Ludhiana, July 28
Leading by example, the municipal corporation general house today decided to switch off air-conditioners in the MC office and turn on tubewells an hour in advance everyday to tackle electricity and water crisis.

This came after a councillor raised the problem of shortage of water due to power cuts. Commissioner Vikas Partap announced from the floor that the MC will save electricity and ordered turning off of all ACs installed in all MC offices.

He asked attendants to turn off ACs even in the committee room where the meeting was in progress and called upon people to complain on his phone if anybody was found using AC at the MC office.

He also announced the switching on of tubewells in the city at 4 am instead of 5 am so as to allow residents to get more supply hours.

He said the measure was being taken keeping in view shortage of potable water due to power cuts. He also announced that streelights will remain on between 8 pm and 5 am everyday.

“If you come across any streetlight switched on before or after these hours, you can give me a call. I will suspend the employee concerned right away,” said the commissioner amidst applause by elected representatives. He appealed to residents to use water judiciously in spite of the measures.

“We are already faced with acute shortage of electricity. Similar scenario can be faced in case of water also. Though we will advance the supply time, we must not waste it,” he said.

With today’s announcement, the MC becomes the first government office in the city to take such austerity measures to save electricity.

The issue of shortage of water, its contamination and flooding of houses during rains was highlighted by a number of councillors in the house today.

Many of them, including Inderjeet Singh Gill, Rupamdeep Kaur Malhi, Rakesh Prashar, Sham Sunder Malhotra and Parminder Mehta, complained against shortage of drinking water and flooding of houses during rains.

They said everytime it rained, houses in their wards were flooded due to poor drainage system.

“Every time people call us up, asking for a solution. What should we tell them?” asked Rakesh Prashar.

Many councillors brought bottles of contaminated water being supplied to households in different areas. They said every year there was an outbreak of a waterborne disease but MC authorities were ignorant to the problem.

Jagbir Singh Sokhi, a councillor, rued the shortage of fogging machines. He said the MC still relied on age-old methods of fogging, which were proving inefficient. He also demanded re-christening of Shimlapuri area after a martyr.

Councillor Amrit Varsha Rampal took a dig at husbands of several women councillors who were attending house meeting.

She asked them to leave but SAD leader Harbhajan Dang opposed her only to be supported by mayor Hakam Singh Gyaspura, who said they had requested to be allowed to attend the meeting.

The house then passed all agenda items except the one asking for the withdrawal
of free water supply to houses measuring up to 125 sq yrd. The house kept the
item pending.

Though chief parliamentary secretary Harish Rai Dhanda said the city would not get grants under JNNURM if it did not roll back the sops, the house decided to carry the item to next house.

Ludhiana, July 28
City malls have become a favourite haunt of residents these days especially in the wake of prolonged power cuts.

Unable to find respite from scorching heat amid six to seven hours of daily power cuts, many residents can be seen whiling away time at malls, which are centrally air-conditioned and have a good power backup.

As a result, footfall at these mega shopping malls has multiplied though owners of many shopping outlets rue that their sales have not increased much.

“There seems to be no end to power cuts. As in our locality there is a cut every afternoon for five hours, instead of sitting home during lunch hours, I head to one of these malls where there are no cuts and one can spend time in cool air,” said Amarjit Kaur, a Civil Lines resident.

Not only homemakers, students and office-goers opt for this route. “It is no fun sitting idle at home and sweating it out. I instead go to one of the shopping centres and spend time. Even as it is tough to resist, particularly with sales on, I restrict myself to window-shopping,” says Satish Kumar, an employee of a private company.

The result is a good turnout at most of these outlets. However, shop owners rue that the rise in their sales is not as high as the increase in the volume of visitors.

“We see heavy rush of people these days but the increase in sale has been much less in comparison to that. It seems most people only come here to while away their time,” feels Mukesh, who works at one of the city malls.

Doraha, July 28
The accumulation of sewage for over a week and that too on the busy railway road has made the life of the residents miserable.

Accumulated sewage has not only made the life of commuters and residents a hell but also posed a serious threat to the lives of residents, who have been exposed to numerous diseases.

Residents complain that sanitary employees have not bothered to take any concrete step in this regard. Although, an evacuation machine has been installed to clear the passage, it has failed to serve the purpose.

