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Racket promising players berth in IPL busted
Ramanjit Singh Sidhu
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 24
The Chandigarh Police busted a racket involving a woman member of a club affiliated to the T-20 Cricket Federation of India, who promised budding cricket players a berth in the Indian Premier League (IPL) against money.

The woman, identified as Rajwinder Brar (30), of Sector 2, allegedly charged exorbitant amount from players, promising them to send abroad to play as team members, said sources in the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Chandigarh Police.

Sub-inspector Rajiv Kumar, investigator in the case, acting on a tip-off, arrested an associate of the woman Sutxien of Sector 37 last night. He is also a cricket player and would lure the budding player by promising them to take to foreign shores as team members of the IPL.

Rajiv informed that Kunal, a budding cricketer, who had played in the IPL, lodged a complaint with the police, alleging that he had paid Rs 7 lakh to Rajwinder through Sutxien in July. She had promised him a visa to the USA, which she could not arrange for and later said she would send him to the UK, which she also failed to do.

Kunal then requested her to return her money on which he started dilly-dallying.

The police inquired into the matter and registered a case in this regard. Rajiv further informed that the Punjab police had booked Rajwinder Kaur in a similar case.

Rajwinder had reached an agreement with the complaint of the case registered in Punjab, in which Sutxien had also put his signatures. The agreement was reached on an affidavit. The police arrested Sutxien from near the Sector 41 residence of Kunal.

A police team had been dispatched to Samrala in Punjab to nab Rajwinder Kaur. She is said to be a resident of Ludhiana and was staying in a rented accommodation in Chandigarh.

She was running a club which was reportedly affiliated to the T-20 Cricket Federation of India and facilitated the selection of players into the IPL teams.

DSP (EOW) Baljit Singh Chhadha told TNS that it appeared to be part of some big racket and more such cases are likely to be unearthed following the sustained interrogation of Rajwinder Kaur, who is absconding.

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Hit-and-Run Case
One killed, 2 hurt in Sec 41
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 24
A 22-year-old youth was killed while his two friends were injured last night when a speeding car rammed into their motorcycle in Sector 41 and sped away. In another accident a pedestrian was injured after being hit by a Haryana Roadways bus in Sector 17.

The deceased has been identified as Azimul Hasan of Hardoi in Uttar Pradesh who had come to visit his friends, Jalal and Amin, in Dadu Majra village. The injured are in their early twenties. While Hasan had appeared in a police recruitment exam in Roorki, Jalal and Amin are embroidery craftsmen.

Jalal told TNS the three were going to meet a relative in Sector 41 when a speeding Skoda car hit their motorcycle at around 9 pm. According to him a police vehicle was already chasing the car, whose occupants might have been involved in some crime.

The police vehicle continued chase the car that sped away after hitting their motorbike at a police picket, he added. “All of us fell on the road and lost consciousness after the mishap. Later we were told a private vehicle took

Hasan to PGI where he was declared brought dead, while we were taken to the Government Multispecialty Hospital, Sector 16 in a police vehicle,” said Jalal.

Hasan sustained multiple injuries and reportedly died on the spot. Jalal received multiple fractures on his leg while Amin suffered a head injury.

Jalal also alleged their mobile phones and wallets were missing after the accident. The police said the victim’s family had been informed about the mishap and the postmortem of the body was conducted.

The Sector 39 police station SHO said they would contact the registration authority to trace the owner and driver of the car involved in the accident. He, however, denied a police vehicle was chasing the speeding car, saying had the cops been chasing it the vehicle would have been impounded by now.

A case of causing death due to rash and negligent driving has been registered.

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Petrol pump looted
Tribune News Service

Zirakpur, January 24
Around 10 unidentified miscreants looted Rs 30,000 from a petrol pump early on Sunday morning after detaining employees of the pump, owned by Congress leader RR Bhardwaj.

According to sources, the incident occurred at the petrol pump near Nabha village on the Zirakpur-Patiala highway, where robbers, after beating the salesmen, snatched the cash bag containing over Rs 30,000.

The sources added that the miscreants arrived at the petrol pump in two groups. The first group detained the salesmen of the pump and immediately another group reached the spot.

The miscreants assaulted the salesmen and snatched the bag containing Rs 30,000. They fled from the pump in darkness, the sources added.

The salesmen immediately called up the owner of the petrol pump, who had submitted his compliant to the police.

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Cold wave recedes
However, train services still hit, only one flight takes off

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 24
To the advantage of passengers travelling by air, the city sky remained clear for the second day today even though trains continued to remain badly affected. The Northern Railway had to cancel one train for the day, while most of the other major trains were running late.

The residents have, however, been advised not to be deceived by the Meteorological Department. “Sunshine doesn’t mean that weather is hot. One has to be covered, as temperature might go down again,” said a weather official.

The city recorded 0.5 degrees rise in the minimum temperature at 5.6 degree Celsius against yesterday’s 5.1. The maximum temperature also increased to 22.2 degree Celsius.

