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Couple’s Murder
Panchkula, June 13 Sandhya, wife of the servant who also found guilty of helping them in keeping the booty after the murder, was also sentenced to four year imprisonment along with a fine of Rs 10,000 under Section 201, IPC. Kindo and Rajan were also sentenced to four years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 50,000 imposed on each under Section 392, IPC, in the case. Both guilty were also awarded a sentence of four years with a fine of Rs 10,000 each also under Section 201 IPC. Major-General (retd) Dhingra and his wife, both over 60, were found dead at the first floor of their rented house No. 1 at Sector 25 on May 15 last year. General Dhingra, after retiring as the Commandant of Officers’ Training Academy, Chennai, was living in Panchkula. While the couple was murdered on the night of May 12, the police came to know about it on May 15 only when the accused, who took away the car of General after committing the crime, hit it against an electric pole on May 13, and a policeman from Chandigarh went to the house of the couple to enquire the matter. Later, the police arrested Kindo, also driver of General Dhingra, and wife Sandhya, along with his friend Rajan, for murdering the old couple. Another accused in the case Ajit Tope is still at large. A case was registered against them at Chandimandir police station. After committing the crime they fled with valuables in General Dhingra’s Esteem car. While Kindo and Rajan were arrested from Ahmednagar in Maharashtra with the help of the police, Sandhya, the wife of Kindo, was arrested from Sector 35, Chandigarh, after Kindo admitted to the police that she had helped them in picking the booty when the couple had been murdered. The police recovered 70 grams of gold, a laptop, six necklaces and a cash Rs 40,000 and $885 from them. General Dhingra’s elder son Colonel Amit Dhingra said the justice prevailed.
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Even as the three guilty for murdering Major-General K C Dhingra have been brought to justice by the Panchkula court today their fourth accomplice was still at large. In fact, the trio Anand Kindo, Rajan Gond and the absconder Ajit Tope were able to dodge the police twice before two of them were captured by the police on June 4, 2007. Anand Kindo, who was driving the car and met with an accident, fled the spot abandoning the vehicle while the two other occupants were let off by cops they told the police that they had took a lift in the car in Phase VII, Mohali, and did not know about the driver. Kindo and Rajan were caught in Bangalore but gave them the slip. They while being taken to Panchkula from Bangalore in a train were able to run away from the train on the way at Ahmednagar cantonment. However, with the help of the Army, the police was able to arrest them and bring them here on June 4 last year.
It’s second time here
This is the second time when a judge pronounced the death penalty in a case at the Panchkula courts. Earlier, six years ago, Additional District and Sessions Judge S K Kapoor awarded death sentence to two youths involved in the murder of a 10-year-old girl in May, 2001. Rakesh and Abdul Khalil were also sentenced to seven years of rigorous imprisonment for raping the girl before killing her.
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Rain renders city powerless
Chandigarh, June 13 Residents from different sectors in the southern part of the city were the most affected. In Sector 44, residents protested after the electricity department failed to install transformers due to unavailability of poles. In Sector 44 and 45, residents gathered in a large number to protest against the department to restore the power supply. A Sector 55 resident, Vivek, said not a drop of drinking water was supplied due to power failure. Similar situation was witnessed in Sector 31, 34, 38 and surrounding sectors. There have been blackout in sector 19 and 20 since last evening, said Manoj, a resident of Sector 19. In a number of areas, the water supply failed as there was no alternative source to run the water pumping machinery. “Though the administration has claimed that there will be no power cuts, the electricity department has been resorting to blackout. The transmission and distribution system needs to be improved”, said Arun, a resident of Sector 44. The sultry weather compounded residents problems. The alternative power supply system like invertors failed due to prolonged power failure. Officials of the electricity department disclosed that due to failure in power supply from the Ropar line, load was being done to provide supply to affected areas from other supply line.
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Govt hospitals losing talent to private players
Chandigarh, June 13 These doctors don’t mind doning the role of marketing executives. They market their brand at seminars, on the radio district to district. Big companies use the names of these professionals to lure more patients. One such doctor who left his job said: “Government hospitals are run by bureaucrats while private ones are run by administrators far more professional who know their job well. Government hospitals are out of sync with the changing needs.”
A senior professor at a hospital said: "What we make in a month is sometimes what a private consultant makes in a couple of days. Coupled with lack of facilities for patient care, it becomes difficult to justify continuing in a government setup.'' Surgeon Susheel Gupta who resigned from Government Multi-Speciality Hospital, Sector 16, a year ago, after putting in almost 20 years there, said the hospital lacked infrastructure for proper treatment and care. "While in a private hospital it is possible to take up four to five cases a day, at GMSSH only one case of major surgery is possible in a day.''
