Amritsar, June 26
Ice-cream and ice candies, the flavours of the summers, have almost disappeared due to unscheduled and prolonged power cuts. The residents have no option but to do without the many flavours of favorite cold dessert.

The local ice-cream manufacturers and other vendors selling the famous brands have been rendered totally out of business and forced to shutdown their shops due to unprecedented intense heat wave severely compounded by load shedding by the electricity board.

An ice-cream vendor and fruit cream maker on the busy Lawrence Road lamented that he gone out of business for the first time since he started his business 50 years ago. He said that he was hoping to do a brisk business during the summer but this major power failure have forced him to shut down his business and added that he would only open his shop after the power situation improves.

Meanwhile, a number of ice-making factories in the city have closed down in the aftermath of serious power crises and the hotel, restaurants and clubs were finding it difficult to provide chilled beverages to their customs.

The dairy owners and chilling plants were finding it difficult to store milk and milk products as the residents rued that on the one side the prices have shot up while on the other they were unable to keep the fresh milk due to lack of refrigeration.

Amritsar, June 26
A number of students of Nursing College today held demonstration against the Principal of Government Medical College (GMC) and allegedly later smashed the vehicle of the Medical Superintendent of Guru Nanak Dev Hospital (GNDH)while protesting outside the office of the Principal.

The students were protesting against the figuring of the name of the Nursing College in the case of nabbing of an amorous couple in Government Medical College canteen on June 21 while claiming that the girl did not belong to the Nursing College and was an outsider.

Dr Jagdish Gargi, Principal of the college, said he got the representation from the nurses’ association in this regard and it was confirmed that the girl did not belong to the nursing institution. However, he added that the police was investigating the matter and the identity of the girl would be revealed soon.

An amorous couple was caught in the canteen of Government Medical College here. The canteen door was bolted from outside and the Majitha Road police raided the place after receiving a specific information and subsequently detained the couple. However, the girl was released while a case was registered against her companion and servant of the canteen.

The two accused were identified as Gurpreet Singh and Ajay Kumar. The lover of the girl, Gurpreet Singh, was an outsider while Ajay was working as a helping hand to the canteen contractor, he said.

Dr Karnail Singh, Officiating Medical Superintendent of the GNDH, today urged the Principal to take disciplinary action against the erring nursing students who had damaged the official vehicle. The Principal had assured that he would convey his resentment to the Principal of Nursing College and suitable action would be taken against the agitators.

Meanwhile, Tikshan Sud, Punjab Minister for Medical Education, has reportedly constituted a committee to probe into the matter. Dr Koonar, Joint Director, Medical Education, would head the committee.

Amritsar, June 26
The racial attacks on Indian students in Australia are bound to affect its US $ 9 billion revenue from overseas students in the coming years, Lieut-Col B.S. Sandhu (retd), Chairman and Managing Director, World Wide Immigration Consultancy Services (WWICS), said here today.

Addressing mediapersons, he said the Australian government needed to take firm steps to deal with the emerging situation arising out of fear psychosis of a section of Australian youths who feel vulnerable with the arrival of workforce from overseas.

He said the economic meltdown had not adversely affected the Indian immigration industry.

He said countries like Czech Republic and Ukraine, with liberalised business immigration policies, were the newest attractive destinations, especially for farming opportunities. He said immigration to Denmark under the Danish green card scheme enabled the applicants to reach Denmark within a year. — TNS

Tarn Taran, June 26
Punjab Minister for Health and Family Welfare Laxmi Kanta Chawla has called the representatives of the local government and social organisations to be active participants in the national movement to create awareness among the masses against drug abuse and illicit trafficking.

The minister was addressing a state-level function, jointly organised by the health, police and social security departments, dedicated to drug abuse and illicit trafficking, organised at Patti, 24 km from here, today.

The minister said it was time to make joint efforts on administrative and social fronts against drug menace which had become the root cause of so many crimes and social evils.

Amritsar, June 26
The 13th battalion of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) held a seminar and exhibition to create awareness among the masses against drug abuse on Drug De-addiction Day today. The day is also observed as Illicit Trafficking Day. Many organisations organised awareness marches and shows to build public opinion on the menace which indirectly threatened to destabilise the country.

Civil Surgeon Lambar Singh, who presided over the seminar, said prevention of drug addiction was possible with the help of schools, colleges, social organisations and NGOs.

He said his department would hold seminars on drug de-addiction in collaboration with these agencies, even in remote parts of the district.