While flight operations were reported to be normal in the absence of fog, only GoAir Airlines Mumbai-Chandigarh flight landed at the city airport at 1.45 in the afternoon and departed the city at 2.30 p.m. Some flights remained cancelled due to operational reasons or poor visibility at the origin cities, airport officials said.

Meanwhile, trains continued to remain badly affected even today and the Northern Railway had to cancel Himalayan Queen today. Most of the other major trains were running late.

A Northern Railway spokesperson said though the visibility in Delhi was high today, other areas in North India were still under dense or mild fog conditions. “This affected the arrivals at the Chandigarh railway station,” he said.

Officials of the Meteorological Department have predicted that in the next two days, the city may see cloudy sky with fog or mist during the day and night in the city. While shallow fog might engulf the region, Punjab and Haryana may witness cloudy sky tomorrow. The temperature would fluctuate between 8 and 22 degrees Celsius in the next two days, they added. They also warned that ground frost might occur at isolated places in Punjab and Haryana.

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Democracy at a Price-I
LS poll cost UT Rs 1.38 cr
Rs 22 lakh honorarium to officials raises eyebrows

Pradeep Sharma
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 24
The conduct of the May 13 Lok Sabha election for the local parliamentary seat cost the Chandigarh Administration dear, with about Rs 1.38 crore being spent on it and surprisingly, a substantial part, amounting to over Rs 41 lakh, went for the payment of remuneration to the polling parties and honorarium to the staff on election duty.

However, the “across the board” payment of the honorarium of about Rs 22.24 lakh to the staff, including senior officials, in addition to their salaries, has raised many an eyebrow. While Rs 22.24 was given for officials’ honorarium, the minimum amount of Rs 34,072 was spent on the purchase of service stamps.

A perusal of the information obtained by Sector 27 resident RK Garg through RTI shows that the administration spent over Rs 8 lakh on refreshment. As much as Rs 1.44 lakh was spent under the miscellaneous expenditure.

Interestingly, the administration also a hired a consultant, who was paid Rs 77, 581.While the administration has a fleet of vehicles, nearly Rs 2 lakh was spent on the hiring of private vehicles.

The Chief Electoral Officer-cum-Adviser to the administrator tops the list of beneficiaries with Rs 80,000 honorarium followed by the Returning Officer and the then the Deputy Commissioner with Rs 61,540. The joint Chief Electoral Officer has claimed an honorarium of Rs 13,800. The 12 AROs - junior IAS officers, PCS and HCS officials- were richer from an amount of Rs 13,388 to Rs 33,490.The highest amount among the AROs was claimed by the then Assistant Estate Officer.

Besides officials, 40 trainers of EVMs have been paid honorarium of Rs 6,000 each, while 13 master trainers had been given honorarium of Rs 8,000 each. To top it all, 15 officials, who worked in various cells for the conduct of the general elections, pocketed Rs 10,000 each.

According to information, 124 drivers and other staff were paid honorarium of Rs 5,000 each. As many as 12 other staff deputed for the elections were given Rs 8,000 each. Besides, there was wide disparity in the amounts - ranging from Rs 11,875 to Rs 43,125 - kept at the disposal of the 12 AROs for disbursal among the supporting staff. “Though the payment of the honorarium may be legal as the officials were directly associated with the election work and ‘were working round the clock’, yet the question of ethics has come into play since they were also paid their salaries for the respective period," RK Garg, who sought the information through the RTI, said.

Garg claimed that from March 2 till the completion of the electoral process, the entire administrative machinery had come to a standstill as they were engaged in the election-related work. When the officials were performing only election-related work then why should they be paid both salary and the election honorarium, Garg asked?

A senior official asserted that since almost all officials, particularly the police officials were engaged in the electoral work, the payment of honorarium to the “select few” smacked of favouritism. The “non-uniformity” in the payment of honorarium led to heart burning among the officials, who were not paid on the pattern of their colleagues, he added.

(To be continued)

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Lack of parking space leads to traffic jam in Zirakpur
Rajiv Bhatia

A traffic jam outside Paras Down Town Mall at Zirakpur
A traffic jam outside Paras Down Town Mall at Zirakpur on Sunday. Tribune photo: Nitin Mittal

Zirakpur, January 24
Chaos prevailed at Zirakpur following a major traffic jam that was witnessed due to ongoing shopping festival at the Paras Down Town Square here on Sunday. The traffic came to a standstill at most of the intersections, causing harassment to daily commuters. Traffic cops had a tough time in managing the traffic at many places.

The commuters alleged that since there was no proper parking at Paras Down Town Square, they were facing parking problem and were forced to park their vehicles outside the mall.

A survey of the area revealed that the commuters faced inconvenience as they were parking their vehicles in no -parking zone. The traffic police failed to challan the vehicles as they were helping the commuters to park their vehicles outside the mall.

The shopping festival at Big Bazaar is on. It leads to heavy rush at the mall. Visitors from Chandigarh, Panchkula and Mohali throng the mall, which leads to problem of parking.

Sanjay Chawla, a resident of Panchkula, said hundreds of vehicles were stranded for more than half-an -hour on the Zirakpur-Kalka highway as they were struck in a jam, which was caused due to the shopping festival.

