Ludhiana, March 26
As the last date for the filing of income tax returns draws nearer, the department has decided to accept IT returns for longer hours to accommodate lakhs of assessees.

“From tomorrow, we will accept returns from 9.30 am to 5 pm till March 30. Returns would be accepted on Saturday and Sunday and on March 31, the assessees can submit them till 8 pm,” J.R. Kajla, additional commissioner of income tax, told The Tribune.

Assessees have started queuing to submit their returns before the last date. Last year, over 7 lakh returns were received from Ludhiana and Jalandhar.

The department will not accept returns without PAN this time. “Assessees were required to apply for PAN before May 31. If anyone mentions that he applied a few days ago, we would not accept the return as it is the assessees fault and such assessees would be liable to penalty,” he said.

Advising assessees to be quick in submitting their returns, tax experts said in case of taxable income (non-audit) if an assessee failed to furnish the return, he would be liable to a penalty of Rs 5,000 under Section 271 F of the Income Tax Act.

“Till March 31, they can submit their return without penalty, but if they delay, they would be liable to a penalty of Rs 5,000. The income here would include income from salary, house property, commissioner, capital gains, income of professionals, small traders etc,” said taxation lawyer Jatinder Khurana.

Ludhiana, March 26
Hundreds of entrepreneurs here are unable to obtain C forms that are to be attached with their tax returns from UP as it has implemented VAT.

The traders, who have to submit the forms by March 31, are worried as UP makes up for more than 40 per cent share of their total sales in the region and the delay will attract a penalty.

“We have major business with Uttar Pradesh but due to the introduction of VAT this time, the entrepreneurs are not being supplied C forms by the department concerned as officials are busy updating their records,” said Vinod K. Thapar, president of Knitwear Club.

Those particularly hit are entrepreneurs in the textile industry due to the heavy volume of business transactions with that state.

C forms are furnished to a seller by a buyer and submitted as a proof of transaction.

Industrialists have urged the state government to extend the last date for submitting these forms by another six months so that they are able to complete the formalities. They contended that even in the case of other states obtaining the forms was not easy.

The issue of forms has been a major problem for the industry in the past few years. Shortage of forms and difficulties in obtaining them are being cited as reasons for the result.

“Besides, extending the date does not cause any kind of revenue loss to the government, but it saves us the trouble of paying penalty in case of delay,” he said.

Ludhiana, March 26
Certain “accident points” on the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) campus here needs the immediate attention of the authorities to avert mishaps.

These accident-prone areas have already claimed the lives of two PAU employees. Employees, students and the faculty feels that permanent arrangements need to be made by the authorities to avoid such incidents.

Satpal Sharma, a PAU employee had lost his life in an accident at the Press chowk (near the agronomy department) recently. Rajpal, another employee working as a stenographer, died after he met with an accident at Thapar hall chowk a few years ago.

Kusum, an employee of GADVASU, received leg injuries after she met with an accident near GADVASU administrative block a few months ago. The chowks do not have traffic lights or speed breakers or even roundabouts.

Other risky points on the campus include the area near the PAU gate number 4, gate number 1, and the dividing point near the library.

Anil Sabharwal, president of the GADVASU Employees Union, said these were dangerous points. During nights, these points posed threat because of low visibility. There were no traffic lights. “The university gets grant for development purposes and this needs immediate attention to avoid accidents,” he said.

D.P. Maur, former president of the PAU Non-Teaching Employees Union, said they had been demanding the redesigning of these chowks for long.

The general secretary of PAUTA, Mukesh Siag, said they were giving a serious thought to this problem. 

Ludhiana, March 26
Even though the High Court provided a breather to park management committees (PMCs), the MC is being accused of dilly-dallying the setting up of several committees, thereby delaying the upkeep of parks.

Out of 228 parks, only 161 have been allotted to the PMCs. The rest are awaiting panels. Though the MC had presented the case of 43 more parks in the general house held recently and the matter was approved, the PMCs are still to get the letters.

“All this is delaying maintenance further. Earlier also, the MC had implemented the HC orders late.

Ludhiana, March 26
After pressure horns and dark tinted glasses, projector headlights are catching the fancy of city car owners.

