Bathinda, May 26
Class X results of the CBSE were declared today and according to sources, Shreya Minocha of St. Joseph’s Convent School scored 96.6 per cent while Tanwar Gaurav of Kendriya Vidyalaya No. 3 was close behind scoring 96 per cent marks.

Nikita Gupta of Vishwas Public School, Rahul Bansal, Abhishek, Aseem Gupta and Rishab Saboo of RBDAV Senior Secondary School scored 100 marks in mathematics

Girls again outperformed boys in the toppers’ list and the highest scorer in the city was a girl. Almost all schools claimed to have 100 per cent result.

Arun Jee, principal of the Delhi Public School while giving information to The Tribune, said, around 61 students appeared for Class X Boards and all 61 have passed. The least percentage scored by the students is above 60 per cent and the highest 94.20 per cent has been scored by Pooja Kaul followed by Lipsy Goyal with 93.80 per cent, Vishal Bansal scored 93 per cent, Bhawna Garg got 92.80 per cent and Manjeet Kumar Goyal also got 92.80 per cent. Ten students got more than 90 per cent and around 26 students managed more than 80 per cent marks.

Shipra Goyal of Sanawar, an institute for children, scored 94 per cent and 96 marks in social science.

Aseem Gupta of RBDAV Senior Secondary School got 95.6 per cent and 10 students scored more than 90 per cent marks.

Silver Oaks School principal Neelam Verma also claimed hundred per cent results in her school. Garima Verma scored 93 per cent which was the highest percentage scored and four students managed to cross the 90 per cent mark.

St Kabir’s Convent Senior Secondary School also managed 93.8 per cent as the highest score in Class X Boards.

Eastwood International School’s first batch also gave 100 per cent results and Parul Garg scored 90.8 per cent. Twenty-five students appeared in the first batch of the school, said Beena Rao, the school dean.

Kendriya Vidyalya No. 1’s result was 97.2 per cent with two students getting supplementary but no student had failed, said the principal of the school T.D. Garg.

The highest score of 92.6 per cent was bagged by Navneet Kaur.

In spite of the market being closed in the aftermath of violence that has rocked the Doaba area, cyber cafes across the city did a flourishing business today as students and their parents kept the business going throughout the day.

Rohit Garg, who owns a cyber café opposite the SSD Girls’ College said, “Someone rang our doorbell at 7 am and said he wanted to check Class X result. We told him it would be out by 10 am. Parents seemed more interested in the result and many came to our shop today. Almost all children scored above 60 per cent and results above 80 per cent was a common sight.”

Abohar, May 26
Frustrated over resumption of the train services on Sriganganagar-Abohar-Bathinda section, some miscreants, who had departed from the main procession today, smashed one of the glass panes of the exit gate of the local railway station in the afternoon. This small group had dodged the Punjab Police that followed the protesters. Only three RPF men, who were present at the railway station acted as silent spectators as miscreants carrying sticks ransacked the platform, sources said. The railway authorities sensing trouble had halted up and down trains at the outer signal.

As the administration informed the heads of the educational institutions quite late about closure, all the schools and colleges started functioning normally in the morning. They were later directed to shut down latest by 11 am. Some of the three-wheelers, that carried students, were stopped by the protesters at the level crossing near Thakur Abadi forcing the kids to walk braving scorching heat to their respective colonies on foot.

Members of the Dalit Samaj earlier assembled at the Ganga Maai Mandir while all the markets had started doing business. Tehsildar Avtar Singh Makkar, reportedly approached them not to observe bandh but they turned down the advice. Most of the protesters carried lathis, sticks, baseballs and few sharp-edged weapons also.

They held a rally at the Sabzi Mandi Chowk to denounce killing of Swami Ramanand and attack on Swami Niranjan Nand in Vienna. At 12 noon, they started marching through the Circular Road, Bazaar Number 4, Main Bazaar, Sadar Bazaar giving a field day to rumour mongers, who created panic in most of the localities by floating misinformation on the conduct of the protesters. Interestingly, the cavalcade of the civil and police officers moved in a scattered manner. A head constable occupied the front seat of the vehicle officially marked for the Executive Magistrate while the latter was found sitting in a police van.