Anil Minj, Deputy Commandant, 13th Battalion, CRPF, said eradication of addiction was as significant as annihilation of terrorism. He urged the youth to channelise their energy towards studies and games to bring glory to the country.

In another programme organised by the Citizens Forum, Vidya Mandir School, located in the Maqboolpura locality, about 100 widows and students of the school took the pledge to fight against the menace of drug abuse.

SSP (Rural) Gurmeet Singh Chauha said the district rural police held a seminar and free drug de-addiction camp at Sohian village in Majitha subdivision. As many as seven youngsters, who had abandoned consumption of drugs, were honoured on the occasion.

The Nasha Virodhi Samaj Nirman Sanstha held a march against drug de-addiction.

Amritsar, June 26
The civic authorities removed the encroachments on both sides of the road leading to the Golden Temple from Fountain Chowk to Shani Temple here yesterday.

The corporation authorities were accompanied by a large posse of policemen to avoid any resistance from the encroachers who had made small shops and kiosks on footpaths. The authorities also brought down the temporary and permanent sheds erected by shopkeepers.

As soon as the civic authorities’ brigade, accompanied by the police, arrived on the scene to remove the encroachments, the rehriwalas and kiosk owners tried to resist the move of the corporation. However, they had to relent in view of the presence of a large number of policemen.

D.P.S. Kharbanda, Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, said the step was taken to widen the roads leading to the holy shrine, visited by thousands of devotees and tourists from all over the world. He said the tourists were finding it difficult to walk on the pavements due to encroachments by vendors.

He said their main aim was to make the walled city as zero encroachment area under the beautification plan. He said coloured tiles would be laid on both sides of the pavements up to the Golden Temple.

Meanwhile, Dilmegh Singh, secretary, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), while lauding the step taken by the civic authorities, said the encroachments were causing great hardships to the devotees in particular and public in general. He said the administration should have done it long before while adding that still the removal of encroachments was a welcome step. He said the shopkeepers should not encroach upon the footpaths, thus inviting the wrath of the officials.

Although, social activists who have been crying hoarse for removing encroachments in various parts of the holy city that lead to frequent traffic chaos, especially in and near the walled city, appreciated the move of the corporation, but they were critical about the pick and choose method followed by the administration. They said the authorities should come up with a proper plan to remove encroachments not only on the pavements, but also on roads and government lands as per the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

Meanwhile, the Congress condemned the demolition of shops and kiosks outside the Golden Temple saying that the owners should have been given enough time to remove their valuables. The Congress MLA, O.P. Soni, along with other party leaders visited the site and said the government should compensate them for loss of their valuables and rehabilitate them at the suitable site as the government had no right to displace them without giving them proper opportunity to set up their shops elsewhere.

Kahan Singh Pannu, Deputy Commissioner, said the encroachments were removed as per the orders of the High Court and added that the shopkeepers at Chowk Ghanta Ghar Market had also been warned to remove their items till June 30. He appealed to the people to extend their cooperation to clean the city and make it free from encroachments.

Amritsar, June 26
If India wants to shine, rural India has to shine first. Despite the fact that the Central and state governments are helping to uplift the rural people through various schemes but they are still far behind than the urban people.

Former Professor and Dean Dr P.B. Mangla, University of Delhi, viewed that the rural libraries and community information centres could play a vital role in this. He said to take the information to rural India rural libraries needed to be more concerned. He said efforts should be made to establish community information centres in panchyatghars, while the state government’s participation should be more.

He was speaking at a two-day national seminar on "Information access initiatives and rural India” being organised by the Bhai Gurdas Library of Guru Nanak Dev University under the aegis of the Indian Council of Social Sciences Research (ICSSR), New Delhi. More than 170 participants from all over India are participating and about 70 research papers would be presented during the seminar.

Dr Mangla said though the Raja Ram Mohan Roy Library Foundation claimed to have provided libraries in 49,000 villages, these villages did not have any library. He added that providing grants could be a greatest hurdle for panchayats to establish and sustain these libraries.

He said lack of education and information was a reason to worry about. If proper information and education would reach villages, the whole scenario would change. He said, “We had information revolution that had great influence all over.”

The scholar of library science said rural India was largely illiterate with India's literacy rate at 65.38 per cent (census 2001). Any programme which was implemented in 100 or 1,000 villages could hardly make any difference to the economy or the rural people, he added.

Dr Mangla said scholars should go through an in-depth study of revolutions and their impact on society. This could help them understand the real impact of revolutions. He advised library professionals to make the maximum use of modern technology to spread information and preservation of rare documents.