Such lights are not only annoying, but also a traffic hazard as these can be temporarily blinding. Vehicles bearing such lights are a common feature on city roads.

The original headlight kits are expensive, but cheaper variants are available in the market, which is harmful to eyes.

While the police of other districts is quick to challan such vehicles, the district police has closed its eyes to the dazzeling lights.

Pranav Kumat, a student, said, “These headlights are so blinding that the oncoming driver cannot see anything for a few seconds, which can lead to a fatal accident.”

The trick is not to look directly at the approaching car’s light. Slow down the vehicle and stay to the left of the road.

“These lights come at an affordable price and everyone is opting for these as they are very effective and much in fashion,” a car accessory dealer said.

Ludhiana, March 26
Master Tara Singh Memorial College for Women organised a seminar on "Donate organs save lives" in collaboration with an NGO, "GLODAS", on the college premises here yesterday. Dr Baldev Singh Aulakh, professor in the department of urology of Dayanand Medical College and Hospital and president of GLODAS, apprised the audience of the aims and objectives of the society founded recently to make people aware about organ donation.

Dr Madanjit Kaur Sahota, principal, MTS College, expressed her gratitude to Dr Aulakh for sparing his valuable time. She said people should come forward for the noble cause.

Khanna, March 26
Even as senior BJP leader and deputy speaker of the state assembly Sat Pal Gosain along with some party workers today staged a dharna outside the office of senior superintendent of police to protest against the registration of a case against a woman party worker, the local unit of the BJP decided to keep itself away. Local leaders stated they did not participate in the dharna as it was not a party programme.

Gosain along with some supporters reached the SSP’s office in the morning and staged the dharna.

They lodged a protest against the registration of case against Kamaljit Verma, who had been booked by the police on charges of having a scuffle with a senior police official during the recent visit of Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court on March 8.

Party workers alleged that a false case had been registered against the woman.

Verma said during the Chief Justice’s visit, she was not only prevented from meeting the judge but was misbehaved with by a police official. She claimed that when she protested, a case was slapped on her.

Stating that the case registered against Kamaljit was false, Gosain said he had spoken to the SSP the day the case had been registered and he had been assured that it would be withdrawn soon.

However, as the case had not been withdrawn so far, there was a widespread resentment amongst party workers who decided to hold a dharna.

He claimed that the SSP had assured of appropriate action in this regard.

On the other hand, the SSP said the police would go ahead with the case against Verma and a challan would soon be produced in the court.

He said the woman wanted to meet the judge while he was seated on the stage, which could not be allowed due to security reasons.

The SSP said when the policeman on duty stopped her, she misbehaved with him and tried to tear his uniform. Following which, a case was registered against her.

He said Gosain along with some other party workers and relatives of the woman met him at his office and submitted a protest letter. But, the police would proceed according to the law, he stated.

Ludhiana, March 26
The Universal Public Service Organisation, an NGO working for eradication of social evils in society, will organise a function for people of different faiths and hold bhog of Akhand Path at Gurdwara Guru Nanak Darbar at Daba village on March 30 to mobilise people against the menace of female foeticide.

Addressing mediapersons here today, body president Angad Gupta said a comprehensive programme had been chalked out to hold seminars and rallies in rural areas of the state so that people could be made aware of the affects of dwindling female population in the state.

He said religious preachers and leaders from different communities will make an appeal to people from all walks of life to join the campaign against female foeticide while also praying for millions of unborn girls.

Speakers, including former legislator Jagdev Singh Jassowal and chairman of Punjab Housefed Krishan Kumar Bawa, pleaded with centre as well as state governments to take firm legislative and administrative measures to deal with the menace in the wake of alarming decline in the female population.

They also wanted foeticide to be made a cognisable offence and provisions of deterrent punishments to offenders.

Ludhiana, March 26
Employees of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) held an hour-long demonstration today in protest against the management’s failure to settle the issue of promotions.

On a call given by the United Forum of Trade Unions, members of the BSNL Employees Union, Punjab circle, walked out of their offices as a mark of protest.

The employees sat on a dharna outside the office of the general manager telecom and also outside the Mata Rani Chowk office.