“The government should make efforts to improve the situation in its hospitals,”says Dr HS Bali, cardiac surgeon, who quit the PGI to join Fortis at Mohali. Dr Vinod Nimbran, radiation oncologist, Grecian Hospital said: "A doctor's life in a government setup is tough because of the heavy load of patients, long working hours, a not-so-lucrative pay packet and no value for work."
Among those who have resigned from government jobs are Dr KK Gombar (head of Anesthesia, GMCH-32), Dr Puneet Kapoor (Anesthesia, GMCH-32), Dr Gauri Joshi (Neurosurgery, GMCH-32) and Dr R S Bawa (Urology). From GMSH-16, Dr Sobit Ghai (Eye), Dr Deepak Bakshi, Dr Pradeep Bhardwaj (Medicine), Dr Veerpal Kaur (Gynecology) and Dr Susheel Gupta (Surgery) have opted for the private sector.
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Acquisition of land for IT park
Chandigarh, June 13 Brig. K.S. Kahlon (retd), Sadhu Singh and Gurdial Singh, both sarpanches, apprised the minister of the fact that despite the ministry of rural development’s intervention, the Administration has not taken any step for implementing the National Rehabilitation and Resettlement Policy, 2007 and the entire exercise continues to be covered in secrecy. The members informed the minister that writ petitions had been filed in the Punjab and Haryana High Court against the forcible acquisition of land for the technology park. Regarding the passage of the two Bills-Land Acquisition (Amendment) Bill, 2007 and Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill, 2007- minister told them that after the submission of report by the parliamentary standing committee, the Bills are likely to be passed in the monsoon session of the Parliament.
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Cooperative movement in Punjab on the rise
Mohali, June 13 He said this in a conference of International Cooperative Alliance-UAE Cooperative Development forum held on the theme "Enhancing Govermnance, Social Responsibility and Multi Functionality of Cooperatives in Asia Pacific Region of ICA". This conference was attended by more than 125 representatives of 20 countries including Afghanistan, Bhutan, Bunei, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Korea, Kuwait, Laos, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan, Phillipines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam. He said Punjab had initiated several steps to increase social responsibility in the cooperative movement. He disclosed that promotion and funding for establishment of dairies and helping women to make them financially independent and imbibing social leadership qualities in them with ambitious Mai Bhago Istri Shakti Scheme are only a few of these measures. Jasjit Singh said Cooperative Banks was also leading this social responsibility campaing by lending money to the farmers and others at much cheaper rate of interest than others. He said aim of establishment of the banks was to help common man and it had proved highly successful in this regard.
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INLD workers burn CM’s effigy
Panchkula, June 13 The protesters burnt the effigy of Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Director General, Police in front of the police headquarters in Sector 6. A rape victim from Rohtak had committed suicide at the headquarter on Monday last when the accused cops who raped her were not arrested. Facing the downpour, the INLD workers led by the district presidents of women wing form different parts of the state assembled at the roundabout of Sectors 5,6,7 and 8 in the morning. Then the procession raising the slogans demanding the dismissal of the DGP and the Chief Minister started moving towards the police headquarters where they burnt the effigies.
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Zirakpur MC Poll
Zirakpur/Dera Bassi, June 13 Source in the ruling alliance disclosed that a high-level meeting of leaders of both the parties was held today in which Punjab Cooperation Minister Capt. Kanwaljit Singh and Balramji Dass Tandon former minister, who is coordination for the district also participated. At this meeting, the arrangement was finalised. Sources said that BJP would field its candidates for ward no 2,3,5,9,10,12 and 13 whereas SAD would field its contestants for ward no. 1,4,6,7,8,11,14 and 15. The SAD had claimed earlier that seat sharing arrangement had been finalised some days ago but reluctant BJP leaders had refused to a confirm this. But today this arrangement was finalised and a formal announcement in this regard is likely to made in the rally of combine on the 15th of this month. The MC elections in Zirakpur are bound to be interesting. Captain Kanwaljit Singh’s biggest supporter NK Sharma has decided to contest independently with his group. Interestingly, Kiranbir Kang, president of the Youth Akali Dal, openly supported Sharma during a rally on June 4. In Dera Bassi, the arrangement is that six out of the 13 wards would be shared with the BJP. SAD candidates would contest on seven seats here. The wards with BJP are ward number 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, and ward number 8. However the ward might change in the following days when the candidates are being finalized, said sources.
