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Mayoral Poll
Will Babla
vote? Absconding Congress councillor Devinder Singh Babla, facing charges of irregularities in the allotment of shed at the Sector 26 grain market, may vote in the January 1 elections following his surrender in a couple of days, Congress sources said. Since there was hardly any alternative for Babla except surrender, the Congress may not like to "waste" his vote as keen a contest for the mayoral elections was in the offing. Surprisingly, councillor's wife Harpreet Babla attended today's meeting of the councillors where party nominees for various posts were
finalised.
Chandigarh, December 27 The opposition, meanwhile, was working to arrive at a consensus even as Harjinder Kaur is stated to be the opposition's choice for the top post. In fact, the united opposition front, which saw Chatrath's defeat at the hands of Harjinder Kaur in 2005, could be a thing of the past, with no meeting ground between the BJP-SAD alliance and Harmohan Dhawan-led BSP. Failing to arrive at consensus, the BJP has now scheduled its meeting tomorrow, the last day for filing nomination papers. In the 36-member House, the Congress has 16 votes, including that of local MP and Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs and Water Resources Pawan Bansal. The opposition has 11 members - seven BJP-SAD and four BSP members. In this scenario, the votes of the nine nominated councillors could be crucial though not deciding in the elections. If there is no cross voting - a remote possibility now - Congress would be needing the support of only three councillors to romp home. On the other hand, the opposition would be needing the support of eight nominated councillors to win elections, which may prove to be tall order in view of certain "Congress-minded" nominated members. "We will win with a handsome margin and there was no question of cross-voting this time around.By not reaching a consensus on its candidates, the opposition had virtually conceded defeat," Congress spokesman and former mayor Pardeep Chhabra claimed. What makes the opposition's task difficult this time is that the BJP-SAD alliance and the BSP leaderships do not see eye to eye on support to certain candidates. While BSP may support Harjinder Kaur being the Akali councillor, the other BJP candidates may not get support from the BSP.Though BSP convener Harmohan Dhawan could not be contacted, BSP sources said the party was not inclined to accept the alliance's offer of senior deputy mayor's post. Both parties would decide their final strategy tomorrow.
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Ruchika Case
Panchkula, December 27 Even though Ruchika’s mother had died in 1986, the inquest proceedings were signed by Veena, who was staying in the same house in place of the mother of the deceased. “Ismein kisi ka kasoor nahin hai,” (No one is responsible for this), deposed Veena “wife” of Subhash Chander Girhotra. The other signatures on the proceedings were reported to be of Subhash Girhotra. While Girhotras were mum on Veena, people close to them said Veena, who used to stay with the family, was around half the age of Subhash Chander Girhotra, father of Ruchika. She disappeared as soon as they sold their 1-kanal house in Sector 6 after depriving the family of all valuables, including money they got against the sale of house. Meanwhile, demanding a probe into the role of Veena, Pankaj Bhardwaj, counsel of Anand Prakash, at a press conference at Chandigarh, has alleged that the inquest proceedings in case of Ruchika were doctored. The police at that time was so desperate to doctor the inquest that they even did not bother to register accurate names of deceased Ruchika and her father. While Ruchika was shown as Ruby, the name of her father was mentioned as SC Khatri, he said. Moreover, the inquest report mentioned that the death was due to overdose of slimming pills. The post-mortem report of Ruchika confirmed that consumption of insecticide led to her death, claimed Bhardwaj.