“The management is causing a deliberate delay in granting five promotions which we have been demanding since 2005. In spite of committing to settle the issue by February this year, the management failed to do so, which has forced us to adopt the path of agitation,” said Balbir Singh, circle secretary, BSNLEU.

The protesting employees also threatened to go on an indefinite strike if the matter was not resolved at the earliest.

Among others who addressed the union were district secretary Balwinder Singh and union members Hari Narain and Sikander Singh.

Ludhiana, March 26
A Nawanshahr-based animal rights organisation is in the thick of controversy for exhibiting python and other snakes protected under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act without permission from the requisite authority.

Representatives of the organisation, Wildlife Conservation Society, were in the city recently to provide training to local wildlife staff at Tiger Safari in catching pythons and other snakes.

The matter came to light when a representative of the society showed a python brought by him while demonstrating how to catch a python in the presence of wildlife and forest officials.

Rakesh Kumar, an honorary animal welfare officer, Animal Welfare Board of India, who was also present said the society had not got registration from the AWBI, Chennai, under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 and Performing Animals (Registration) Rules, 2001 for exhibiting snakes.

He added that a valid fitness certificate from a veterinarian was needed for transportation of animals and rules regarding transportation had to be followed. Rakesh has written to the secretary of AWBI for further action.

Ludhiana, March 26
With just three days to go for the Sutlej Club elections, campaigning to woo voters has picked up in the city. The contestants, around 15 in fray, are not taking any chances to depend on “others” for seeking votes.

A “personal touch” is being given by contestants, their family members, friends and well-wishers to get support of voter members.

“In the past 12 hours, I have received eight calls from different candidates and their family members. Family members of contestants, too, are in campaigning mode,” said a doctor, who is a member of the club.

Ramanjit (name changed), wife of a club member, said she was eagerly awaiting March 30 when the elections will be over.

Fed-up with intense canvassing, she said though her husband was not contesting he was busy campaigning for a friend.

“So engrossed is my husband in the election that he has not even gone to his factory in the past four days. He comes late at night and leaves home early to woo voters,” she said.

On what successful candidates will get, a member contesting the election said: “It has become a prestige issue for me to win. I have spent around Rs 7 lakh on parties and dinners. There is no dearth of money in the city but establishing an identity among members of the club is definitely a challenging task,” he said, adding that he and his family members carried a diary with them to check how many members were contacted personally in a day.

A senior member of the club said certain restrictions must be imposed during electioneering.

“Club members know whom to elect for the betterment of the club. Such lavish parties cannot lure people like me,” he added.

Ludhiana, March 26
An eight-member delegation from Pakistan today visited Panjab Agricultural University (PAU) to explore opportunities in agriculture and dairy farming. Mohammad Idreef, an agriculturist and coordinator, Farmers Associate, Pakistan, said the partition was a traumatic and agonised experience for the people of both countries. He said the partition had claimed lives of more than 20 lakh people belonging to India and Pakistan.

Idreef said such cultural, business exchange programmes would definitely bring new avenues in agriculture and other related fields.

Mian Mohammad Haroon Musa, an agriculturist who owns the largest farm library in Pakistan, said they were touched with the warm hospitality given by their counterparts in India. "We hope to attend the next kisan mela at the PAU. We have heard a lot about the mega event organised by university," he said.

Vice-chancellor of University of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandry, Faisalabad, Prof Mohammad Nawaz said such exchange programmes would give a boost to agriculture, he added.

PAU VC Dr M.S. Kang said they would do every possible effort to build strong relations with the team from Pakistan by sharing knowledge on agriculture.

Ludhiana, March 26
The state government’s proposal to make Punjabi a compulsory language till Class X in all CBSE and ICSE schools has received a mixed reaction from the teaching fraternity of the city.

The Punjab assembly yesterday passed a proposal that the study of Punjabi language would be made compulsory till Class X in all CBSE and ICSE schools.

Punjabi language was compulsory up to eight standard in all CBSE schools.

While the teaching fraternity feels that this will put an extra burden on students, a lobby of educationalists hailed the move taken by the state government for the revival of the language.