The residents complain that the stagnant water has become a breeding ground for mosquitoes and other flies and an epidemic outbreak is imminent.

“In this weather, waterborne diseases can spread in no time if such conditions are allowed to prevail. Moreover, chances of sewage mixing with drinking water are also high,” they rue.

The sewage accumulation in Kaushal Street, Gobindpura mohalla and the street adjoining Sher-e-Punjab dhaba is a matter of routine.

Also, rainwater accumulation on the Lakkar Mandi, post office road and Jaipura road is far too frequent.

On the Sher-e-Punjab street, sewage has been accumulated on the road due to a fault in the sewerage system.

Every time the foul smelling water gets collected on the road, sanitary employees of the municipal council temporarily evacuate it, without providing any permanent solution to the problem.

Pawan Kumar Kaushal, a retired teacher and a senior citizen, rues that repeated reminders and regular pleas to the MC have fallen on deaf ears, as the latter has failed to come out with a permanent solution.

Residents had last month staged a dharna in front of the MC office but to no avail. They have now warned of intensifying the stir if the administration failed to take immediate measures.

A sanitary officer said the sewerage system of the town had over- lived its capacity to absorb sewage of the town.

“When the sewerage system was first laid, the town had a population of just 5,000 people. Now, with a population of around 25,000 and with the passage of time, sewerage system has got damaged. Cement layering on the pipes has eroded and steel has been exposed. Only a new master plan for the town can bring permanent relief to residents,” he added.

Ludhiana, July 28
A team headed by a senior official of the Punjab School Education Board (PSEB) today raided four schools affiliated to the board here today.

The raid was conducted to check the irregularities in the schools. A senior PSEB official said: "We have received complaints that more than 11 private affiliated schools are flouting norms laid down by the board. We could so far check only four schools and found irregularities on the part of the school authorities. Further, the teachers of these schools alleged that they were underpaid. We found the school infrastructure also below standard."

Similar raids would be carried out in future, the official added. According to sources, the team will submit its report to the higher authorities and necessary action will be taken against the erring schools.

PSEB chairman D.S. Dhillon confirmed that the board officials were sent to check the irregularities in the schools.

However, he refused to divulge the names of the schools against which they had received complaints.

Ludhiana, July 28
The research and development work at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) is suffering badly for want of electricity during peak hours on the campus.

In some of the departments, there are generators that help in carrying out the work, but the departments sans generators suffer a lot.

The university has asked the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) to put it on hotline, but the demand has not been considered so far.

As per information, the university authorities had applied for the hotline connection in March. They have also paid the amount (approximately Rs 90 lakh) to the electricity board, but the connection is still awaited.

Dr M.S. Mahal, president, Punjab Agricultural University Teachers' Association (PAUTA), told The Tribune that work suffered in laboratories due to long power cuts. The research and development work could not move on without electricity and running generators for nearly six hours a day was also not viable, he added.

One of the employees of the union, however, revealed that certain generators in the university were lying non-functional for the past many years.

"A generator near department of soils and another near College of Agriculture have not been functioning for long. The authorities must make efforts to maintain the equipment properly," he added.

On the other hand, Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (GADVASU) has been able to get regular power supply (in the administrative block) as they have taken connection from Verka Milk Plant, BRS Nagar here.

One of the officials on condition of anonymity disclosed when GADVASU started in 2006, the hotline was provided to them by the milk plant.

"It was a one-time settlement and we do not pay monthly installments to them," said the official adding that the College of Veterinary Sciences was being run on 82 KVA generator while animal breeding department had a 50 KVA generator installed.

"Only the administrative block is on the hotline. Since we get regular power supply, we are comfortable with our work," he said.

P.S.Gill, SE (west), PSEB, confirmed that the university had applied for hotline connection in research areas.

"But it is the management (board) that decides whether to agree to it or not. The department has to take its time," he said.

Ludhiana, July 28
A farewell function was organised for the outgoing batch of nursing students of Dr BL Kapur Memorial Hospital, School of Nursing.

Dr Wahigurupal Singh Sidhu, the chief guest at the function extended his wishes to the students and their outgoing teacher Avneet Kaur.

Esther Jeba Rani, principal, presented a memento to the teacher on behalf of the faculty members.