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Asha helpline cries for help
Chandigarh, December 27 The aim of the ambitious 24-hour helpline, started in 2004, was to counsel people suffering from depression or having suicidal tendencies and preventing them from taking the fatal step. However, after initial success, official apathy has taken its toll on the helpline which needs support if the administration intends to continue with it. After a complaint from a conscientious citizen, Col Mehndiratta (retd), that the helpline was not working, The Tribune made inquiries and found that the project was hardly functional. On the morning of December 25, Mehndiratta had spotted a youth, who appeared disoriented, moving about aimlessly in Sector 11, Panchkula. Mehndiratta, after a brief chat with him (name withheld on request), realised that the youth was apparently depressed and needed counselling. Since Mehndiratta was aware of Asha helpline, he immediately called them up. However, he did not get any response. “I must have called them up over two dozen times, but no one answered the phone,” he said. To crosscheck these claims, this correspondent called up on ASHA helpline several times over the past two days but the calls were not answered, except once. However, the woman who answered the call was of no help as she point blankly refused to counsel anyone on phone or at the residence of the person in need of psychological help. She even refused to admit the patient on the plea that the doctor was not available for the next few days. When contacted, Dr Vijay Girdhar, psychiatrist at the Civil Hospital, Mani Majra, who heads the helpline, admitted that he was not available in the hospital for the past two days as he had been out of station to attend a conference. He also admitted that the helpline phone numbers were non-functional for the past few days, but were now operational. “We don’t have facilities like the GMCH-32. We are running the helpline, but don’t have infrastructure for intensive care, as it is a primary health care-cum-civil hospital. Even we cannot help abandoned and mentally ill persons with high risk of suicide,” Dr Girdhar admitted. He said, the department of psychiatry of the Government Medical College and Hospital, which was assigned the task of running it earlier, was not only running a helpline to counsel depressed people and tackle those suffering from suicidal tendencies, it also provided additional service of the Community Intervention Team
(CIT). He, however, said this was not possible at this hospital. The CIT helped distressed, abandoned and mentally ill persons with high risk of suicide, to reach the protected and caring environment of the hospital. “CIT had trained staff, a counsellor and a staff nurse, an ambulance with a driver, who had been trained to assist CIT staff in resuscitation and transportation of people with multiple injuries and fractures,” said Dr Girdhar. Besides, the team was also summoned if a person had taken overdoses of drugs, put his life to threat or even to counsel people with high suicidal tendencies, he added. “The psychiatry department of the civil hospital has no such facilities and no separate ward for such patients. We are restricted to attend calls only and counsel the patients on phone. However, we sometime face problems due to absence of required staff,” said Dr Girdhar. Now, the question is if the hospital was not equipped with infrastructure to handle the helpline, why did the UT administration shift it out of GMCH-32, where it functioned effectively for more than four years? Dr Raj Bhadur, director-principal of the GMCH-32 said it was a decision of the Director Health Services (DHS) as this project was funded under the District Mental Health Programme.
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City records lowest temperature of season
Chandigarh, December 27 The maximum temperature was 21.6 degrees Celsius against 20.6 degrees yesterday. Meanwhile, air services were delayed due to early morning fog. Jet Airways’ Delhi-Chandigarh flight, which was scheduled to arrive at the Chandigarh airport at 10.05 in the morning, landed at 12.15 p.m. Similarly, Kingfisher Airlines Delhi-Chandigarh-Srinagar and Delhi-Chandigarh-Mumbai flights were also delayed by over one hour
and a half. Cold wave conditions in the second fortnight of December not only made people shiver and duck for cover, but also adversely affected field crops, particularly vegetables, which are likely to affect agricultural productivity. Balbir Singh of Banur, who came to sell his vegetable produce at the Sector 26 grain market, said this weather was bad for the potato crop. “Except for wheat, the cold spell could damage most vegetable crops. And if this temperature continued to increase further, it could have a bad effect on wheat production,” he said, adding that dairy farmers should keep their animals warm as most animals died due to respiratory ailments in winter. According to reports, the chilly weather has also adversely affected the mustard crop. According to the Met office, snowfall in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir has resulted in icy winds blowing towards the north-west plains. This has led to a dip in temperature in the city and adjoining areas. The Met office has forecast partly cloudy sky with mist in the morning.