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Children, parents come together at ‘Kotla chhapaki’
Mohali, June 13 The workshop includes theatre, dance, art and craft, choreography et al. activities are being taught by different experts of their fields. “The main motive of the workshop is to re-introduce children to their culture. Another motive is to bring back the same child-like innocence and candor into today’s hi-tech nurturing generation,” said Sarang Lok director Dr Rama Rattan. On Sunday, a workshop was conducted with the parents to enhance their involvement in this workshop. Dr Rattan conducted various brainstorming exercises with parents where they were asked to put forward their views and expectations about their children. She also discussed with parents various methods to tackle children. This tradition of Sunday workshop with parents would continue for the coming three weeks as well where parents were made aware of certain things about their children that they never knew. In the first week of the workshop, an exercise was improvised to celebrate World Environment Day where the children made a large collage of trees and they were asked to talk to these trees assuming them to be their relatives. Parents appreciated this effort a lot. Dr Daisy Zerabi, Davinder Daman, Sangeeta Gupta and Loveleen Kaur discussed various problems that the parents are facing in the upbringing of their children. The workshop would end on June 27 with an exhibitory show of all the items prepared during this period.
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DC favours basic facilities for Nayagaon
Mohali, June 13 Nayagaon residents are facing a lot of problems regarding the facilities like street lighting, sanitation etc. No development works has been undertaken here as the area is controlled by provisions of the Punjab Capital Periphery Control Act and the Punjab Land Preservation Act. The DC would be asking the local bodies department to approve plans for the construction of roads, street lighting and sanitation without disturbing the provisions of these acts.
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On mission to motivate youths
Chandigarh, June 13 They began “Mission Ladakh-IV, an honour to the Indian Army,” a 15-day tour on bikes from Chandigarh to Ladakh and then to Delhi here today. It was flagged off by Vivek Atray, director (Tourism), Chandigarh, at Sector 17 today evening. The group, members of Team-456, will cover 3,200 km to spread the message “join the Indian Army” among the youth all along the route. “We will distribute brochures of the Indian Army and motivate the youth to join the Forces”, said the members, most of whom hailed from Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Goa, Delhi, Rajasthan, Haryana and the Union Territory of Chandigarh. “There is no lack of patriotism in our country and yet the Army is short of officers. We will contribute towards this campaign by interacting with people and apprising them of the aspects of joining the Indian Army”, Parmesh Kumar, founder member of Team 456, said. Terming it a noble initiative, Atray wished the team members adventurous but safe journey and all success.
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Need-based changes
Chandigarh, June 13 “Due to a communication gap created by certain vested interests, the real issues of the marla houses have not been dealt with. The need-based changes being allowed by the Administration involves demolition of the existing structure”, said Surinder Pal Chauhan, president of the association, while addressing a press conference here today. The association member said if their demands were not addressed, they would resort to peaceful protest. The new relaxations should be made applicable to new structures and old structures with balconies of full width should be regularised as such by the Administration. Major beneficiaries have been the kanal houses. Surinder Pal Chauhan said despite repeated representations to MP Pawan Kumar Bansal, no the elected representative of the people has bargained major relief. The administration had also ignored the recommendations of the Parliamentary Committee on Home Affairs that had talked about one-time relaxations to the occupants of marla houses. The association has demanded the coverage of 75 per cent of the backyard as has been allowed in case of cheap houses, deletion of rule 20 and allowing balcony/ cantilever in the front and back of the plots. A survey of houses needs to be done as a majority of the houses have violations. Recently the Administration has removed the restrictions on having only square and rectangular windows in architectural control houses. Under the new rules, a 3-ft-wide balcony has been allowed in the front and rear after leaving a 3-ft space on either side of the building line in marla houses. A minimum 6'x 6' open-to-sky cutout may be provided for light and ventilation instead of 10' x 10' as per the rule. This relaxation will be applicable only for the construction of additional area in the backyard along with the area abutting the additional area. But the association has not accepted the relaxations.
