Premier League (IPL) auction at Mumbai, will study the facilities at the Mohali stadium and give their suggestions.

‘PIB man’ nailed
Chandigarh, February 11
Baltej Singh of Sector 35-D landed in police net when he tried to intimidate a motorist by impersonating as Press Information Bureau (PIB) official here today. The police said 25-year-old Baltej Singh, who runs Zonal Institute of Technology and Services (ZITS) in Sector 35, was arrested on the charges of impersonating a public servant and reckless driving under various provisions of the IPC on a complaint by Bhupinder, a correspondent with a private news channel.

Allotted sites in tangle
Chandigarh, February 11 Allotting land to institutions without studying their feasibility has landed the administration in an embarrassing situation.

SONG OF SPRING: Dancers herald the spring as their leader plays the tumbi during the Basant Panchami celebrations at Leisure Valley, Sector 10, Chandigarh, on Monday. Tribune photo: Manoj Mahajan

Sanjay Public School derecognised
Chandigarh, February 11
The UT education department has withdrawn recognition to Sanjay Public School for various acts of omission and commission. The DPI (S) said today the school was running without renewal of recognition since 1996. It was granted provisional recognition for three months, but did not approach the department for renewal. He clarified that the land allotted to the school was for the construction of a primary school alone. Moreover, the school had not submitted details of 15 per cent reservation for the economically weaker sections as per a UT notification.

COMMUNITY

Conference to turn city child-friendly 
Chandigarh, February 11
After becoming a ‘smoke-free’ city, Chandigarh may soon become India’s first ‘child-friendly’ city on the lines of Europe and Germany.

Students from a government school go door to door to administer polio drops in Sector 40, Chandigarh, on Monday. Tribune photo: Vinay Malik

Fire breaks out due to LPG leakage
No one hurt in the incident
Chandigarh, February 11
Household articles were reduced to ashes when a fire broke out following leakage from an LPG cylinder in Hallo Majra village this evening. No one was reportedly injured in the incident.

Valentine’s Day can dig a hole in your pocket
Chandigarh, February 11
Valentine’s Day celebrations may bring to mind the picture of youngsters enjoying and partying but this time the occasion can be heavy on your pocket. For youngsters, it’s another chance of wooing their love interests and for the older ones it’s about reviving love again.

Mass marriages: 275 couples tie knot 
Panchkula, February 11
As many as 275 couples tied the knot at a mass marriage ceremony at the Parade Ground in Sector 5 here today.

Students of Small Wonder School celebrate Basant Utsav in Mohali on Monday. Tribune photo: Vicky Gharu

Drop unearned income clause: Minister
Chandigarh, February 11
The minister of state for finance, Pawan Kumar Bansal, in a letter written to the UT Administrator Gen S.F. Rodrigues (retd), has sought that the clause of “unearned income” should be dropped from the substitution policy of the cooperative house building societies.

Tributes paid to Upadhaya
Chandigarh, February 11
The local unit of the BJP today observed the death anniversary of Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhaya as “samarpan divas” at the party office in Sector 33.

A physically challenged couple after tying the knot at a mass marriage ceremony in Panchkula on Monday. Tribune photo:Manoj Mahajan

Fauji Beat
Internal duty: Army must not be ‘first option’
Defence minister A.K. Antony said in New Delhi on February 4: “I am totally opposed to the Army being moved against Naxal elements. The Army should be called in only as a last resort”. No doubt, the Army whose primary role is to fight external aggression should be used for internal security duties only as a last resort. That too, when the situation goes beyond the control of the states’ police forces and the paramilitary forces. But in actual practice, this does not happen. The Army instead of being the last resort has become the “first option” for the last few decades and is called out at the drop of a hat.

Letters
Traffic mess

EDUCATION

Students of Jind Baba Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya participate in a "Yagyopavit Sanskar" ceromony on the ocassion of Basant Panchami in Chandigarh on Monday. Tribune photo: Pradeep Tewari

RTI Act
Colleges withhold info, served notices
Told to reply or face cut in aid
Chandigarh, February 11
Not providing information to the applicants under the RTI Act (2005) has landed MCM DAV College, Sector 36, and DAV College, Sector 10, in trouble. The CPIO of the office of the director, higher education (colleges), UT administration, has served notices on the principals of the two colleges to provide information under the Right to Information (RTI) Act-2005 to applicants Prof R.P. Singh, Arun Kumar and Avanindra Chopra within 10 days failing which the grant-in-aid to the colleges will be withdrawn.

Education dept to inspect sports infrastructure 
To honour principal of best school
Chandigarh, February 11
To check the sports infrastructure present in all government schools, the Chandigarh education department will inspect the city schools in the last week of February.

 

City girl corners glory Chandigarh, February 11 Pragatti Oberoi, a Class-III student of Sacred Heart Senior Secondary School, Sector 26, has won the second Primary Plus Multiple Intelligence Kids Challenge Awards 2007 in a contest held in New Delhi from February 6 to 9 this year. The contest was conducted by Primary Plus, a children’s magazine. She is among five other children from all over the country and the only one from the city to have won the prize which comprises a Fire Fox cycle and a four-day package to Malaysia.

Pragatti Oberoi

COURTS

Pay-scale issue
HC grants relief to 44 CTU employees
Chandigarh, February 11
In an order expected to benefit as many as 44 Chandigarh Transport Undertaking employees, a Division Bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court today disposed of their petition with a direction that they “shall be deemed to have been granted revised pay scales with effect from January 1, 1986, instead of November 3, 1989.