Anjali Bhawra, officiating Vice-Chancellor of Guru Nanak Dev University and Secretary, Higher Education, Punjab, delivered the inaugural address. Dr Raghbir Singh, Dean, Academic Affairs, presented vote of thanks.

Anjali said information technology was part of the developed world, so rural India should not lag behind. She said various efforts were being made by the Central and state governments and engineering institutions to minimise the divide between the rural and the urban. She said e-literacy and e-learning were meant for those who were living in rural, remote, hilly areas.

Amritsar, June 26
A fortnight-long summer workshop meant for children to stay at cantonment of the holy city concluded here today with an enthusiastic dance performance for which they practised for the past two weeks.

The workshop was organised on “Space”, a brainchild of the Army Wives Welfare Association (AWWA) chief Suchita Pama.

Suchita Chaudhary, member of the organising team, said, “Earlier, usual dance and music workshops were being organised during the summer vacation, but this year they had narrowed down the workshop to make it informative for the children.” More than 80 children from the families of Junior Commissioned Officers (JCOs) and other ranks participated in the workshop, she added.

Chaudhary said they conducted lectures on solar system, space related personalities, astronauts, space shuttles and constellations. She said a session on vocabulary like spellings and pronunciations was conducted for children, apart from dance, music, craft and clay modelling sessions.

Puneet, a KG student, said he did not enjoy dancing and would like to sing and that’s what he did in the workshop.

Amritsar, June 26
Punjab Naatshala is being upgraded to meet the requirements of modern times. For this, Naatshala would remain closed till October.

The upgradation would add new dynamics like digitalisation of projectors, light and sound and an increase in the sitting capacity.

Punjabi dramatist and proprietor of Naatshala Jatinder Brar said the current time belonged to high technology and highly sophisticated digital equipment were needed to present an emphatic performance.

In order to facilitate plenty of exchanges between artistes and audience, a provision of a theatre, with an open-air-theatre feel, was being made, said Brar.

An automatic projector and a sophisticated sound system would be installed to bring more life to the stage shows. For the convenience of artistes, a green room and a make-up room were also being constructed.

Brar said subsequently a multipurpose hall for rehearsals, parties and conferences would be constructed. Since Naatshala receives theatre groups from India and abroad, more rooms would be constructed to accommodate visitors.

Besides, a basement was under construction from where sets would automatically come to the stage through modern gadgets, he said.

In order to showcase the talent of theatre artistes, officials of Naatshala were also contacting popular local hotels to bring in tourists.

However, he rued that numerous representations to the Punjab government for abolishing entertainment tax on Punjabi theatre had yielded no response.

Amritsar, June 26
This is definitely great news for Amritsaris. An Indian chef is back to his roots to deliver his best dishes and tickle the taste buds of discerning tourists, Indian and Punjabi foodies.

Adding several new flavors to the cuisines at the Teg Resorts situated in the outskirts of the city in the rustic surroundings, R.K. Bhatt, food and beverages expert, who has vast experience of 25 years.

Travelled almost every nook of the world and served in reputed foreign star hotels emerging as key chef, Bhatt has come back to serve his country in dishing out fusion cuisines and to surprise his several thousands customers with his deft Indian touch. He spent about 15 years of his career in Dubai and Germany offering yummy dishes to his customers.

A man of vast knowledge, Bhatt said he wanted to give my best to his country and people of Amritsar. He said he would dish out different cuisines as per liking of the people with a little bit of experimentation also. He said he would try to cater to mass people with high value food with tangy and spicy in an innovative way. “Whatever the people would ask it would be served to them,” he said.

Ram Singh, owner of Teg Resorts, said he would definitely put a blend of his (Bhatt’s) experience with the traditional Punjabi food and specialties of his resort and would offer basket full of cuisines to entice the Amritsaris and thousands of tourists who flock to the city for the golden temple and food. He said there are exciting possibilities for joint food court venture with upcoming alpha one mall, the biggest multiplex and the shopping complex coming up on the GT Road adjacent to Amritsar’s first five star hotel Ista - a part of Ananda group of hotels in the country. The 10-acre complex of the resort has biking, jogging and walking tracks with canopies of neem, bamboo, mehendi and willow trees sheltering them. Crisscrossing through flower-rich patches and woods, these trails are a treat for the lovers of nature.