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When diesel turned water
Chandigarh, June 13 Om Prakash, a resident of Sector 20, said he got his car’s (CH-28-T-3964), tank filled with high-speed diesel from this station today morning. He had, barely, covered a few metres when his car stopped. “I telephoned the company service centre. They, immediately, sent a mechanic who told me that the water was mixed in the diesel. Soon, I saw six vehicles stalled outside the petrol station,” said Om Prakash, while showing a bottle filled with diesel, which had two layers of liquid. The petrol station staff, at first not even bothered to hear my complaint, but mellowed down, as soon as they found others complaining and informed the officials of the Bharat Petroleum. Minutes later, Lakhbir Singh, another resident, who had also got his car (CH-03-Y-4996) filled with high-speed diesel said, “My car also stopped. I kept on wondering what had happened to it. Then, I saw others protesting about the same problem.” Dimple Singh, a resident of Mohali, claimed that her car (CH-03-D-4763) broke down minutes after she got it filled at this filling station. “The company officials have assured me that all expenses would be beared by them.” Another resident, Sandeep Sehgal of Panchkula, said his car (CH-03-U-7846) also stopped after he bought diesel from the station. While Balraj Singh, a resident of Sector 9, who to got car filled at about 10 am had to return from Kharar when his car got chocked. Puspinder, head (Sales), Bharat Petroleum, told TNS that one of their diesel tank got filled with rain water as the city was lashed with heavy downpour yesterday. We have closed the petrol station and were looking into the problem. The company would bear the entire expense of the affected vehicles. The complainants demanded that the petrol station should be sealed, so that others don’t have face similar problem. Talking to The Tribune, the agitated protesters said, the staff had intentionally mixed water. There are almost 100 petrol stations in the city, and how come only one station got affected due to the rainwater. A complaint has been lodged with the area SHO, the complainants said. Meanwhile, the officials of the Bharat Petroleum had no option but to stop the sale of both fuels at all stations owned by it.
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‘Indians are second in taking IELTS’
Chandigarh, June 13 The international English language testing system (IELTS) is one of the most popular English language tests for immigration and higher education in various countries. For the first time ever in a single 12-month period, more than one million people around the world (or two every minute) have gained certification in IELTS. “The demand for international education has gone up in the last few years leading to increase in the number of people taking this test.” While globally the highest overall IELTS top score is from Germany at 7.16, Indians score an average of 5.97. Within India, candidates whose first language is Hindi and Tamil score higher than speakers of other regional languages.
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Traffic workshop for CTU drivers from today
Chandigarh, June 13 The workshop will be organised on the weekends (Saturdays and Sundays) under the supervision of DSP (Traffic) Jasbir Singh Cheema and Chandigarh Motors Sports Association president S.P.S.Garcha. According to sources, the motive behind the workshop is to educate the CTU drivers about how to avoid accidents and the way on should drive on busy roads. Moreover, drivers will also be trained to handle accident cases and administer first aid to the victims. The DSP, along with a team of the Chandigarh Motor Sports Association, will also teach drivers about traffic management. The drivers will also have sit in a theoretical and practical test. A documentary directed by well-known comedian Jaspal Bhatti, would also be aired during the workshop. Besides, CTU drivers those of the Punjab, Haryana Roadways and the Chandigarh Administration would also be trained. DSP (Traffic) Jasbir Singh Cheema said, “We are expecting a good response from the CTU drivers as it help in reducing accidents.”
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Commonwealth team visits MC
Chandigarh, June 13 The city can boost of the highest per capita supply of water as against the national average, modern automatic slaughter house in the public sector and a garbage processing plant built on the BOT basis for deriving fuel. The plant has the capacity to process 500 tonnes of garbage daily.This was stated by municipal commissioner Roshan Sunkaria.
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Piccadilly Parking
Chandigarh, June 13 Chhabra told the TNS that he had gone to the parking lot after He found that the employees were issuing tickets of Rs 10 each whereas the price marked on the ticket had been rendered illegible by overwriting. Three witnesses from public were present on the occasion. Chhabra added that he had recommended action against the contractors of the parking lot and also taken the tickets into his possession.
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Panthik manch convener in preventive custody
Chandigarh, June 13 According to sources, Baljit had arranged a press conference at Sector-40 gurdwara today. During that he was supposed to present a victim of 1984 Sikh riot victims before mediapersons. The woman had allegedly decided to commit suicide to highlight the government’s indifferent attitude toward such victims. The police on being tipped-off, arrested Baljit from a PCO located at Sector-40 gurdwara last night. He was remanded in judicial custody till June 16. According to Sector-39 police station SHO, this action of his could have disturbed the peace of the area. Thus, he was taken into preventive custody.