Renowned Punjabi writer Dr Surjit Patar, Prof Ravinder Bhattal and Prof Gurbhajjan Gill, president, general secretary and vice-president of the Punjabi Sahitya Akademi, respectively, have highly appreciated the resolution passed in the Vidhan Sabha to make teaching Punjabi compulsory till Class X and to strictly implement Punjabi in government offices.

Priyanka, headmistress of Saraswati School, Hambra Road, said, "There was no need to make Punjabi compulsory in the state as it will add to the burden of the students.

Before passing a resolution to make Punjabi a compulsory subject, the government should have thought about the students who came from other states to study in Punjab."

Principal of KVM School S.C. Saxena, "I think the Punjab assembly has taken a positive step. In our school, the study of Punjabi language is already compulsory till Class X."

D.B. Sharma, principal of Sat Paul Mittal School, said the proposal was contrary to the three-language formula initiated by the central government.

Poonam, a mother of two children studying in a CBSE school, said, "I think it’s a good proposal. As we are living in Punjab and our children must know their mother tongue."

Mandi Ahmedgarh, March 26
Responding to a call given by a team of doctors, students of Jain Muni Kanya Mahavidyalaya, Rashtria Adarsh Mahila College and Jain Public School vowed to adopt traditional food habits and shun junk food in order to save themselves from diseases.

Mandi Ahmedgarh, March 26
Having accommodated garbage of principal’s office at the local MGMN Senior Secondary School, for over 70 years, a metallic dustbin has been a source of attraction for residents of the area for long.

Shamshad, an alumnus of the school, had reportedly brought it from Lahore in Pakistan and presented to the then headmaster in 1935.

The bin symbolises perseverance and concern of authorities towards dead stock of the institute in general and antiques articles in particular, claimed the authorities.

Principal Pardeep Sharda and manager Kedar Nath Kapila claimed that a large number of residents had shown interest in having a glimpse of the dustbin.

“When they come to know that the dustbin had been manufactured at Lahore in Pakistan and it is still in use, they visit the institute and ask us to show them the same,” said Sharda.

Perusal of records showed that at least 20 incumbents had used the container for disposing of wastepaper and other garbage.

The various incumbents were reported to have handed over the bin to their successors with special appeal to preserve it.

The bin is purportedly manufactured by Roshan Lal and Brothers, Anarkali (Lahore).

Vidya Parcharak Sabha president Rajnish Sharma said the dustbin would be preserved for exhibition after completion of 75 years of its use.

Mandi Ahmedgarh, March 26
Reserving his comments on apprehended sacrilege of “maryada” through a scene in which actors Rekha and Rishi Kapoor put kadah prasad in the mouth of each other during shooting of Hindi feature film, Sadiyaan, Ranjan Kaushal, an actor, claimed the film would foster harmony among members of various communities.

“‘Sadiyaan gavah hain ki Bhagwan Krishan ko janam Devki ne diya tha aur palan poshan Yashodha ne kiya tha’ (Everyone knows from time immemorial that Devaki gave birth to Lord Krishan and Yashodha raised Him),” Ranjan recollects climax of the movie in which parents of the heroine (Farina) reject proposal of her marriage with the hero (Luv Sinha) as according to them he was a Hindu.

In fact, Hema Malini (Benazir) and Zabid Shekh, a Pakistani actor, had lost their son during riots at the time of partition. He was brought up in a non-Muslim family headed by Ranjan (Iqbal Singh) and Rakhi Tondon (Balbir Kaur) at Amritsar.

According to Ranjan, “Sadiyaan” portraits social ties of Hindu, Sikh and Muslim families during pre-partition and post-partition period.

The SGPC officials had urged film director Raj Kanwar to delete shots in which Rekha and Rishi Kapoor were shot putting prasad in each other’s mouth.

Ranjan said: “I reserve my comments as the issue is sensitive. However, deleting the concerned shot will not affect the movie,” said Ranjan.

Ludhiana, March 26
India has achieved the dubious distinction of fast becoming the “diabetic capital of the world”. A recent report talks about the dramatic rise in cases of diabetes in India, which formed around 25 per cent of total cases in the world.

The most prevalent is type 2 diabetes, which constitutes 95 per cent of the diabetic population in the country.

