Amritsar, November 3
Kin of road accident victims in case of death and victims in case of grievous injuries will now be compensated under the Central Motor Vehicle Act.

The local administration has given its nod to implement the Solatium Scheme-1989, especially enacted for the hit-and-run cases resulting in grievous injuries or death of the victim and where the accused is not traceable.

The claimants under this scheme will have to approach the office of the Deputy Commissioner. For the convenience of the claimants, a five-member committee, under the chairmanship of the DC, has been formed at the district level. The team comprises the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, who also holds the charge of Claim Inquiry Officer, besides District Transport Officer, Senior Divisional Manager and New India Insurance Company as members.

Application can be made to the committee within six months from the date of accident or within 12 months if there are any special reasons for the delay. In a case of claims arising out of grievous injuries, the application shall be made by the injured person.

The applicant has to enclose a copy of the FIR along with his application and post-mortem report in case of death to the Deputy Commissioner. The other documents are to be obtained by the Claims Enquiry Officer appointed under the scheme.

The maximum amount of compensation in case of death has been fixed at Rs 25,000 and in case of grievous injuries, the maximum limit has been fixed at Rs 12,500.

Elaborating further, the DC, K.S. Pannu, said the move had been initiated keeping in mind the escalating volume of traffic and increasing number of accidents on the road. “Due to ignorance about this provision, people hesitate to come forward. But we have now planned to propagate this Act widely to make people aware,” said Pannu.

“It has been observed that due to fast moving vehicles and the rising number of vehicles, accidents occur generally due to negligence in driving. Therefore need was felt to implement this scheme on priority basis where at least the injured or kin of accidents’ victims can be compensated to some extent,” he added.

When asked, Pannu said four cases were submitted to him recently, including three death cases. Prem Singh of Thal Sachandar, Veer Kaur, widow of Chanchal Singh and resident of Jhinda village, and Lakhwinder Kaur, widow of Nirmal Singh and resident of Bania village, were granted compensation of Rs 25,000 each, while Bachan Singh of the Verka area got Rs 12,000 as compensation under the injured category.

Meanwhile, the Amritsar Vikas Manch has appealed to the authorities to take stock of bad road conditions in the city.

“The causes of accidents are mostly uneven level of manholes on the roads, besides the broken roads, traffic jams and unruly running of autos. The pedestrians have to face tough times,” said Amrit Lal Mannan, general secretary of the manch.

Amritsar, November 3
After successfully depicting the problems faced by NRIs and their deep desire to return to their native land, famous Punjabi singer-turned-producer and actor Harbhajan Mann has now come up with the idea of bringing back the rich Punjabi folklores on celluloid.

“Heer Ranjha” is the first attempt in this direction, says Mann in an exclusive tête-à-tête with Amritsar Plus during promotional tour of the film at Guru Teg Bahadur College for Women here.

According to him, this is for the first time that “Heer Ranjha” would be brought on big screen in Punjabi language while earlier it was made in Hindi language only. Co-produced by Mann, the film is directed by Harjeet Singh and Kshitij Chauhan.

Harbhajan, who started his carrier with the Punjabi song “Chithiye Ni Chithiye” and shot to limelight with his Punjabi pop song “Gallan Goriyan”, is totally dedicated in promoting Punjabi cinema which remained in doldrums after it was hit hard during terrorism.

Although he got a number of offers from Bollywood to join Hindi film industry, but he refused. “I would not join Bollywood, in any case. I have taken the responsibility of reviving and promoting Punjabi film industry,” he said. Stressing on quality Punjabi films based on strong themes, he said at present there were only a few quality producer and directors working in the industry.

He urged the young brigade of media to come and join and help in reviving the old glory of Punjabi films.

So much is the popularity of rich Punjabi culture that it has become a sure-shot mantra of success for major Bollywood movies, which were being shot in various beautiful landscapes of Punjab.

Talking about his experience of creating the rich Punjabi folklore, he said they had researched a lot before starting this project based on ‘Heer’ written by Waarish Shah and made it entertaining also. He said the most difficult part of the movie was to create the scenes based on that period. He said they worked out different locations and interacted with people.

He pointed out that the people were forgetting the old folklores. After making the album based on rich love folklore, Mirja Sahiba, it was his dream to make period films. That’s how came the idea of producing “Heer Ranjha”, he said adding that he read the Punjabi literature for at least a year.

Neeru Bajwa, Gugu Gill, Daljit Kaur, Jasbir Jassi and Gursharan Maan were the star cast of the film while Apinder Garewal and Guljar Inder Singh Chahal were the other producers of the film, he added.

About the raising of different issues concerning Punjab through his films, Harbhajan said it was very satisfying when he received a number of letters from his audience who shun the path of drug addiction and choose to live a normal life.