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No takers for menial jobs
Chandigarh, June 13 Call it socio-economic upliftment or a change in the social fabric, the fact is that most of us are now feeling the pinch because of the growing labour shortage. It has become a difficult task to find sweepers, cobblers and the ordinary labour even in the construction industry. Those who were earlier doing these jobs have now progressed to more specialised jobs. A lot of unskilled labour has also shifted to the neighbouring areas of Himachal Pradesh, where a construction and industrial boom ensures them a longer duration of work. The sweepers have become housemaids and helpers (cooks), while construction labour has progressed to become labour contractor. As the economy and infrastructure getting a fillip in the states of Bihar, Orrissa and Jharkhand, the unskilled and raw labour is not coming here. It is this raw labour that has traditionally been taking up these jobs. The shortage of this workforce has also meant a boom time for those who are still doing these jobs. The sweepers who would generally charge anything between Rs 30 per bathroom till two years ago, are now charging Rs 100 to Rs 150 for cleaning each bathroom in a house. Similarly, the daily wages of a construction labour have been revised from Rs 110 last year, to Rs. 130 for a nine-hour shift now. Ranjit Singh, a bank employee renovating his flat in Sector 48, rued that he had to face a lot of difficulty in hiring labourers from the labour chowk though "specialists" like masons and painters were easily available.Ultimately, I had rely on local labourers who were costlier than the migrant ones, he complained. While the dwindling number of labourers arriving here from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar seem to have made things difficult for residents, who are reluctant to hire local workers as they charge more and their output is less as compared to those from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Ram Sumar, a labourer at Sector 20 Labour Chowk, said with the Bihar and Uttar Pradesh governments starting development projects most of the labourers seemed to have stayed back as they could get work nearer to their native places. In fact, with Punjab farmers reportedly paying hefty amounts for the paddy transplantation due to the labour shortage, the local migrant labour is shifting to Punjab thereby compounding residents' woes further. Meanwhile, labourers said working on daily basis had its own hazards and a majority of them were thinking of shifting to factories and ongoing construction projects in Chandigarh's periphery.
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Beopar Mandal delegates call on DC
Chandigarh, June 13 According to a press note issued here today, the delegation demanded the early launching of the deemed assessment scheme without C forms as it would bring huge revenue to the state and save them from harassment. They also demanded 1 per cent VAT on pulses, rice and food grains. Formation of the sales tax or VAT advisory committee and a monthly VAT return only for those dealers whose sale exceeds Rs 5 crore per annum were among the other issues discussed with the deputy commissioner. Rao assured them to implement the deemed assessment scheme after issuance of an ordinance on the same by the Punjab government. The commissioner assured that the Tin certificates would shortly be issued to the dealers whose files were complete.
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Seminar at Press Club on journalism ethics
Chandigarh, June 13 Former advisor to the planning commission of India Shekhar Singh was the key speaker on the occasion. He raised questions regarding ethics in administration. Impressing upon the media to identify corruption at local administrative level, he said it was the Right to Information Act that had exposed the corruption that had crippled the entire administration. He further added that every individual had an urge to be ethical but the never-ending appetite for money and position elevated the active desire from one level to another. Asian Education Society president Ashwani Luthra also raised the issue of falling ethical standards. He spoke about how the ethical bar needed to be raised where neither the administration nor media would be blamed for everything but every individual would learn to be responsible. Addressing media personnel, veteran journalist Gobind Thukral said the most important concern of a journalist was to get facts right and make efforts so that truth was not the victim.
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Five zoo inmates dead
Zirakpur, June 13 A red jungle fowl which had grown very old also breathed his last this morning. A white deer which had injured himself in a fight with another deer some days ago also died today. The biggest loss for the zoo was the death of the Emu chicks. A rare Australian bird, the Emu is difficult to rear in a foreign environment. This bird is a member of the flightless bird family, which includes the ostrich, rhea and the kiwi. A swift runner, it is similar to the ostrich but smaller in size, with height up to 6 feet. The Emu chicks were healthy and the zoo authorities were at a loss to explain why they had died. Postmortem on the red jungle fowl and white deer has been done. Dharminder Sharma, zoo in charge, said he could not talk to the media. Chief wildlife warden M.P. Rai said he would comment only after ascertaining facts.
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Environmental week ends
Ropar, June 13 An extensive tree plantation was carried out by planting and distributing over 2,000 tree saplings.
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CITIZENS’ GRIEVANCES A large number of shoppers come to Sadar Market in Sector 19.There is no parking space earmarked for them. The situation is bad between Sectors 19-27 (towards the light point). Most vehicles are parked on the road birms and the entire stretch becomes accident-prone. The MC/administration should make arrangements for a subway on both sides of the Sadar Market and a provision for underground parking be made. Surprisingly there is no traffic police in the area even during peak hours. R K Garg Chandigarh Rein in parking contractors
Parking rates fixed by the Chandigarh Administrator at the ISBT in Sector 17 are Rs 3 per day for outdoor parking and Rs 4 per day for basement parking. Now parking attendants have starting charging Rs 5 for one day for outside as well as indoor parking. The contractor has covered the rate board with a newspaper at the basement parking. In case of open parking, he has displayed a board saying that charges after 2 hours will be Rs I made a complaint to the Chandigarh Corporation but was told that complaints on overcharging at parking sites were not entertained by them. The corporation should either officially revise the charges for parking or take action against the contractor. Also, the contractors must be directed to display the Telephone No. at which a grievance may be registered.
