Jalandhar, July 19
Seven leprosy patients of the Doaba and Majha region have been operated upon at a special camp organised at the local Civil Hospital under the aegis of Mumbai-based NGO Novartis Comprehensive Leprosy Care Association (NCLCA) on Sunday.

The reconstructive surgery of these leprosy patients was conducted by a team of five doctors headed by NGO director Dr Atul Shah.

The other members of the team are two other Mumbai-based plastic surgeons Dr Rajat and Dr Sukhdeep, orthopaedic surgeon of Jalandhar Dr G.P. Singh and anesthetist of Jalandhar Dr Kamaljit Kaur.

Besides, the Union government’s Disability Prevention and Medical Rehabilitation (DPMR) consultant Dr P.R. Miglani, Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir coordinator for leprosy cure Dr D.B. Sharma, Civil Surgeon Dr S.S. Walia, Punjab Leprosy Officer Dr A. Bansal, District Leprosy Officer Dr Ashwini Gupta also coordinated the camp.

Also Professor of Plastic Surgery at JJ Hospital at Mumbai, Dr Shah told The Tribune that this was the first surgery camp for leprosy patients held at any Civil Hospital in the district. The NGO has the credit of conducting as many as 10,000 surgeries on leprosy patients at different camps held during the past two decades with 5,000 such operations only in Gujarat, he said.

Dr Gupta told The Tribune that a screening camp for conducting surgery on leprosy patients was held on January 24 this year.

As many as 64 patients were screened at the camp and 17 of them were found fit for surgery but only seven of them turned up on Sunday, he added.

Of the seven patients, three were from Amritsar and two each from Jalandhar and Dasuya.

Dr Shah said the seven operated patients would be fully fit after three months.

The plastic surgeon said that Rs 5,000 and a rehabilitation kit costing between Rs 2,000 and Rs 5,000 were provided to each operated patient by the NGO.

Another such camp would be held within next two-three months at the Civil Hospital, Jalandhar, Dr Shah said.

Jalandhar, July 19
In a first of its kind achievement, two class VIII students of the local Government Middle School, Tahli Mohalla, would be attending the National Total Solar Eclipse Festival, 2009 at Sidhi village in Bhopal on July 22. The students would witness the longest total solar eclipse of the century. An initiative of Vigyan Prasar, Delhi, along with state councils and education departments, the festival is being organised to conduct a national campaign to view the solar eclipse safely. The students, Dharmendra and Gaja Nand, along with their science teacher, would get the rare chance of witnessing the eclipse with the scientists of Vigyan Prasar.

Talking to The Tribune, Dharmendra said, “I am thrilled at the thought of witnessing the solar eclipse. We had gathered data regarding the eclipse from the local residents. It was on the basis of my work that I was selected along with one of my classmates.”

Sanjiwan Singh Dhadwal, general secretary of Science Teachers Association, who was present during a workshop for teachers in this regard at the local Government Girls Senior Secondary School, Nehru Garden, said, “This is for the first time that students from a government school have made it to Vigyan Prasar. It is indeed a rare honour for these students, which would go a long way in shaping their future.”. During summer vacation, Dhadwal , who would be accompanying the students, had given a survey to 15 students of class VIII pertaining to the solar eclipse. “The students were asked to visit homes and get data about the beliefs, myths and observing patterns pertaining to the solar eclipse. Later I compiled a report on the basis of the findings which was sent to Vigyan Prasar on June 2. The report was appreciated and we were asked to visit Bhopal,”

Kahnuwan, July 19
While SAD President Sukhbir Singh Badal yesterday sought votes on the basis of development carried out in Punjab whenever the party came to power, party candidate for this assembly segment Sewa Singh Sekhwan raised the issues of Operation Bluestar and 1984 anti-Sikh riots to cash in on the religious sentiments of the electorate.

Sukhbir Badal, who addressed a series of rallies in favour of Sekhwan in seven villages, declared thatthe victory of Sekhwan would be victory of development. On the other hand, Sekhwan said vote for the Congress candidate would mean reward for those who were behind the massacre of Sikhs in 1984 and Operation Bluestar in the Golden Temple.

“The outcome of the Kahnuwan assembly byelection is not going to demolish or form a government in Punjab. However, its outcome can dictate the fate of this area. The victory of Sekhwan will open a new era of development in this region which has already been given Rs 150 crore for development projects by Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal,” Sukhbir claimed.

Addressing rallies at Gadhrian, Fazulla Chakk, Sekhwan, Bhattian and Chakk Sharif villages, he accused the Congress of stabbing in the back of ordinary voters by dragging its feet on its election promise to supply 25 kg wheat to every family at Rs 3 per kg.

He alleged that the Congress-led Union government was giving double blow to the draught-hit peasantry by failing to announce any compensation and fixing a support price of paddy at Rs 950 per quintal.

Badal claimed that the Congress government at the Centre had forgotten all promises made to the electorate on the eve of the last Lok Sabha elections. Instead, the UPA government raised the prices of petrol and diesel without any genuine and valid reason.

He said the people of Punjab must compare the working and sincerity of Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and former Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh.

He said that Partap Singh Bajwa, who was MLA from Kahnuwan, did nothing for the area when he was minister in Capt Amarinder Singh’s government, but now he was seeking votes for his brother Fateh Jung Singh Bajwa, who was the Congress candidate for this segment.

Hoshiarpur, July 19
A special campaign will be held from August 1 to September 30 for ensuring effective implementation of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) and to make the implementing agencies accountable in this regard in Punjab.

This was stated at a press conference by the Financial Commissioner, Rural Development and Panchayat Department, Jaspal Singh Sandhu, here yesterday.

Sandhu said 5.24 lakh job cards had been issued to the families in rural areas under NREGA in the state.

The Central government had made a provisional allotment of Rs 172 crore to Punjab for the current financial year, of which the first instalment of Rs 85.20 crore had been received so far. Sixty per cent of the amount would be spent on the wages of the workers and the remaining 40 per cent on material.

A majority of the officials concerned, who were implementing NREGA, were not fully aware of the scheme. They would be educated about the scheme shortly so that they could effectively implement it to produce the desired results.

Earlier, he addressed the meeting of all those government officers who were carrying out NREGA in the district. Deputy Commissioner Megh Raj was also present in the meeting.

Later, Sandhu inspected the ongoing works in Hoshiarpur I and II and Bhunga blocks.

Amritsar, July 19
The police has booked Bhajan Kaur, sarpanch of Sarja village, along with gram sewak Palwinder Singh for allegedly embezzling Rs 57,800 issued by the government for various development works in the village.