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School upgraded only on paper
Kandala (Mohali), December 27 The high school caters to hundreds of children in Nadiali, Safipur, Dharamgarh, Alipur, Cheurheri, Jagatpura, Roorka and several other nearby villages. Sarpanch of Kandala village Surinder Singh said though a number of girls
coming to the high school had scored a high pass percentage, the state government was not bothered about promoting education of the girl child. This belies tall claims of the state government of promoting the girl child. With money being one of the reasons many families are not ready to send their girls to city for higher education. As a result, many girls are sitting at home after doing their graduation. “The department has just to send teacher for class XII, the rest the panchayat is eager to manage from its limited resources,”said Dr Jasdeepak Singh, a resident of the village. “It is not only the question of adding class XII-level classes, the existing building of the elementary school is in a poor state and the building for the elementary school constructed at a cost of Rs 4.50 lakh in 1993 has never been occupied. Now, the building is exposed to the elements,” said Surinder Singh. People have taken away the doors and windows of the unoccupied building. The department has neither fixed the responsibility of wasting the public money nor has it utilised the building. The department has also not been able to solve the issue of water and electricity connection to the elementary school. The coordination committee formed by the teachers at the elementary school does not have the required number of representatives from the village panchayat. Dirty surroundings of the school were another issue. Some parents also complained of low standard of food being served under the mid-day meal scheme.
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Despite H1N1 scare, tourist inflow on the rise
Chandigarh, December 27 According to a press note issued here today, up to November 30, 33,615 foreign tourists visited the city against 28,658 in the corresponding period last year. The month of October witnessed the maximum inflow with as many as 4,774 foreigners descending on the city. So far as domestic tourists are concerned, there has been a negligible decrease in their number. Up to November 30, 8,31,580 tourists from different parts of the country visited the city against 8,32,404 during the corresponding period last year. The press note attributed the rise in the inflow of foreign tourists to a number of factors. These include Le Corbusier’s architectural designs, efforts made by the Chandigarh administration to upgrade the infrastructure and different faculties of the PGI holding conferences. “Also, we have moderate and affordable tariff compared to other metropolitan cities in the country. Besides the neat and clean budget accommodation, Chandigarh offers open space and greenery most tourists prefer,” it added. One of the key factors that seems to have played a role in enabling the city to buck the trend of declining tourist traffic in other parts of the country is its layout and architecture. It keeps drawing in foreigners and has left most of the Bollywood, business houses and intellectuals impressed. They feel Chandigarh needs to be explored. “Besides security, we have been able to provide security and peaceful atmosphere,” it read. Most foreigners coming here have appreciated Chandigarh. Barnova Zhanna from Russia who landed in Chandigarh, said: “It is a wonderful city!” Labille Frederic from France commented, “Very special city!” Pascal Wassmann from Switzerland said Le Corbusier’s designs accounted for a lot of value in Chandigarh.