Vikram, Chandigarh
Faulty drainage a curse
Ambala city has been facing inconvenience for the past 12 years due to defective drainge system, especially during the rainy season. HUDA officials visit the area every year and carry out routine checks of the system, make false promises and never come back to check whether their directions have been carried out or not. Several houses, particularly those from Nos 77 to 89 and 90 to 123, are the worst affected. Residents of the locality and vehicles get stranded in water puddles for hours together. I purchased a house in HUDA Colony to lead a comfortable retired life. Most of the basic civic amenities promised by HUDA in its letter of allotment are missing in the colony. Unfortunately, adjacent to Sector 9, HUDA has constructed a pucca nullah which is 3 to 4 ft above the level of road. The nullah is being used as a sewerage outlet emanating stench. It is a health hazard. One of the residents had filed a complaint with the District Consumers Forum against the faulty drainage system.The forum restrained HUDA but instead of providing basic amenities, HUDA has gone to the State Consumer Forum against the order.
Rajinder Jain, Ambala
Money deducted wrongly
I have had a savings account ( 55076887596) with the
SBOP, Sai Market Branch, Patiala, since 1995. No cheque book was issued to me ever. I also have time deposit in this branch (now in another branch of
SBOP). The branch wrongly deducted Rs. 1,134.91 as penalty for not keeping the minimum balance suo motu without any notice, intimation or demand. I have sent two letters ( August 16, 2007 and November 3, 2007) and an e-mail dated February 1, 2008, to the general manager-operation
SBOP, The Mall, Patiala, requesting that directions be issued to the branch manager to return the wrongly deducted sum with interest. But, neither the deducted amount has been returned nor my letters acknowledged till date. I am 76 years old and I find it very difficult to run after bank
officers. Gora Lal Jain, Patiala
Need to curb auto nuisance
Due to paid parking a lot many vehicles are parked on the main road in Sector 35 opposite the chain of hotels there. These block at least 25 per cent of the road and pose a grave threat to the commuters. The autos have created a havoc in the city. There is no regulation for them. Auto drivers jam their brakes in the middle of the road at the sight of a passenger.There are no parking regulations for them either. The Bullet culture is bothersome. Youngsters remove the silencers of the bikes and create a ruckus on the roads. The menace should be curbed. I remember 30 years ago my father was issued a ticket by the Traffic Police because the rear light of his scooter was not functioning. I want to know when was such a ticket issued last by the police. Such motorists who do take precautions cause danger to themselves and to others. Paying Guests are flouting rules in Chandigarh as well. I see that a lot of policemen talking on their mobile phones while on duty.
Shikha Bansal, Chandigarh
Restore old bus routes
Prior to introduction of the so-called grid system for local buses two years back, there used to be two routes - 10 & 123A - for going to colleges in Sector 11, Panjab University and the PGI from Mohali Phase XI via Sectors 48/49 and 46/47. Despite repeated requests, none of these routes have been restored. In the absence of a direct service, the passengers have to change buses at the Sector 17 bus stand. One can well imagine the predicament of an ill person or a senior citizen visiting the
PGI. I urge the transport authorities to restore at least one bus route direct to the
PGI. G R KALRA, Chandigarh
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Letters
Panjab University's initiative to start special short-term courses for foreign nationals to help them understand India better is a welcome move. I have no doubts that it will help PU earn the much-needed revenue and put Chandigarh on a global platform. But I wonder if these courses will cater to the non-English speaking visitors as well. PU should ensure that these courses are offered in as many foreign languages as possible. French, for example, can be very fussy about participating in this program if the medium of instructions is only English. The problem can be solved if the courses are run directly under the auspices of departments of foreign languages. Another important factor that could well be the deciding factor for the success of these courses is their duration. I reckon the proposed duration of six weeks is too long even if it includes travelling to different places in India. The course content should be kept precise, short and of high quality to fit in the scheme of things. Considering that most European countries, from where we are likely to have visitors, get two months of summer break in July and August; starting courses in October may not fit the visitors’ agenda. Rajesh Krishan, Chandigarh Readers are invited to write to us. Send your mail, in not more than 200 words, at news@tribuneindia. com or, write in, at: Letters, Chandigarh Tribune, Sector 29, Chandigarh – 160 030
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Uniform fee structure in colleges a distant dream
