R E G I O N A L   B R I E F S

PUNJAB

Amritsar
GND varsity to host inter-varsity weightlifting: Guru Nanak Dev University will host the seven-day all-India inter-university weightlifting, power lifting (men and women) and best physique (men) championships on its campus from January 18. Director (Sports) and organising secretary of the championships Kanwaljeet Singh said about 1,200 players from various universities would participate in the championships.

Seminar on RTI: The Right to Information (RTI) Act was an effective tool to consolidate democracy, make administration more accountable and transparent and empower citizens, said Deputy Commissioner Kahan Singh Pannu during a seminar on RTI held at Circuit House here today. Additional Deputy Commissioner Paramjit Singh expressed his experiences garnered as Public Information Officer. He said in order to make the information network more efficient, information officers and assistant information officers have been appointed in all departments. He added that supply of information has been made mandatory within 30 days.

Bathinda
Rs 10 lakh ex-gratia sought for slain PSEB chowkidar: Various employee unions of the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) on Tuesday demanded an ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakh to the family of Chowkidar Charanjit Pal, who lost his life during the robbery at the Civil Lines sub-division office of the PSEB. The unions also demanded jobs for two members of the deceased's family.

NGO seeks change in school timings: The Bathinda Vikas Manch has appealed to the state government to change the timing of government schools in the light of the ongoing cold wave in the state. The Manch has asked the government to fix 10 am as the new timing for classes to begin.

Lohri celebrated: The Officers Club of the Guru Hargobind Thermal Plant, Lehra Mohabbat, celebrated Lohri. General manager of the GHTP GS Chhabra presided over the function. On the occasion, members emphasised on eliminating female foeticide from society.

Maths mock test held: Mathematics mock test for students of class X was organised at local Swami Vivekananda Girls College, in which more than 70 students from the CBSE schools of Bathinda, Mansa and Muktsar took part. Vandana Garg of local St. Joseph’s Convent School, Ramandeep Singh Gill of the Police Public School and Isha Garg of St. Joseph’s Convent secured the first, second and third positions, respectively.

National Youth Day: The birth anniversary of Swami Vivekanand was celebrated as the ‘National Youth Day’ here on Monday. On the occasion, the Swami Vivekanand Study Circle, Bathinda, garlanded a statue of the Swami at the Rose Garden. Makhan Lal, a senior member of the Circle, highlighted the teachings of Swami Vivekanand and called upon the members and morning walkers to emulate the teachings of Swami.

Elections held: The elections for the Bathinda branch of the NIRC of the ICAI for the term 2010-13 were held on January 9 at the premises of the Income Tax Department. Chairman Mahesh Jindal informed that the following candidates were elected: Renu Jindal, Ravinder Kumar Garg, Krishan Kumar and Home Chand Garg from Bathinda and Manohar Lal Garg and Ravinder Kumar from Mansa.

CHANDIGARH
Death mourned: Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal today expressed grief over the death of Chanan Kaur (81), mother of environmentalist Balbir Singh Seechewal. She died after a brief illness at Seechewal village in Jalandhar district. In a condolence message Badal expressed heartfelt sympathies with the bereaved family.

LUDHIANA
BJP chief Gadkari to visit state: Preparations are afoot to give a rousing welcome to national BJP president Nitin Gadkari on his maiden visit to the state on January 16. He is visiting Amritsar on a first visit to any state after assuming the presidentship of the party. On January 16, he will visit the Golden Temple to pay obeisance, followed by visits to Durgiana Mandir, Jallianwala Bagh and other historical places. On January 17, Gadkari will unveil the statue of Dr Baldev Prakash, who served the Punjab BJP as its president, and address a public meeting.

HARYANA

CHANDIGARH
Subhash Yadav Hisar SP: The Haryana government posted IPS Subhash Yadav as Hisar SP against a vacant post with immediate effect. Earlier, Yadav was Sirsa SP, but was transferred from there on directions of the Election Commission of India in view of the Ellenabad Assembly bypoll.

KURUKSHETRA
Office-bearers elected: According to returning officer Satpal Sharma, following have been declared elected as office bearers of HUDA- Sector 5 Resident Welfare Association, Kurukshetra-- Sunil Datt Sharma as its president, Lekh Raj Lather as its vice president, Sunehra Lal as its general-secretary (unopposed), LD Singh as joint secretary and Shyam Lal Arora as treasurer.

Rewari
Ahirwal mahapanchayat: The 45th Sarvajati Mahapanchayat of Ahirwal region will be held under the chairmanship of former legislator Raghu Yadav here on the occasion of Makar Sankranti on January 14. The mahapanchayat will be dedicated to socialist leader Dr Ram Manohar Lohiya as this is his birth centenary year.

Removal of signboards: Shopkeepers of the town led by state-media in-charge of the BJP Rajiv Jain on Tuesday protested in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office against removal of signboards of the companies from the shops. In absence of the DC, the protestors handed over a memorandum to the city magistrate Yash Pal Yadav and demanded to restrict the MC authorities from indulging in such anti-business activities.

HIMACHAL PRADESH

Hamirpur
Body found: The police yesterday recovered the body of Madan Lal in Saloh village. According to the police, Madan Lal of Batharal village had gone to work in a nearby village on January 8 but did not return home. A few villagers spotted his body near Saloh village. A case has been registered.

Mandi
Molestation alleged: A woman today accused a patwari posted at Ahju patwar of outraging her modesty. According to complainant Sunita Devi, wife of Om Parkash, resident of Matru, she had gone to prepare a copy of jamavandi from the patwari. But in the meanwhile, he started outraging her modesty, while preparing the copy of the jamavandi in her favour. The police has lodged the FIR.

Shimla
Choudhary made registrar-general: The Himachal Pradesh High Court has transferred Suresh Choudhary, district and sessions judge, Kullu, and posted him as registrar-general of the state high court. The post of registrar-general was vacant due to the elevation of VK Sharma as the additional judge of the high court.

LPG refills stolen: In a baffling incident, four LPG refills were stolen from the residence of a former minister, Harsh Mahajan, in the Maliana locality yesterday. Superintendent of Police RM Sharma said stealing of cooking gas refill was a rare occurrence in the city. However, the police had decided to carry out a drive to detect unaccounted refills, particularly in the slums. The police has registered a case and further investigations are on.

Schools closed: The state government today ordered closure of all schools in Una district due to extreme foggy conditions prevailing in the region, an official said. "All primary and senior secondary schools in the district would be closed for two days with effect from Wednesday due to prevailing foggy weather," Deputy Commissioner K R Bharti said. He said even the private schools would remain closed for two days. The cold wave continued in the region with the minimum temperature dipping to 2.7 degrees Celsius today.