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2009
Panchkula, December 27 Last week too, the city made headlines following the conviction of former state DGP SPS Rathore, who was involved in
the Ruchika molestation case. In January 2009 itself, residents witnessed four incidents of looting, robberies and dacoity. The biggest dacoity in the town took place at PC Jewellers in Sector 14 on January 27, when six armed youths took away jewellery worth Rs 1.73 crore. Earlier on January 3, two snatchers tried to snatch a bag full of cash from a businessman outside his house in Sector 14, his son was injured by a gunshot fired by snatchers. On the following day, on January 4, criminals killed a chowkidaar whil attempting to rob in the Sector 8 post office. On January 22, tricksters drugged two workers of Amritsar -based jeweller and robbed jewellery worth Rs 30 lakh. In February, a financier of Sector 16 was killed along with his 4-year-old son. The incident was followed by the kidnapping of Sector 14-based property dealer Deepak Rai Sagar. A case of highway robbery was also witnessed this year. In a dramatic style, four armed highway robbers took the family of BJP district president Sham Lal Sachdev hostage on a gunpoint near Karnal toll plaza in the wee hours and brought them to their Panchkula house with an aim to rob them. The family was on its way to Panchkula from Delhi when the incident took place. The political scene here was interesting, as four-time MLA and former Deputy Chief Minister Chander Mohan, was shown the door by the Congress. The election of newly elected MC president Ravinder Rawal was challenged in the court. In the new year, the district got two new MLAs. While Congress candidate DK Bansal won the MLA seat from the Panchkula constituency, Pradeep Chaudhary from INLD won the Kalka constituency. On the development front, the town got its first shopping mall and the work of Zirakpur Parwanoo four laning reached its last leg. The year also saw the Rail under bridge (RUB) at the Mansa Devi level crossing take off in full swing. In addition to this, Parwanoo bypass is scheduled to be completed by the end of next year. However, the long-pending proposals, including cattle pond, measures to control dog menace and strengthening of enforcement wing to tackle encroachments could not see light of the day this year as well. The municipal council had proposed to set up a common cattle pond for the stray cattle of Panchkula Pinjore and Kalka, with the help of social organisations. It was also decided that the Haryana Renewable Energy Department would instal energy efficient streetlights in the town. Earlier, the MC had scrapped the MoU signed with the same agency on the pretext of installing big lights in the town. The MC zeroed in on the Haryana Animal Husbandry Department to sterilise around 5,000 stray dogs at the Pet Animal Care Centre in
Sector 3. There are major developmental projects in the pipeline. While the planning for the development of the 6,767 acre of Panchkula extension part II township on the Panchkula -Barwala highway (NH 73), has been made, as many as 24 new sectors, including residential, commercial, institutional etc, are planned for the Kot Billah - Alipur integrated township. Not only this, an estimate of Rs 15 crore had been sent to the government so that a lake in an area of 20 acre in Sector 24 can be made. On the health front, the government started homoeopathic ayurvedic and yoga therapies at General Hospital, Sector 6. This year, surgery package and free medicines were also provided to patients in hospitals.
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101 NCC cadets to represent region at R-Day camp in Delhi
Chandigarh, December 27 Almost 2000 cadets from all over the country are selected to participate in the Republic Day camp after a tough competition. The Prime Minister, the defence minister and the service chiefs witnessing the activities of the cadets. A large number of cadets from friendly foreign counties with whom the NCC has a youth exchange programme also attend the camp. During a dress rehearsal held today at Air Force Station, High Grounds here today, Brig Rajendra Singh, Deputy Director General NCC and other senior Officers from the Directorate assessed the performance of the directorate team and motivated them for doing further better. Col K J Singh, Group Commander, Ludhiana, supervised the 40-day special camp for preparing the cadets, which concluded today. Lt Col Rajesh Sharma will proceed along with the contingent as Contingent Commander. During the camp, cadets were trained and screened in arm drills, shooting and cultural programme in two phases. The first phase of this camp was held in Ludhiana for 20 days and subsequently at the Air Force High Grounds. Out of the 101 cadets selected, 42 are from Punjab, 31 from Haryana, 20 from Himachal Pradesh and eight from Chandigarh. A NCC Band consisting of 45 cadets from Sainik School Kapurthala and eight cadets forming the horse riding team shall join the camp tomorrow to proceed along with the contingent to New Delhi.