Chandigarh, June 13 Meanwhile, all private colleges affiliated to Panjab University remain on tenterhooks as the university had earlier directed them not to publish the fee structure page in their respective prospectuses. It may be recalled that Panjab University had, in October 2007, constituted a committee to look into the possibilities of having a uniform fee structure in private colleges and give its recommendations for implementation. After about three-four meetings, the matter was brought to the PU syndicate on May 18 after the committee recommended having a fee structure given by PU in 2004-05 for its approval. The syndicate had then recommended extending the existing committee by adding more members. Even after that was done and around nine members were added, nothing came out of the meeting that was held on May 23. According to sources, the new members who were added so as to have an extended committee are the representatives of the same managements that are accused of fleecing the students by overcharging them. As a result, the house is divided vertically. The members are at loggerheads over the issue and are unable to reach any consensus. Moreover, yesterday three members of the committee P.S. Gill, R.N. Sharma and Tarsem Bahia had announced through press that they would boycott the meeting in protest. Only Sharma and Bahia stood grounds while Gill attended the meeting. Moreover, in the morning today, two new members were also added in haste, including campus council president Parminder Jaswal and Prof Anil Sarwal. “I was unable to attend the meeting as I was informed only at 10:30 am and the meeting was at 11 am. I was in Ludhiana at that time,” said Jaswal. According to sources, even Prof Sarwal did not attend the meeting. When confronted,whether a decision could be taken or not today, most of the members were tightlipped and said they had been told not to reveal anything to media. However, when asked, a member on the condition of anonymity, said, “When most of the members are from the managements of erring colleges, how can a free and fair decision be even expected to come out of the deliberations.” “The members seem to be trying to push it to the next session,” said another All said and done, the students still remain at the receiving end as uncertainty looms large over the fee structure.Despite repeated attempts, the vice-chancellor could not be contacted.
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NTT is now CEd
Chandigarh, June 13 The course duration has also been changed from two years to one year. The eligibility will now be minimum 50 per cent marks in Class XII. The Chandigarh administration, to which the course is affiliated, has decided to abolish the entrance test and admission will be made purely on merit basis. Relaxation of five per cent has been given in merit for the reserve category and fee concession will also be given to the wards belonging to the reserved categories. DAV Institute of Education at DAV Model School, Sector 15-A, Chandigarh, has now converted NTT into CEd and the institute is offering this course only to female candidates. It has been running the NTT course successfully since 1991 with 100 per cent pass result and excellent placement record. There are only two institutes in Chandigarh which are affiliated to NCTE and Chandigarh administration.
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From Schools & Colleges
Mohali, June 13 Selected
Eminent Mechanical Engineering Professor and Head of Mechanical Engineering Department of Indo Global Engineering College (Abhipur) SAS Nagar, Dr Binay Kumar, has been selected as the Director-cum-Principal of Bansal Institute of Engineering and Technology Modipuram near Merrut. A product of Indian School of mines, Dr Binay Kumar carries with him 30 years of experience in teaching and Industry. He was professor and head, in two prominent Engineering Colleges. Chairman Indo Global Colleges, Sukhdev Kumar Singla lauded the efforts, dedication and contribution of Dr Binay Kumar in upkeeping, improving, modernising many facets of the college Counselling
Swami Vivekanand College of Pharmacy today conducted final counselling for allotment of various Pharmaceutical companies for sending their students for industrial training. The placement cell of the institution has developed interactive relationships with over 25 pharmaceutical companies and has obtained their consent to allow their students to undergo one month training in their respective organizations. After completion of their training the students will submit a detailed report prepared on the basis of their training experience in their respective companies.
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Central Status for PU
Chandigarh, June 13 Gurpreet Kaur, Kavita, Veerpal and Balwinder from the department of Punjabi, Hari Nath from Hindi, Rai Bahadur Singh from music and Raj Kumar from the department of physics sat on the chain fast. However, in an informal gathering of the research scholars today, it was decided that the Panjab University Research Scholars’ Association (PURSA) would be revived and would mobilise all research scholars by the time the university opens up in the month of July.