Making these observations at a press conference here yesterday, Dr Arindam Ghosh, senior consultant in gastro-intestinal surgery at SPS Apollo Hospitals, here claimed that there was, however, a good news for over 37 million diabetic population in India. “It is being realised the world over that diabetes may be the disorder of upper intestine and surgery can correct it.”

Citing a representative study carried out among those obese diabetics who had undergone bariatric (weight loss) surgery, he maintained that surgery worked much better than standard medical therapy as a treatment for type 2 diabetes in obese people.

“Out of 60 such persons, 73 per cent had complete cure of diabetes. By contrast, the cure rate was only 13 per cent in those given conventional treatment, which included intensive counselling on diet and exercise for weight loss, and when needed medicines like insulin, metformin and other drugs.”

That surgery may prove beneficial even to those patients who were not obese was indicated when a team of French, Italian, and Brazilian doctors operated on seven people with type 2 diabetes who were of normal weight or moderately obese to test the results.

Nine months after surgery, most of them no longer needed insulin injections. They experienced dramatic reductions in their blood sugar and insulin levels in the month following surgery, before any weight loss took place.

According to Dr Ghosh, a number of gastrointestinal operations designed to treat type 2 diabetes were now available. Like many great discoveries, this too was serendipitous.

People who were being treated by laparoscopic weight loss surgery got rid of their diabetes much before weight loss. This observation led to the discovery of the fact that it was not just the pancreas that were at fault in diabetes but gut was also involved.

In terms of treatment complications of diabetes like stroke, heart attack, kidney failure, blindness, loss of limb, etc. this surgery offered tremendous benefits.

It will prevent the complications and cut costs.

NOZIT-08 to open today
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, March 26
Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) will host the North Zone Inter-medical and Dental College Tournament "NOZIT-08" from March 27 to 29. At least 400 students from 15 medical colleges of North India are expected to participate.

DMCH managing society secretary Prem Gupta will inaugurate the tournament and the ceremony will be followed by preliminary rounds in badminton, table tennis, football, basketball, chess, cricket and volleyball. Besides competitive games, there will be fun games, solo song competitions and comedy shows in the evening. Punjabi pop singer Yudhvir Manak will perform on March 28.

Doraha

Stone laid: Memorial stone of a classroom was laid at Guru Nanak National College, Doraha, in the memory of Sarabjit Singh Mangat, today. Samarpal Singh Mangat, son of Sarabjit Singh Mangat, unveiled the memorial stone. He said it was a dream come true for his father since the latter was very closely associated with the college and wished to contribute to the college. The classroom was inaugurated by Dr R.S. Gill, retired professor, animal science department, PAU. Principal of the college Dr Narinder Singh Sidhu stated that the family had earlier contributed Rs 3 lakh for constructing a classroom. The family had also announced a scholarship for a needy student.

Mandi Ahmedgarh, March 26
Having trained hundreds in basics of yoga, Pinky Gupta is striving to involve more volunteers to spread message of “Jeeo aur jeewan do” in the Malwa region.

Besides organising regular free yoga classes at Prem Bhandari Park, Khanna, she undertakes camps for uniformed forces and students.

Working under the banner of the Bhartiya Yog Sansthan Delhi, Pinky has prepared a team of trainers from Doraha, Samrala, Payal, Malaudh, Ahmedgarh and Machhiwara towns to enable people receive guidance near their habitations.

“My aim is to motivate people to adopt yoga as their lifestyle, which besides helping them enjoy good physical and psychological health, will improve their socio-economic position also,” Pinky says, adding that the event is an element of meditation and not merely an exercise.

Contrary to common belief that achieving physical fitness through yoga is more important in males, Pinky believes that it is a necessity for women.

“Unlike men, health of a woman affects development of her children. Certain assanas, if practised under supervision of an expert, avoid Cesarean births,” held Pinky.

According to her, inspiring people to adopt yoga is a noble service, that anybody could do easily.

“As it does not need huge funds, anybody can chip in with his or her contribution by simply adjusting his or her schedule,” said Pinky.

She was felicitated by the administration for organising camps for policemen at Khanna and students at various schools in the area recently.