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Battle against bottle gets a shot in the arm
Chandigarh, December 27 In fact, it was a big day for the AA movement in North India as the opening of the inter-group office coincided with two-day workshop on “tune your AA engines” at the Bal Bhavan, Sector 23, on December 26 and 27, where a cross-section of the AA members from the region held brain storming and introspection sessions to make the AA “more attractive for the new members and to carry the message to the still-suffering alcoholics”. “The opening of the office would go a long way in strengthening AA movement in North India besides providing a meeting place for travelling AA members and members of the fellowship,” informed an AA member. Besides, it would help the organisation in better coordination of its activities and provide help to those needing assistance to quit drinking, he added. On the need to have an AA office in Chandigarh, members said Chandigarh being the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana besides the administrative headquarters of the union territory, was an ideal place to spread awareness about the recovery from the fatal disease of alcoholism. As Chandigarh was the gateway to the picturesque hilly state of Himachal Pradesh a large of tourists, both domestic and foreign, substantial number of them being AA members or potential alcoholics, would be able to get help from the inter-group office. The office would act as AA’s interface with the outside world particularly the NGOs and government agencies working in the field of drug de-addiction. Though the office would work from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the beginning yet help from the AA helpline (94170-37358) was available round-the-clock. Meanwhile, it was highlighted at the workshop that the only requirement for AA membership is a desire to stop drinking and there were no membership fee. The Alcoholic Anonymous’ recovery programme works on the simple 12 steps of which attending meetings - held in different parts of the tricity everyday - formed an integral part. Since alcoholism was a family disease, it was decided to have a coordinated action plan with the help of the Al Anon, the family group of the alcoholics, to make meeting more interesting and beneficial for the members. Apart from that the workshop also decided to actively collaborate with other outside agencies to combat alcoholism. “Though AA has no opinion on any outside issue and does not wishes to wish to engage in any controversy yet we collaborate with government and NGO efforts to check the menace of alcoholism in society,” a member informed.
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Pensioner’s Day celebrated
Chandigarh, December 27 Pawan Kumar Bansal, Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Water Resources, was the chief guest on the occasion. Rajpal Sharma, general secretary of the association, highlighted the problems being faced by the pensioners and urged the government to fulfill their genuine demands like early settlement of anomalies arising out of the Sixth Pay Commission, enhancement of grant of fixed medical allowance from Rs 100 to Rs 1,000 per month and opening of more CGHS dispensaries in Mohali and Panchkula as the existing dispensary in Chandigarh was overloaded. Later, Bansal assured pensioners of all possible help.
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New Year celebrations with musical evening
Chandigarh, December 27 The musical evening was inaugurated by MP Singh, Secretary to the Punjab Governor, in the presence of Ram Niwas, UT Home Secretary, and other senior officials of the administration . After singers Ashish Saini and Sandeep Sharma, the second performance in the evening was by singer Aakash AD. The last item of the evening was a marvellous performance by a traditional Punjabi folk group. All buildings were decked up with lights. The much-awaited finale of the singing competition and dance competition will be held on December 31 followed by a Punjabi musical evening by Sabar Koti.
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Reporters' Dairy
I always tremble at the mention of an epidemic or some emergency situation in our country. What really scares me a lot is the manner in which such situations are handled at the official level. The official reaction towards any such development is always knee-jerk. The latest instance is poor handling of swine flu cases, which the World Health Organisation has termed pandemic.
Even as such cases continue to rise, these are not being handled the way these should be. Here is an example of a city resident, whose daughter was rushed to the city hospital (which is authorised to admit swine flu cases) for swine flu test after she complained of a throat ache and fever. There were some other patients who had come with similar complaints and all were to be tested. What was really shocking was that after their samples had been taken, a few of them were admitted in the same ward. But what if only one case came back positive? Would it not be dangerous to the rest to spend time together? Those who are not suffering from the disease are at greater risk of contracting it. I don’t know how one can keep suspected cases in complete isolation.
Just business tactics
As a consumer, one often comes across advertisements offering discounts. Going a step ahead, a fruit and vegetables retailer in Mohali has started distributing free 1 kg pack of potatoes in every household to popularise their upcoming outlet. Available for anything between Rs 8 and Rs 10 a kg, the gift might not dig a hole in the advertiser’s pocket. But, yes, the strategy has created curiosity among the consumers. A reader called up wishing that the advertiser could distribute peas or other vegetables selling at high rates.