Even the BJP workers were reluctant in approving the style of functioning of the local police, as the latter visibly looked more concerned for the security and safety of the local liquor and wine shops than the common man's property. Constables were reportedly deployed at all the liquor and wine retail sale outlets on the Circular Road while none of them was found outside the banks. Traffic police also emerged in blue uniform after a long period.

As glass pane of a private minibus was smashed by the protesters on way to the main bus stand, all buses went off the roads in the afternoon. Stranded passengers had no means of transport till this evening.

Mansa: The railway and road traffic was affected today as members of various Dalit outfits blocked the traffic in Budhlada at the railway crossing of Buha Budhlada road. Railway officials said that some trains were stopped as precautionary measure from the site where the protesters were blocking the traffic and staging dharna.

Members of the Dalit community were protesting against the attack on the heads of Dera Sachkhand and death of Rama Nand in Vienna (Austria). Bagga Singh, Sher Singh, Ajmer Singh principal, Bihari Singh and Major Singh were leading the protesters.

Besides, markets, business houses, schools and colleges also remained closed in Mansa, Budhlada, Bhikhi and Bareta. Meanwhile, DC Kumar Rahul and SSP Manwinder Singh said though markets remained closed at various places in the district but no untoward incident was reported.

Faridkot/Moga, May 26
Situation in Faridkot and Moga districts remained tense but was under control throughout the day on Tuesday. No violent incident was reported from any part of these districts. However, peaceful protests were carried out by a section of the society over the killing of their religious leader at Vienna in Austria, last week.

In the morning, a group of about 300 people through the Main Bazaar of Faridkot headed towards the District Magistrate's office. Heavy security force was deployed by the administration on the route.

On reaching the secretariat building, the protestors handed over a memorandum to the DM VK Meena, demanding from the Union government to take appropriate steps through diplomatic channels with the Austrian government to take strict action against those who killed their religious leader.

The DSP of Faridkot, Sewa Singh claimed that the residents of this town had closed their shops and work premises on their own in the morning in order to avoid any clash, however, the local traders revealed that the police asked them to shut down their business premises.

Local police had asked the businessmen to roll down their shops and other commercial establishments in the morning as a preventive measure to avoid any clash with the protesters.Later, at about 11.00 am, a group of people carried out a protest march through the Main Bazaar and other streets of the town to enforce complete bandh. However, no violent incident was reported, when the last report came in.

The protesters blocked traffic on the Ferozepur-Ludhiana National Highway for couple of hours. They raised slogans against the state government. The District Magistrate, Satwant Singh Johal claimed that no violent incident was reported from any part of the district. "We are keeping strict vigil and taking all preventive measures to avoid any clash", he said.

Fazilka: A complete bandh remained in the town here today for the second consecutive day following the call by Guru Ravi Dass community to protest against the assassination of Ramanand at Vienna in Austria. The followers of Guru Ravi Dass took out a large protest procession. They raised slogans against the government and demanded immediate arrest of the assailants who attacked Ramanand.

Even as the shopkeepers had to keep their establishments closed, resentment amongst some of them continued to grow, as they felt that they were loosing their business.

The members of the Bar Association, Fazilka, too held an emergency meeting today, which was presided over by the Bar President Rajesh Kalra. They decided to observe strike today and tomorrow to protest against the damage to their property by some miscreants on Monday, who were compelling them to boycott courts.

Earlier, some shopkeepers opened their shops in the morning but they soon closed them. All the private and roadways buses remained off the road for the second day causing great inconvenience to the passengers and commuters. The private schools also remained closed.

Bathinda, May 26
The plight of train passengers continued consecutively for the second day on Tuesday as the railway, taking precautionary measures in the wake of violence erupted in Punjab following Sunday’s Vienna incident, cancelled or regulated the trains passing through Bathinda.

Sources in the railway said the situation, however, was gradually returning to normal. The Railway, leaving nothing to chance, regulated several trains for about 30 to 45 minutes to avoid any untoward incident.

Senior railway officials at Bathinda remained on toes throughout the day to ensure safe and smooth running of the trains on its several sections.