Ludhiana, July 28
B.S. Ramoowalia, president, Lok Bhalai Party, and former union cabinet minister, has condemned the police action against unemployed teachers at a peaceful rally at Kapurthala yesterday.

He said teachers were the backbone of society and the delay by the government in filling 16,000 existing vacant posts of teachers was not an intelligent step on part of the government.

Ramoowalia added that he was pinched by the prevalent wave of unemployment in public and private sectors as thousands of Punjabi youths were migrating to overseas countries, seeking better livelihood.

The trend had already resulted in their mass exodus from villages and towns. He said the ghost of unemployment in Punjab was due to faulty policies of the government.

Ramoowalia extended his party’s support to the cause of striking teachers and sought immediate intervention of the chief minister to resolve the issue amicably.

Ludhiana, July 28
To protest against anti-farmer policies of the Centre, the farming community from South would also extend its cooperation in the ongoing struggle of Punjab farmers, claimed Ajmer Singh Lakhowal, Bharti Kisan Union (BKU), Punjab in a press statement issued here today.

In a joint statement, Lakhowal and other office-bearers of the union, including Bhupinder Singh Mahesari and Puran Singh Shahkot, said representatives from other unions had also assured their support and cooperation to the farming community.

"The MSP on produce must be implemented as per the recommendations of the Agricultural Commission and Swaminathan Committee. The political leaders have no right to exploit the farmers," said Lakhowal.

He added that thousands of farmers were ready to raise their voice against the "step-motherly" treatment of the union government in Delhi on August 4.

Ludhiana, July 28
Scientists, research fellows and a student of PAU department of Horticulture, Punjab Horticulture Post Harvest Technology Centre (PHPTC) and PAU regional station, Abohar, participated in the national symposium on “Citriculture: emerging trends” held at the National Research Centre for Citrus, Nagpur, recently.

On this occasion, Dr P.S. Aulakh, director, regional station Abohar was conferred upon with the Fellowship of Indian Society of Citriculture for the year 2007 for his outstanding research on citrus.

He co-chaired a technical session on citrus production and presented a paper on “Citrus genetic diversity: characterisation and conservation”.

Dr A.S. Dhatt, director of PHPTC, chaired the technical session on “Post-Harvest technology” and delivered a key lecture on “Recent trends in post-harvest handling and storage”. Dr D.R. Sharma, Entomologist, deliberated on “New horizon in insect pest-control in citrus”.

Amongst a large number of papers presented through posters in different technical sessions during the symposium, PAU scientists bagged three best paper awards namely, “Citrus production” (PPS Gill and Nav Prem Singh), “Citrus protection” (D.R.Sharma and H.S. Dhaliwal) and “Post-harvest management” (S.K. Jawanda, J.S. Randhawa and P.S. Tiwana).

Ludhiana, July 28
A large number of employees from Health department gathered at a civil surgeon office to extend their wishes to the state mass media and education officer, Santosh Bhatia, on her retirement today.

Santosh started her service in 1975 as a Lady Health Visitor. Thereafter, she went on to do her Masters degree in Hindi and postgraduation diploma in Journalism and Mass Communication.

The directorate of Health and Family Welfare, Punjab, appointed her as the state media and education officer in June 2007.

Civil surgeon, Ludhiana, Dr S P Sharma and district family welfare officer Dr Reena Sandhu lauded Santosh for having carried out her duty sincerely.

Ludhiana, July 28
As many as 109 students of Bhartiya Vidya Mandir Senior Secondary School, Udham Singh Nagar, were given scholarships.

The Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan, (deemed university under union HRD ministry), New Delhi, rewarded them for scoring more than 65 per cent marks in Sanskrit in the annual middle-standard examination.

Ludhiana, July 28
Finally, a ray of hop for underprivileged children of the district, as the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) authorities have started 232 alternative innovative education (AIE) centres in the district to bring back the out-of-school children back to the mainstream of education.

With the launch of new session of AIE, the SSA authorities have claimed to accommodate around 5,667 out-of-school children.

Amrinder Singh, district EGS/AIE coordinator, said: “With an aim of mainstreaming the out-of-school students, we have started 232 AIE centres in which we have accommodated 5,667 children. More such centres are likely to be introduced soon to accommodate more such children. Our primary focus is to induct the children within the age group of six to eight years to nearby schools with immediate effect.”