Few officials for cyber crimes
Though the UT administration is head over heels to project the city as an emerging IT hub, the UT police is, it seems, not as much serious to deal with cyber crimes. In this age, when cyber crimes are growing rapidly, the police has shifted its officials trained to deal with the cyber crimes to man the localities plagued with petty crimes, leaving the cyber crime cell in lurch. The cyber crime cell of the Chandigarh police is looking for a replacement, even as the complaints of cyber crimes are piling up in the department due to the dearth of the trained police officials. "Information technology and the police share different backgrounds. This is a highly sophisticated field, totally in contrast to the traditional manner of police functioning. It is not easy to find the police officials from the force, who could be imparted training of latest technology, making the task all the more difficult in selecting the officials," asserts a police officer. Contributed by Rajmeet Singh, Pardeep Sharma, Ramanjit Sidhu and Anuja Jaiswal.
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‘Suchi Sanjh’ staged at Naat Utsav
Mohali, December 27 The festival was organised by the Suchetak Rang Manch and supported by the NZCC, the Culture Affairs Department, Punjab. Hardeep Gill has tried his best to adapt the story ‘Rajai’ into the dramatic text. The play deals with the agony, helplessness and loneliness of a woman, whose husband desserts her after shifting to England. Banso with her two kids Satta (Master Aamin Gill and Shindi (Gernmanjit) reaches England to find her husband married to a British woman. She then takes shelter in the house of a retired soldier, is ready to take up her and her kids’ responsibilities. They start living like a family and raise the kids in a loving environment. Both kids grow up and get married. The man passes away leaving the woman alone, who finds a friend in the ‘Rajai’ that the man and the woman had shared while the man was alive. However, the woman’s daughter-in-law is unable to understand her love for that piece of rag i.e the ‘Rajai’ and insists on throwing it away. But this piece of rag has become a symbol of life for the woman. Thespian Gursharn offered his comments while chief guest Dr Atamjit honoured the artists. Anita Devgan ( Banso) , protagonist Fauji Karnail Singh ( Gurdip Gill) were superb. Rakesh Sharma, Pargat Singh, Amanpreet Kaur, Rupinder Kaur and others were also effective in their respective roles.
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Students attend Army camp
Chandigarh, December 27 The four-day Army Attachment Camp titled Shorya Saptah was organised by Yuvsatta and HQ Western Command. Around 85 students from Chandigarh and Dev Samaj Model High School, Ferozepur, attended the camp. Parmod Sharma, coordinator of Yuvsatta and organiser of the programme, said during their stay with the Indian Army, students were apprised of the functions of artillery and infantry units and had a close look at the weapons. They got a chance to learn the firing technique at firing stimulators besides experiencing the life of soldiers Students were also taken to the Pushpa Gujral Science City, Hussaniwala Border and Harike Wetland. Japneet, a student of Class IX of AKSIPS, said she was thrilled to see the army tanks in real life, which she had only seen on TV.
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Role of materials managers lauded
Chandigarh, December 27 Around 150 executives from the tri-city, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir were present on the occasion. Theme of the function was “Role of Supply Chain in Burgeoning Economy”. Pawan Kumar Bansal, Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, was the chief guest on the occasion. Speaking on the occasion, Bansal lauded the role of materials managers in communicating the importance of cost reduction, environment management, waste control management and green purchase management. AK Saihjpal, chairman, IIMM, Chandigarh branch, highlighted the activities of the branch during 2009. OP Longia, vice-president, said a new IIMM branch would be opened in Panipat.
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Workshop on computer applications
Mohali, December 27 The workshop will continue for five consecutive Saturdays and will cover the basics of computer applications. Gursimran Singh Oberoi, regional manager, ICFe, and Shalini Parmar, senior faculty, ICFe, were the key speakers. BS Anand, president, MIA, welcomed guests.
— TNS
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Tazias to be taken out today
Chandigarh, December 27 On Moharram, Arshad Khan, a nominated councillor, said "The event is celebrated by wailing and tribulation, or sometimes by symbols like the tazias that you see in India”, he added.
— TNS
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