The 9772 Amritsar-Jaipur Express, which runs between Amritsar and Jaipur via Bathinda, was to begin its Tuesday’s journey from Bathinda instead of Amritsar. “The 9772 is scheduled to start from Bathinda at 10.25 pm on Tuesday,” railway sources told TNS on Tuesday evening.

The Railway had on Tuesday morning decided to cancel the 9225 Bathinda-Jammu Tawi Express but the decision was changed in the evening when the situation improved in Jammu.

Meanwhile, as a preventive measure, the Railway stopped the 344 passenger train for about an hour around 11 am at a station before Budhlada in Delhi division following information of agitation. The train resumed its journey after 12 noon.

The 4526 was regulated at Sriganganagar for about 45 minutes while the 335 was regulated at Bathinda for around an hour, railway sources said, adding that the situation was likely to improve from Wednesday.

Bathinda, May 26
The Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta) today condemned the Vienna attack and appealed to the followers of the Dera Sachkhand to maintain peace and communal harmony. While calling for consensual approach, Joginder Singh Ugrahan, president of the union, and Sukhdev Singh Kokri Kalan, general secretary, appealed for utmost restraint from all sections of society.

Bathinda, May 26
Nehchal Jindal of St Kabir’s Convent Senior Secondary School got 124th rank in the IIT entrance examination, the result of which was declared yesterday. Earlier, Nehchal had scored 95 per cent marks in CBSE class XII exams, which was the highest in Bathinda, said sources.

Nehchal, who was a regular student, devoted time to physical activity because he believed that a fit body led to a sound mind. He plays basketball and does not want to be a bookworm. “The notion that if you want to clear the IIT exam you have to lock yourself up in a room is not right in my opinion.”

Nehchal’s father Shubh Sarup Jindal, who works as an assistant research officer with the irrigation department in Bathinda, believed that his son would make it to the IIT in his first attempt and Nehchal proved him right.

He had also cleared the first level of physics Olympiad and informatics Olympiad (computer) while studying in class XII.

His mother Usha Rani, a lecturer of commerce in Government Senior Secondary School at Mandi Kalan, feels that Nehchal never did planned study. “He used to study when he felt like studying. We never pressurised him,” said the proud mother.

Nehchal underwent coaching from the Kota’s distance learning programme. “I got the material for preparation and did self-study, which I think is the key to success,” he said.

His elder brother, who is doing engineering from the Banaras Hindu University, was his mentor and helped him in cracking the exam. “He always inspired me. At present, he is undergoing training at the IIT, Delhi. He used to help me in my preparation whenever he came on leave,” he said.

Nehchal has not decided which stream of engineering he would opt for but he has decided to go to the IIT either at Delhi or Kanpur.

Bathinda, May 26
The Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) subject seminar camps have been postponed till further orders, sources in the Service Training Centre stated today. The reason quoted was the ongoing tension in Punjab due to the Sunday’s Vienna incident. The orders in this regard were received last night, the sources added.

Training is imparted to the teachers during these camps, which come under the SSA, a Central government scheme. All the districts of Punjab had got over with these subject seminars and only Bathinda was left.

While the training camp for primary teachers is over, the camp for upper primary teachers was to begin today to end on May 30.

The camp was to take place at eight places in the district — Talwandi Sabo, Rampura Phul, Mandi Kalan, Sangat, Nathana, Bhuchho Mandi and at three places in Bathinda.

The four-day camp was postponed because teachers had to come from far off places of this district to attend the camp, which was not feasible in the prevalent situation, the sources said.

Baljinder Singh Mann, principal of the Service Training Centre, when contacted, said, “According to the orders from the office of the director general, secondary education, the subject seminar camp is postponed till further orders.”

Now that the camps have been postponed, the teachers are clueless about when would they start. “The summer vacations are starting from June 1 for 30 days. We feel that the camps would now take place during the vacations. Already the vacations are for a short duration and we would be forced to attend this camp,” a teacher rued.

The director general, secondary, could not be contacted despite repeated attempts.

Bathinda, May 26
The Congress leadership of Bathinda (rural) staged a protest outside the Sadar police station here today accusing the police of working as a tool in the hands of the SAD (B).