According to Harbhajan, films are powerful medium to make a change and period films would help people to know more about the history of Punjab.

About his carrier, Harbhajan said he felt proud when he got the chance to perform in a cultural evening during Vancouver-2010 Olympic Winter Games. It will be a great opportunity for him and he would give his best. And he is also making another film which aware people about female foeticide.

Amritsar, November 3
Fellow citizens of first IPS woman officer Dr Kiran Bedi have backed the move of cine stars and social activists to support her for the post of the Chief Information Commissioner.

The support came from members of the Punjab chapter of India Vision Foundation and several NGOs, including Citizen Forum, which have supported the stand taken by film star Aamir Khan and noted social worker Anna Hazare, RTI activist Arvind Kejriwal and several noted personalities who have launched a united campaign to get Kiran Bedi to take over the post of the CIC which has fallen vacant after Wajahat Habibullah quit it.

The foremost among her admirers is her husband and social activist Brij Bedi who runs a school for the kin of drug victims in the locality of widows at Maqboolpura. Brij said she deserved to be at the helm of the Information Commission to ensure a transparent administration for running the Right to Information process.

General Secretary of Heritage and Tourism Foundation A.P.S. Chatha urged the government to make Kiran Bedi the head of the Information Commission. She had been leading the reforms campaign at Tihar Jail which got her the Magsaysay award and later as police adviser to the UN peace-keeping-forces at the UN Headquarters in New York.

Amritsar, November 3
In order to mark the centenary birth anniversary of legendary surgeon, Dr Santokh Singh Anand, Guru Nanak Dev Hospital (GNDH) and Government Medical College (GMC) authorities would dedicate the operation theatre complex of the hospital in his memory during a special function tomorrow. The operation theater would be named after Dr Anand.

His wife Janaki Anand and two sons Dr Inder Singh Anand and Dr Bhupinder Singh Anand, currently settled in the US, would come to participate in the function while Dr Mann Singh Nirankari, another legendary figure and former principal of the college, would be the chairperson on the occasion.

Medical Superintendent R.P.S. Boparai and GMC Principal Karnail Singh said among other prominent medical personalities to grace the occasion would be former PGI Director and poet Dr Jaswant Singh Neki, Dr I.C. Pathak, a long-term associate of Dr Anand and Dr P.S. Maini, doyen of orthopaedics.

Dr Anand remained a professor and Head of Department of Surgery besides being the Principal of the college from 1947 to 1962. Known as father of modern surgery, he also worked as PGI Director, Chandigarh. He had many national and international achievements to his credit.

Sital Singh, Chief Parliamentary Secretary, Medical Education and Research, would be present on behalf of Medical Education and Research Minister Tikshan Sud besides Secretary (Medical Education) Anjali Bhanwar, Dr Jaikishan, Director Medical Education and Research, would grace the occasion, said Dr Boparai.

Amritsar, November 3
Jagbir Singh, a victim of terrorism, had never imagined that even the order from the state government would not be appropriate for ensuring a job from him.A resident of Kirtowal village, Jagbir has been running from pillar to post for the last seven months for getting a job, while at present he is working as a farm labour to feed his family.

Telling his woes, he said he was granted the job of a gardener-cum-watchman by the state government under the rehabilitation scheme of people who lost their kith and kin during the heydays of militancy. Jagbir lost his mother and young sister when he and his brother were just 10 and nine years’ old, respectively, and used to live in the Brahmpura area in 1987.

In the name of ex gratia, the government had allotted Kisan Vikas Pattara worth Rs 25,000 each in the name of Jagbir and his brother, while Rs 25,000 were given to them in 2005.

In March this year, the Director-cum-secretary, Rural Development and Panchayat Department, issued an appointment letter to Jagbir with its copies to the Deputy Commissioner, Tarn Taran, and Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Zila Parishad, Tarn Taran.

However, when he approached the official concerned at Zila Parishad, he refused to grant him the job on the plea that he did not possess necessary educational qualification of middle class despite the fact that the government had already granted relief to victims by giving them Class IV job appointment.

Gurpartap Singh Nagra, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Zila Parishad, Tarn Taran, said the department had not received the letter regarding relief in necessary qualification. He said he had even written to the head office in Chandigarh, but failed to get any response. However, he added that now he had received the copy of the letter of granting relief and Jagbir would be given the job.

Dr B.R. Hastir, president of the All-India Terrorist Victims Association, said it was sheer casual approach of the district administration, as he had to make rounds to the department for jobs. He said the administration should be held responsible for the unnecessary delay and Jagbir should be suitably compensated for seven months’ delay.

He said as per the rehabilitation project of the government, the victims should get compensation according to number of deaths in the family, but shockingly Jagbir and his brother, who worked in the Army, were not given appropriate relief. He said as per the policy, due to two deaths in their family they should have been granted Rs 2 lakh, but unfortunately they received only Rs 1 lakh till now. He said he would take up their cause with the government for getting the remaining amount.

