R E G I O N A L   B R I E F S

Regional potpourri

• Not a dead cause
• Guiding site
• Mythology through messaging

PUNJAB

CHANDIGARH
90 lakh tonnes of wheat procured: Wheat procurement in Punjab has touched 90 lakh tonnes and the state contributed over 85.74 lakh tonnes to the Central pool till date. Six government agencies and private millers have procured more than 89.86 lakh tonnes of wheat in Punjab of which 85.74 lakh tonnes (95.40 pc) has been procured for the Central pool and 1,86,045 tonnes (2.1 pc) for the state pool.

Hoshiarpur
Travel agent booked: The Mahilpur police booked a fake travel agent, Satpal of Sarhala Kalan, for duping Harbans Lal of Rs 1 lakh on the pretext of sending him to a foreign country.

Poll observers: Punjab state transport director Mandip Singh and additional commissioner Karamjit Singh Sra have been appointed poll observers for Hoshiarpur and Garshankar and Dasuya and Mukerian subdivisions, respectively. Both of them would be available till May 15 and would hear all types of poll complaints of 
their respective subdivisions.

Mansa
Disabled get pension: The ‘Chinta Haran Railway Trivani Mandir’ organisation distributed pensions to nearly 40 handicapped persons. The president of Mandir Committee, Ashok Lali, and Om Parkash Walia, Pawan Kumar Banty and Khushi Ram were present on this occasion. They gave Rs 200 to each of the physically challenged person. The president of the Mandir committee said that this help would be provided every month to the handicapped.

SANGRUR
LIC told to pay Rs 5 lakh to widow: The local District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum has directed the LIC to pay Rs 5 lakh, along with the interest of 9 per cent per annum from the date of repudiation (June 28, 2007) till realisation, to a local resident, Raj Rani, widow of Ved Parkash Aggarwal. In the order, pronounced by president of the forum M.D. Sharma and member H.L. Sharma, the LIC has also been directed to pay Rs 5,000 on account of mental pain, agony as well as harassment undergone by Rani and Rs 1,000 as litigation expenses to the complainant.

CHANDIGARH

MOHALI
Talent competition: An inter-school talent competition was organised at Path Finder High School, Sector 69, on Sunday. Around 470 students from various schools participated in the competiton. Kulwant Kaur, MD of the school, inaugurated the event and gave away the prizes to winners. A painting competition and a dance contest were also organised by the school.

PANCHKULA
Liquor seized: The district police seized 810 cases of IMFL liquor at Mouli Chowk near Raipur Rani, late on Saturday night. The contraband was seized at a naka laid by the police at Mouli Chowk. The liquor was to be smuggled to various parts of Rajasthan and Gujarat.

HARYANA

CHANDIGARH
Rural lok adalats: As many as 169 cases of civil, criminal, summary, mutation and under the Motor Vehicle Act were settled in the six rural lok adalats held in Haryana on Sunday. Stating this here, a spokesman of the Haryana State Legal Service Authority said the rural lok adalats were held at Bhattu and Baliawala villages of Fatehabad district; Amarpur and Chirsi villages of Faridabad district, Tikola village of Sonepat district and Baliyali village in Bhiwani, where in all, 302 cases were taken up.

FATEHABAD
Student’s body found: The body of an engineering student, Deepak, was recovered from the Sukhchain canal near Ratia on Saturday. Deepak, son of a trader, Upender Mohan, was missing since Thursday. He had gone for a walk in the morning and did not come back. Someone noticed the body of Deepak floating in the canal and informed the police on Saturday. The police registered a case of suicide.

JIND
Woman dies of burns: A 22-year-old married woman of Deola village in the district, who had suffered 100 per cent burn injuries on Saturday morning, succumbed to her injuries on the same day. She died before she could be admitted in the Civil Hospital here. While the exact cause of the incident is not known, it is reported that the victim identified as Suman of Pai village had allegedly set her ablaze in her in-laws’ house. She got married two years ago.

REWARI
Boy crushed to death: An eight-year-old boy, Mohit Yadav, was reportedly crushed to death by a three-wheeler at Mamadia Asampur village, 16 km from here, on Sunday. The Khol police has booked the driver of the three-wheeler for rash and negligent driving.

YAMUNANAGAR
Seminar on environment: As many as 126 research papers were presented during the two-day national seminar on “Recent advances in the development of sustainable environment” at Haryana Engineering College, Jagadhri. The seminar, in which experts from 15 states had participated, concluded on Sunday. F. Lal Kansal, former chairman of the Punjab Pollution Control Board, spoke on several issues related with preservation of environment. Prof J.K Bassin, zonal head, NEERI, New Delhi, presented his evaluation of environment impact.

HIMACHAL PRADESH

Bilaspur
Protest by MLA: Rajesh Dharmani, Congress MLA from Ghumarwin constituency in this district, registered a protest with Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal for diversion of the JCB allotted to his constituency by the government to Geharwin constituency, thus depriving his constituency from the facility of this machine. He said here on Saturday that he had sent a representation to the Chief Minister and had urged him to order the concerned officers to send the machine back to his constituency for which it was allotted. He said he was surprised that why this JCB should be diverted to Geharwin constituency, where two such machines were already available while thereis no such machine in Ghumarwin constituency.

May 6, 21 election holidays: Devesh Kumar, district election officer-cum deputy commissioner, has passed declared May 6 and May 21 as holidays in all educational institutions of this district to enable teachers and other staff undergo election rehearsals on these dates in connection with the May 22 parliamentary byelection.

Four join BSP: District BSP president Kesh Pathania said here on Sunday that Lekhram Sehgal, a Congress leader, had joined the BSP. Pathania said three other retired officers, former executive engineer S.S.Patiyal, former BSNL project officer Bhuri Singh Sankhyan and former education officer Nikka Ram, had also joined the BSP. These experienced members would be given responsible positions in the party.