According to the directions of the higher authorities of the SSA, AIE centres should be established in areas where over 20 children are out of school.

To encourage the teaching volunteers, the SSA authorities have increased the monthly wage of volunteers from Rs 1,000 to Rs 2,000. Graduate volunteers will also get Rs 2,500.

Amrinder Singh said: “The SSA authorities have introduced many other schemes to accommodate more and more out-of-school children in AIE centres. The authorities have invited volunteers promising them job as teachers in AIE centres if they bring at least 20 students.”

He said the SSA authorities had started a bridge course for students in the the age group of eight to 14. Such children felt self-conscious while sitting with children much younger to them.

To speed up the education process and encourage students, the authorities have introduced a combined syllabus of two classes so that students can be promoted to next class in one session.

For example, a student of class I will attempt a combined syllabus of class I and II and be promoted to class III in next session. This course will run for nine months.

He said: “With the induction of such courses we hope that we will be able to decrease the ratio of out-of-school children.”

Ludhiana, July 28
The investiture and oath taking ceremony for 2008-09 was organised at Guru Gobind Singh Public School, Daad-Pakhowal road, here today.

Gurinderjeet Kaur, overall house-in-charge, conducted the ceremony under the aegis of school principal, Manjeet Kaur, in the school auditorium.

Rajanvir Kaur was elected the school head-girl, while Gurpreet Singh was elected the school head-boy.

Bhupinder Kaur and Jashanjot Singh were elected vice-captains. Two prefects from each house were also elected on this occasion.

According to a press release, the college pass percentage is 100 per cent, where as the university pass percentage is only 58.84 per cent.

Ludhiana, July 28
Hero DMC Heart Institute (HDHI) today started SPECT-CT gamma camera and 3D-4D live colour doppler echocardiography system.

O.P. Munjal, member of the DMCH Managing Society, said: “The introduction of this technology in Ludhiana is in pursuance of our philosophy of making available the latest healthcare technology in the city. As of now, patients had to go outside to undergo these tests. Moreover, the technology makes it possible to identify potential medical problems at an early stage and pinpoints their exact location. Therefore, the hospital management decided to go for this expensive technology.”

Dr G.S. Wander, chief cardiologist and coordinator, HDHI, said: “Nuclear medicine is a specialty that uses very small amounts of radioactive material to diagnose or treat diseases and other abnormalities within the body. Nuclear medicine imaging procedures are non-invasive and relatively painless medical tests.”

Therapeutic plasma exchange costs Rs 17,000 per session and usually two to three sessions may be needed in most patients.

Ludhiana, July 28
It is important for cardiologists and cardiac surgeons to abstain from overaggressive approach in recommending therapeutic measures for coronary artery diseases to safeguard physical and financial interests of the patients.

This was stated by Dr Naresh Trehan, senior cardiac surgeon, Apollo Hospital, Delhi, and chairman, Medicity Hospital, Gurgaon.

Dr Trehan was in the city to attend a national summit on diagnostic cardiology organised by the Hero DMC Heart Institute.

Referring to the ongoing commercialised practices amongst doctors, especially cardiologists, Dr Trehan called upon cardiologists to go for judicious use of stents.

He cautioned people against metabolic syndrome adding that waist size of above 90 cm, blood pressure of 130 mm hg and cholesterol level of 225 doubled the chances of heart attack.

Cutting down on fried diet, 45 minutes of exercise for five days a week, weight control, no smoking and alcohol in moderate quantity could reduce the risk, the expert added.

Stem cell surgery and left heart assisting device are the new techniques that have been successfully evolved by the cardiac surgeon for heart patients in India. "I have successfully done 20 stem cell surgeries in the recent past.

Not only this, seeing the positive results of robotic surgery, we are in the process of importing four armed robots," informed Dr Trehan.

When asked about the biggest challenge before him, the doctor said he, along with his team, was involved in extensive research on heart failure in diabetic patients as their heart became oversized which increased the risk.

"Ramdev is trying hard to cure coronary artery diseases through yoga, but I have yet to see the results," said Dr Trehan.

He also suggested that in patients with acute blockade in coronary artery, some yogic exercises could add to stress thereby deteriorating the condition.

"Thus, it is best to go for investigations followed by the advice of cardiologists, if the problem is serious," said Dr Trehan.