Amritsar, November 3
The Centre has earmarked Rs 24.34 crore under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) in the current financial year for the district, said Deputy Commissioner Kahn Singh Pannu here today.He informed that the district had received Rs 7.04 crore so far. He said 44,537 job cards have been issued to labourers ensuring them wages all round the year.

He said apart from Panchayats, various government departments were also being given funds under the NREGS, provided they give jobs to card holders.

He said the Canal Department has been issued Rs 1.44 crore for de-silting canals. Similarly, the Drainage Department was given Rs 80.39 lakh for cleaning the drains. The Forest Department has got Rs 1.12 crore for planting saplings in rural areas while the Horticulture Department has been given Rs 7.5 lakh for maintaining Attari Park.

Amritsar, November 3
No matter how trendy, western dresses are no match for the class and grace of the traditional Indian saree which brings out the best in the Indian woman. The saree has been acclaimed the world-over as one of the best dresses for women.

The saree symbolises several facets of Indian women and is worn for all occasions. The western countries have also tried their hands at creating fashion trends from the saree and its rich style quotient, across the globe.

Although the fashion industry has advanced by leaps and bounds with a number of fashion designers, the charm of the traditional saree remains a craze among women, irrespective of class and category.

The saree can be shimmering silk or fine cotton or an elegant chiffon material. It can have the most intricate embroidery with silk or even silver and gold threads. The colours can be vibrantly bright or subdued pastels. There are sarees to match every mood and every occasion to suit every budget.

This supremely graceful attire can also be worn in several ways and its manner of wearing as well as its colour and texture are indicative of the status, age, occupation, region and religion of a woman.

According to dress designer Mandeep Sokhi, this is the only dress which is both modern and traditional. Those who like it simple, can wear it with a strait pallu. Wearing it with a stylish blouse could get one the choicest classy look.

It is not merely an outfit but an ornament, lending both grace and glamour to the wearer.

Sahini Sharma, a student of the local BBK DAV College, said the saree could be worn in different styles to suit the occasion and added that in different parts of the country, it was a style statement. She said during the recent trend in the youth festivals, it was noticed that a number of girls came dressed up in sarees.

Amritsar, November 3
The Department of Botanical and Environmental Sciences of Guru Nanak Dev University organised a two-day national seminar on “Environment and sustainable development” here today, which was sponsored by the UGC under its special assistance programme.

Dr Paramvir Singh Ahuja, Director, Institute of Himalayan Bio-resource Technology (IHBT)-CSIR, Palampur, while delivering the keynote address on ecology, biodiversity and sustainability, emphasised on the management of natural resources by eco-friendly ways like bio-fertilisers, organic agriculture, use of biological agents and microbes for promoting plant growth. He emphasised on the use of Geographic Information System (GIS), remote sensing, DNA fingerprinting, molecular markers and various other techniques to protect and analyse resources.

He stressed upon the use of green and safe products. Linking ecology with economics, he said the depletion of the forest cover led to more poverty.

Prof G.S. Virk, senior professor of the department, presented the vote of thanks.

More than 150 delegates from different parts of the country participated in the seminar.

Amritsar, November 3
As many as 18 teachers from different colleges and universities are participating in three-week refresher course in English, which started at Academic Staff College of Guru Nanak Dev University here today.

Prof. Raghbir Singh, Dean, Academic Affairs of the University, in his inaugural address, said the objective of this course was to update knowledge of the teachers. He said the teachers should be well-equipped with the all-round knowledge to be imparted to the students.

Course coordinator and Head of Department Parminder Singh said the thrust area of this refresher course is 'Literature, Cinema and Nationalism'. He said the nationalism in the third world country was closely related to the anti-imperialist struggle of the people and also with uplift of the downtrodden. In this context, he discussed some of the classic works in Indian literature.

He also raised issues related to the problamatics of nationalism. 

Amritsar, November 3
Arjuna awardee and former Indian champion Davinder Ahuja gave away the prizes to the winners of the district open badminton championship which concluded here recently.

The Lifetime Achievement award was given to former badminton champion Ranbir Mehra.

Meanwhile, Ritu of Government Senior Secondary School and Sania Sareen of BBK DAV College won the titles in the U-19 and women single contests, respectively.

Sania and Shweta won the women double champion beating Sehar and Ritu.

In the boys’ event, Manureet beat Mudit in the U-19 boy category, while Suas and Manureet won the doubles title defeating Mudit and Jasman. In the U-22 boy category, Nitish and Akshit defeated Mudit and Jasman.

In the men single category Jaswinder claimed the top honours by beating Abhishek, while Sumit and Prabhjeet won the double event.