Election activities banned  in rest houses: The Election Commission has made all government rest houses, circuit houses and other such facilities out of bounds for all political and election activities by any political party till May 27. District election officer-cum-deputy commissioner Devesh Kumar said on Saturday no political party or leader can open his election office in the circuit house and rest house nor this facility can be used for any election propaganda and no election meeting can be held there.

CHAMBA
Probe sought: The Block Congress Committee, Bharmour, sought a high-level probe into irregularities committed in the community development scheme, Vikas Mein Jan Sehyog, MLAs development fund and Rajiv Gandhi Yojna in Bharmour subdivision of Chamba district. While submitting a memorandum to Governor V.S. Kokje a deputation of the committee led by president Brahmanand also demanded filling up of vacant posts in the Health and Education Department in the area. It charged the BJP government in the state with step-motherly treatment meted out to a number of panchayats of the tribal area. The Governor assured them that their demands would be attended to and worked out shortly.

DALHOUSIE
Forest fire: A devastating fire destroyed the undergrowth in the dense ‘chil’ forests near Tunnuhatti in Chamba district bordering Punjab, about 35 km from here, on Saturday evening. There was reportedly a huge damage to avifauna in the area.

Cultural bonanza from May 17: Local administration has decided to organise a ‘cultural bonanza’ from May 17 to June 29 to demonstrate the culture of the state. This would apprise the tourists of the rich culture of the hilly terrains of the state. According to official sources, this programme would be celebrated in collaboration with the state Tourism Department. During the cultural nights, the ‘pahari’ artists of the alpine reign would entertain the tourists.

KANGRA
Filling of posts: The state Medical Officers Association on Saturday demanded that all vacant posts of joint directors, deputy directors, chief medical officers and block medical officers in the Health Department be filled by holding the regular DPC at the earliest. Kulbushan Sood, spokesman of the association, said this in a statement here. He said the medical officers welcomed the appointment of Dr Sulakshana Puri as director of Health but demanded that the remaining vacant posts should be filled urgently to run the department smoothly.

KUMARHATTI
Polythene seized: The Food and Civil Supply Department seized 50 kg banned polythene from Vishal Mega Mart store at Baddi on Saturday. The seizure was made during an anti-polythene drive. Five shopkeepers were booked for using polythene.

MANDI
Bank staff’s plea against  outsourcing: The All-Punjab National Bank Employees Federation (APNBEF), affiliated to the All-India Banking Employee Association, demanded that the Centre should stop outsourcing of jobs and services in all public sector banks and fill one lakh vacancies and new rural branches in the country in the interests of social security that these banks provide in the country. General secretary, APNBEF, P.R. Mehta said on Sunday that social security net provided by the public sector banking in the country is weakening steadily as the foreign and private banks have steadily gained their foothold in the guise of providing better services to the elite customers they cater to, while public at large is being lured into their fold.

Regional potpourri
Not a dead cause

The residents of Nawanshahr witnessed a funeral with a difference recently. After the performance of the last rites of Piara Singh (85), a resident of the local Mohalla Pandora, his body was handed over to a team from the DMC, Ludhiana, with full honours and playing of the band. This, because Piara Singh had pledged to donate his body to the DMC and his son Jaswant Singh fulfilled the last wish of his father.

While paying rich tributes to the departed soul, a large number of social, political and religious leaders and administrative officials lauded the gesture, which, they said, would prove an example for others to come forward.

“My father had made up his mind to donate his eyes a few years ago, but he got an inspiration to donate his body to a medical institute for research purposes after reading a news item regarding it,” said Jaswant Singh. About four years ago, the DMC was contacted and the formalities for the same were completed. The DMC team that came to receive the body was led by Dr Gursharan Singh.

Guiding site

Dr Dalbir Bharti, IPS, founder of the Bharti Education and Development Society (third from left) at a recent function at Hisar to mark the launch of its website.

The Bharti Education and Development Society, Hisar, recently launched its website www.bhartisociety.org to help and guide poor students. The society was founded by Dr Dalbir Bharti, a senior IPS officer of the Maharashtra cadre who hails from Hisar.

It runs a library in the town that lends books and study material to needy students. Dr Bharti says the website will provide poor students information about competitive examinations and how to prepare for these. As a student coming from a poor family, he says, he found that there was not much guidance available to those from a similar background. Besides, there was no proper place to study.

So, in 1993, he established a society and set up a library and reading room at Hisar. In 2005, the society set up another library-cum-reading room at Banmandori village in Fatehabad district.

The website became relevant as Internet access is now available even in villages at affordable rates. It will help us help more students and thus improve and widen the functioning of the society. Besides, these libraries, the society gives scholarships to needy students and organises free tuitions. Interest free educational loans are also given to the poor.

Mythology through messaging

Founder of NGO Pratibimb and wine trader Satya Pal Choujar at a quiz contest on Indian mythology held in Rajasthan.

An NGO called Pratibimb has been using the short messaging service (SMS) to create awareness on Indian mythology. Already running regular quiz on Indian mythology in schools, the NGO run by Satya Pal Choujar, a leading Chandigarh-based wine trader, has decided to reach out to different sections of society through the mobile network. His NGO has also held classes in an old-age home at Ludhiana and in Rajasthan.

He daily sends a set of posers to interested persons. “ Knowledge is best attained by spreading it further. We must have the basic knowledge about our past,” believes this founder- member of Pratibimb.

He has also held free classes on ancient Indian religious texts and mythology for children. During a recent vist to Australia, his programme on Indian-mythology and the Sikh Gurus in Hindi-speaking schools and gurdwaras was aired on radio.

Contributed by Parmod Bharti, Raman Mohan and Rajmeet Singh