2 acquitted in murder case
Chandigarh, February 11
Two residents of Bapu Dham Colony, who were booked for murdering a vegetable vendor, were today acquitted by additional district and sessions judge S.K. Aggarwal.

NEIGHBOURHOOD

Govt docs making fast buck out of private practice
Patiala, February 11
Call it irony or a quirk of fate to have befallen needy patients. Just a couple of months ago, there was a spate of resignations from government hospitals and now, whatever doctors are left, they do not have time to treat patients at these hospitals. The reason is: Doctors are more engrossed in making a fast buck out of private practice.

From Colleges
Students given tips on personality development
Rajpura, February 11
A personality development programme was organised at Aryans Business School (ABS) during which D.P Sabharwal, director, Aero Academy of Chandigarh and vice-chairman of Aeronautical Society of India, interacted with students and gave them important tips to improve personality. As many as 60 MBA students participated in the programme.

Grandpa champions for girl child
Mandi Ahmedgarh, February 11
With meager resources at his disposal, Harbans Singh Brahmpuri, a retired school teacher, has found a novel way to attract people’s attention. He makes people aware of the ill-affects of female foeticide by displaying slogans on his mobike.

SPORTS

AITA Series
Local lad Dheer Anush in second round
Chandigarh, February 11
Local tennis player Dheer Anush Bhatti moved ahead defeating Aakash Chauhan by 4-3, 4-2 in the first round of the under-14 (boys) of the AITA talent series being played at Chandigarh Lawn Tennis Association, Sector 10, here today.

Amit of Jassowal Academy returns a shot during the 1st round of AITA talent series at CLTA in Chandigarh on Monday. Tribune photo: Pradeep Tewari

Referee must in every phase of game: Player 
Chandigarh, February 11
Referee is must in every phase of the game, felt players and parents who are accompanying their children, playing in the ongoing AITA Talent Series at Chandigarh Lawn Tennis Association, Sector 10.

Tohra Memorial Football
BSF, PSEB triumph 
Patiala, February 11
Experienced outfits BSF and Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) notched up wins against their respective rivals in the 2nd All India Gurcharan Singh Tohra Memorial Football Tournament played at Polo grounds here today.

Adviser Cricket: DAV-8 rout Stepping Stones
Chandigarh, February 11
DAV Senior Secondary School-8 ‘A’ team registered a win defeating Stepping Stones, Sector 37, by 46 runs in the inter-school Under-19 Adviser Cricket Tournament organised by the Chandigarh Sports Department at St John’s School ground in Sector 26 here today.

RAF to play cricket with IAF tomorrow
Chandigarh, February 11
The British Royal Air Force (RAF) cricket team is scheduled to play a one-day limited overs match with the Indian Air Force team at the Punjab Cricket Association stadium in Mohali on February 13.

CRIME

Two snatchings in 30 minutes
Chandigarh, February 11
Snatchers continue to have a field day in the city as two more incidents are reported from various parts of the city this afternoon. The incidents took place within 30 minutes.

S. L. Soni shows the brick and the smashed rear windowpane of his car outside his residence in Sector 32 in Chandigarh on Monday. A Tribune photograph 

Liquor worth Rs 10 lakh seized
Panchkula, February 11
A team of CIA staff today seized Indian made forgein liquor (INFL) worth Rs 10 lakh near Majri Chowk. According to the Panchkula police, the liquor was being smuggled to Gujarat from Chandigarh.

BUSINESS

CSIO, BEL to produce LCA equipment
Chandigarh, February 11
India’s light combat aircraft (LCA), Tejas, will have local connection. In that direction, the Central Scientific Instrumentation Organisation (CSIO) and the Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), Panchkula, today joined hands to produce a critical component - head-up display (HUD) system - for the aircraft.

RPL Listing
Local investor devastated
Chandigarh, February 11
It was a black Monday for hundreds of investors in the share market as the Reliance Power IPO flip-flopped to end at Rs 375, a fall of Rs 75 from its issue price.These investors from the region lost lakhs of rupees as they were expecting the capital to double.

CULTURE

Pandit Ajay holds audience glued to seats
Chandigarh, February 11
His music set the perfect aura for the evening. On the occasion of Basant Panchami, maestro Pandit Ajay Pohankar mesmerised the audience in the jam-packed auditorium during a classical music bonanza at Punjab Kala Bhawan this evening. The programme was organised by the Sangeet Natak Akademi in association with the Punjab Arts Council. Fine recital of the ragas left the audience singing praises of  the ancient form of music.

Pandit Ajay Pohankar performs during a musical evening at Punjab Kala Bhawan in Chandigarh on Monday. A Tribune photograph

Artistes from Theatre Arts, Chandigarh, stage a play "Jaein to Jaein Kanha" at Plaza, Sector 17, on Monday. Tribune photo: Manoj Mahajan

Kumar Bandhus entrance devout audience
Chandigarh, February 11
Kumar Bandhus enthralled the audience at Pracheen Kala Kendra during its 127th Baithak programme here this evening. Accomplished musician duo of Anup Kumar and Hemant Kumar lit up the musical soiree with rarely heard compositions of Meera, Kabir, Surdas and others. The compositions were based on classical ragas and the music was composed by the Bandhus themselves. The spiritual fervour pervaded the kendra as the Bandhus commenced with traditional Ganesh shaloka “Vakratund Mahakaya”.