Tarn Taran, June 26
Teachers’ organisations, under the banner of the Adhiyapak Sangharash Committee, agitating for the past one month against District Education Officer (Elementary) Sunita Kiran, staged a dharna on Thursday in front of the office of the Deputy Commissioner and blocked traffic on the main road for more than half an hour.

The teacher organisations have been demanding action against the DEO for allegedly threatening teachers of Government Elementary School, Goindwal.

They are also demanding cancellation of a criminal case registered against more than 25 teacher leaders on the statement of the DEO for allegedly causing disturbance in her official work.

Sucha Singh Ajnala, Harbhajan Singh Johal, Baj Singh Khehra and Balbir Kaur, the state leaders of the teachers, while addressing the teachers, warned the district administration against allegedly favouring the DEO as no action has been taken against her in spite of their repeated appeals.

The organisations warned that they would be forced to intensify the struggle in case the administration failed to provide justice to them.

The teacher organisations demanded reinstatement of Block Elementary Education Officer (BEEO) Mangal Singh and Centre Head Teacher Gurdeep Singh, Goindwal Sahib.

The organisations have been up in arms against the DEO since May 29 when she visited the Goindwal school and a teacher, Kuldeep Kaur, fell unconscious when the DEO forcibly sought her statement against Mangal Singh and Gurdeep Singh for allegedly misbehaving with her (DEO). A few days after the incident, the DEO got a case registered against the teacher leaders.

Amritsar, June 26
The Kirti Kisan Union (KKU) has decided to block roads for two hours in the state on July 3 to protest against the registration of false cases against the farmers of Awan village in Ajnala sector and for not providing adequate power supply to the farmers for paddy transplantation.

Stating this to the media here today, state KKU president Nirbhai Singh Dhudike said that they would block the road from 1 pm to 3 pm against the arrest of farmers whose 13.2 acre land had been offered to a private company Azure Power Punjab Private Limited without following the required procedure.

He said that in spite of the fact that the local court had decided the case in their favour by granting interim stay the administration and the police under political pressure were helping the private company to set up their project.

However, company MD Vikramjit Singh claimed that they have got the stay in their favour as they had got the land after paying lease amount of Rs 1.98 lakh to the village panchayat. He said they would not only generate electricity but also provide jobs to the local youth.

The Kirti Kisan Union (KKU) on Thursday organised a march to protest against the allotment of panchayat land to a solar power company, besides registering false cases against farmers.

The protesters raised slogans against the administration and the police for allotting 12 acres of panchayat land to a solar power company, Azure Power Punjab Private Limited at Awan village, 3 km from Ramdas, which was being cultivated by farmers of the village.

Amritsar, June 26
Guru Nanak Dev University honoured its 250 outstanding players with cash prizes worth Rs 15 lakh who brought laurels to the university in sports at the international, national and all-India inter-university levels. These cash prizes, trophies and certificates were awarded to them at the 39th annual sports prize distribution of the university here today.

Lyallpur Khalsa College, Jalandhar, lifted the ‘A’ division overall general championship trophy, while the women’s overall ‘A’ division general championship trophy went to HMV, Jalandhar.

Anjali Bhawra, officiating Vice-Chancellor of the university, gave away the prizes and trophies to the winners. The international first position holder received Rs 25,000, the second position holder got Rs 20,000 and the third position holder Rs 15,000 and for participation Rs 5,000 was given.

The first position holder in the national games was awarded Rs 5,000. The second winner got Rs 3,000 and the third Rs 2,000.

The all-India inter- university winners were honoured with Rs 7,500 each, the second position holder with Rs 5,000 and the third winner with Rs 2,500.

Lyallpur Khalsa College, Jalandhar, lifted the overall trophy with 123 points.

DAV College, Jalandhar, finished with the runners-up trophy with 72 points and DAV College, Amritsar, remained third with 61 points. The 'B' division men's overall general championship trophy went to SSM College, Dinanagar, securing 26 points, while Guru Nanak College, Batala, remained the runners-up with 11 points. Similarly, SN College, Qadian, and Trinity College, Jalandhar, jointly bagged the third place with 10 points.

The women's ‘A’ division overall general championship trophy was received by HMV, Jalandhar, with 152 points. The BBKDAV College for Women, Amritsar, stood runners-up with 103.5 points and KMV, Jalandhar, was third with 31 points.

The women's 'B' division overall general championship trophy was bagged by Hindu College, Amritsar, with 22 points and the SDSPM College for Women, Rayya, was runners-up with 21 points and Pt MLSD (W) College, Gurdaspur, stood third with 20 points.