The protesters alleged that on May 8, just on the next day of the Lok Sabha polls in this constituency, the Sadar police had booked over 60 Congressmen of village Rai Ke Kalan for committing heinous crimes, like attempt to murder.

“A case was slapped on nine persons of the village along with about 60 unknown persons, who supported the Congress in the recent polls. The police has been continuously adding more names to the case. A woman was also booked. Furthermore, the police has been threatening others also for booking them in some case,” said Narender Bhaleria, district (rural) president.

Makhan Singh, MLA Pakka Kalan, said, “In this case, section 307 of the IPC (attempt to murder) has been included without even verifying the facts. Nobody had suffered a scratch even.”

“Now, SAD goons go to our party workers’ places guiding the police, who ironically have been acting upon their directions and harassing us. Frustration is mounting among the villagers, which may burst out any day,” said Makhan.

Kulwinder Singh, one of the accused in the case, said it happened as a reaction against their attempt to stop SAD activists from buying votes.

“Annoyed with us, they tried to crush three of my kin to death just on the next day of elections. When we went to the sarpanch Sukhdev Singh’s house to apprise him of the facts, he lodged a complaint against us that we wanted to kill him,” alleged Kulwinder.

Speaking over the issue, Ashok Kumar, president, urban unit of the district Congress said, “Every Congressman booked under the fake case is now applying for bail. They all have been harassed. The case must be withdrawn lest we should intensify the agitation.”

When contacted, SSP Ashish Chaudhary said, “Lodging a protest is their right but we have been free and fair in our approach. The case is being investigated and the guilty will have to bear the brunt.”

Bathinda, May 26
Narinder Kumar Bassi, Community AIDS Educator and UNAIDS Civil Society Awardee, has called upon the teaching fraternity to dovetail their efforts to combat the dreaded HIV/AIDS, a disease that has assumed an alarming proportion across the world.

Addressing 47 PG teachers in English of Kendriya Vidyalayas from Chandigarh, Jabalpur and Jammu regions on HIV/AIDS during an awareness seminar in Kendriya Vidyalaya No. 4, Bathinda Cantt, Bassi said incidence of HIV positive in India alone was estimated at 25 lakh and there was an urgent need to create mass awareness about various preventive measures to curb the spread of the dreaded disease. He said health education plays a vital role in prevention of HIV infection.

While spelling out various preventive measures, Bassi said management of HIV rests on disease prevention, health and sex education and mass awareness.

He said the hospital infection control measures required to be strengthened and precautions be strictly adhered to. He said now, since more and more patients are seen, they require sympathetic handling, counselling and appropriate healthcare while ensuring that all precautions are taken to prevent accidental spread of infection. He said since the AIDS cannot be controlled therefore we have to take preventive measures only to arrest its spread.

Bassi laid emphasis on covering target groups and encouraging community-based initiatives in dissemination of adequate information through women groups, young people and NGOs.

He said the impact of the programme on women folk in the country was encouraging. He hoped that the awareness programmes and extensive interactions would go a long way in motivating masses to adopt preventive measures for keeping a check on the spread of this dreaded disease.

Bassi also highlighted the role of print media and electronic media in creating HIV/AIDS awareness.

Earlier, Tripta Singh, principal of the school, welcomed Bassi as the chief guest on the occasion.

Bathinda, May 26
Rampant adulteration of milk poses a major threat to Punjab’s nutritional needs, researchers and experts said at the Forest Department Complex here today during an awareness seminar organised four days ahead of the World Milk Day by the Punjab Dietetic Association (PDA) in collaboration with the Tetra Pak.

The experts conducting research on milk adulteration and nutrition met to discuss “a crisis like situation” brewing from the rampant adulteration and a need for a strong policy framework to curb the same.

Usha Sharma, secretary, dairy development department, Punjab, said: “We need more laboratories to test milk. Punjab being largely a vegetarian society relies on milk for its nutritional needs.” She added, “Consumers are paranoid about the contamination of other food products but ignore milk probably because of the sanctity attached to it.”

R.K. Mittal, head of the dairy microbiology division of Punjab Dairy Research Institute, emphasised on the need for enhancing the shelf-life of milk. “Due to lack of scientific knowledge on milk preservation, thousands of litres of milk is wasted,” Mittal said.