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UNDERGRADUATE COURSES / SEATS Co-educational POSTGRADUATE COURSES JOB ORIENTED ADD-ON COURSES SPORTS ACTIVITIES HOSTEL Hostel seat is allotted for one academic year only. Contact- 0172-2740597
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Consumer Court
Chandigarh, June 13 The forum has also asked them to pay Rs 2,200 as costs of litigation. The petitioners - Ashok Khemka and Jyoti Khemka - stated that they had purchased an air ticket from Delhi-Washington-New York and return ticket to New Delhi from Air India worth Rs 2.11 lakh. The complainants purchased a second ticket under the companion scheme offered by the airlines in the name of Jyoti Khemka for Delhi (DEL)-New York (JFK)-Delhi (DEL) by paying Rs 12,599. It was averred that on reaching Johan F. Kennedy (JFK) International Airport, New York, at 3.30 pm on November 17, 2007, from Washington DC for boarding the flight to Delhi, the complainant learned about sudden cancellation of flight No. AI-112 to Delhi without prior information. They were told that they could be accommodated in the same flight the next day i.e. November 18, but no reasons except technical maintenance for cancellation of the flight were given. It was also averred that while checking in at the airport at Washington DC on November 17 at 10 am to broad the DL-5967 flight of Delta Airlines to New York, two bags were checked in by the airlines directed to Delhi. The baggage, bearing identification numbers (Annexure IV), contained clothes of the complainants and other essential toiletries. Even at the time of the issuance of boarding passes at Washington DC, the petitioners were not informed about the cancellation of the scheduled Air India flight. The petitioners arrived at the New York airport on time to board the flight to Delhi. They were forced to remain in an unhygienic hotel for three days. Thereafter, the complainants were again huddled out of the hotel for the airport at 4.30 pm the next day i.e. November 18. However, the flight was further delayed and finally departed at 11.30 pm instead of the scheduled time of 7pm, thereby making the petitioners wait at the airport for about seven hours. Finally, the flight landed at the Delhi at 4.30 am on November 20, 2007, i.e. 30 hours behind schedule. In reply, the airlines claimed that the complainant was not a consumer as the ticket was arranged by department of personnel and training, Government of India, while the second petitioner was on free CFS ticket. It was submitted that the flight AI-112 on November 17, 2007, from New York to Delhi was cancelled on technical grounds. It argued that the complainant could not be informed as they had not given any contract numbers in the USA. The forum held: “It has now become common with airlines to allege a technical snag whenever a flight is cancelled for any reason. It cannot be said in the absence of evidence or documents on record that there was any snag in the aircraft. The airlines also didn’t give any notice of cancellation of flight.”
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Admn takes cue from Delhi finance panel
Chandigarh, June 13 The departments withdrawn from the two secretaries have been given to other senior officials, including deputy commissioner R.K. Rao, who has come in the super-time scale. While checking the centralisation of powers held by two secretaries, officials claim that it had been done to provide equal opportunity to others, who have otherwise held important portfolios in their respective states. However, in the entire exercise, the administration has failed to address the issue of several engineering projects that had been delayed. While fixing the responsibilities of the bureaucrats, the top brass in the administration has failed to address the issue of several important engineering projects being delayed, thereby once again exposing the misplaced priorities of the administration. It seems in the entire exercise, Punjab bureaucrats have been gainers and the Haryana bureaucrats losers. Though the finance secretary is presently holding the charge of the home secretary, the problem could arise once the Centre issued the orders of the new home secretary. The new incumbent would join with reduced powers taking the sheen off the plum post. Though the orders passed by UT Administrator, Gen S.F. Rodrigues (retd), is bound to result in heart burning among a few officials, those from UT believe that it would allow others to share the responsibility, fix accountability and speed up the pending projects. While the finance secretary has been divested of the powers of the secretary (Rural Development) and secretary (Environment and Forests) and the secretary (Excise and Taxation), many of the departments have been taken away from the home secretary. The departments has been divested of secretary, medical education and research, agriculture, tourism, labour and employment, food and supplies and consumer affairs An official said municipal commissioner Roshan Sunkaria had been assigned additional charge of the secretary, health, medical education and research and excise and taxation. Thus, Sunkaria, who recently locked horns with the mayor over the inauguration of the garbage processing plants, seemed to be the major gainer. CITCO MD Jasbir Singh Bir has been given the charge of the secretary (Tourism), secretary ( Rural Development and Panchayats) and secretary (Environment and Forests) has been assigned to CHB chairman Mohanjeet Singh. Deputy commissioner R.K. Rao has been assigned the post of the secretary (Labour and Employment) and the secretary (Food and Supplies and Consumer Affairs). SDM (South) Shurbir Singh has been given charge of the director (Food and Supplies, Consumer Affairs) and the director (Agriculture). Similarly, additional deputy commissioner I. S. Sandhu has been assigned additional charge of the labour commissioner. Whereas, Manjit Brar, director, IT, has been give the charge of the additional excise and taxation commissioner and the joint chief electoral officer. Controller, Printing and Stationary, N.P.S Randhawa, has been assigned the job of the joint registrar (Cooperative Societies).
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