Jagtar Singh, a resident of Patiala, said it’s not the first time that he had faced the parking problem but the mall authorities had failed to provide proper parking on every festival or big shopping festival.

He stated that the authority concerned should think about proper parking before opening a mall.

Traffic in charge Manjeet Singh stated that the traffic cops were performing their duties to clear the traffic jam due to a heavy rush of vehicles at the mall. “We will strictly ask the mall authorities to arrange proper parking before starting any shopping festival”, he added.

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Traffic Rules
Size of headgear creates confusion
Turban-wearing motorcyclist cries foul for being challaned
Ramanjit Singh Sidhu
Tribune News Service

Harwinder Singh shows the challan receipt while sporting the ‘same’ turban, which he was wearing at the time the challan
Harwinder Singh shows the challan receipt while sporting the ‘same’ turban, which he was wearing at the time the challan. A Tribune photograph

Chandigarh, January 24
A traffic policeman allegedly went overboard and booked a turban-sporting motorcyclist for not wearing a “proper safety headgear”. With the motorcyclist, Harwinder Singh of Naya Gaon, claiming that he was wearing a proper turban and was wrongly booked for the violation, the issue regarding the size of the turban while driving a two-wheeler has once again emerged in the absence of any laid down specifications in this regard.

Harwinder Singh told TNS that he was riding his motorcycle (PB-27-C-3131) on road diving Sectors 12 and 14 around 12.40 pm today when a traffic policeman stopped him. “The policeman asked for my driving licence. He started issuing me a challan and when I inquired from him about the offence, he told me that I was not wearing a turban. He did not listen to me and told me to sign the challan receipt,” alleged Harwinder.

Harwinder said he suspected that the policeman, head constable Surjit Singh, was drunk. Even his colleagues told him that he was wrong in issuing the challan, but he ignored them. “I told him that my turban was over three-and-half meter long and it was not a patka. Instead of buying my logic, he retorted that the size of his turban was nine meters and anything less than that is considered a patka,” alleged Harwinder.

Showing the challan receipt (19089), Harwinder claimed that the police official marked the serial number of the offence (53) for not wearing a helmet or a turban. “The sub-sections of the offence mentions the specifications about the quality of the helmet and even if the helmet is not fastened properly, it is considered as a violation of the rule. But there is no such specification mentioned regarding the size of the turban,” Harwinder claimed.

Harwinder said he would take up the issue with the senior police officials to proceed against the policeman for wrongfully challaning and for harassment.

When contacted, DSP (Traffic) Vijay Kumar said: “Though no specifications were laid down in this regard, but the common size of turban is considered to be above seven meters. In this case, the offender might have been sporting a short patka.”

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Work on channelising Sec 67 nullah begins
Kulwinder Sangha
Our Correspondent

Work to channelise a seasonal rivulet in progress in Sector 69, Mohali
Work to channelise a seasonal rivulet in progress in Sector 69, Mohali. A Tribune photograph

Mohali, January 24
Much to the relief of residents, the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority has commenced work for channelising the foul-smelling ‘nullah’ (watercourse) winding through various parts of the township at a cost of Rs 1.75 crore.

The nullah had made life miserable for those living in Sector 67 and other localities as it had created unhygienic conditions apart from spreading a fetid smell and becoming a breeding ground for mosquitoes and flies.

The channelisation work, which has begun from Sector 67 and will extend till the bridge on the road dividing Sectors 80 and 67, is expected to be completed in about six months’ time.

Lt Cdr ML Sharma (retd), who resides in Sector 67, stated he had talked to GMADA officials, including both the chief administrators, several times since July 2008 and had urged them to channelise the nullah, which he said had created a four-feet deep pond measuring about an acre in the area. “I was told to give a representation in writing bearing the signatures of residents who had been adversely affected. I then gave the officials a written request that had the signatures of 254 residents, he added.

Sharma said that he was very grateful to the GMADA officials for initiating the work on channelising the nullah. “This will provide a big relief to the residents who have suffered due to the unhygienic conditions”.

Sewage from areas in Chandigarh flowed through this nullah, which entered Mohali near Yadavindra Public School. Part of it was channelised earlier after residents of Phase IX and surrounding areas had raised their voice against the unhealthful conditions created by the nullah, which had also led to soil erosion in various areas.

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28 to get commendation certificates on R-Day
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 24
The Chandigarh administration has decided to award 28 commendation certificates to public men and employees of the Chandigarh administration on the Republic Day for outstanding services in their respective fields.

Rahul Aggarwal, Jagroop Singh, president, the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum-I, Arun Kumar Kansal, executive engineer, horticulture wing, Municipal Corporation, Harjasleen Malvai, a student of Class IX, Carmel Convent School, Sector 9-B, GS Bajwa, district youth coordinator, Nenru Yuvak Kendra, Aditi Sheoran, Harman Singh Sidhu and a safai karamchari of the MC Bishan Dass are being recognised for their meritorious services. Kuldip Sharma will be given commendation for his contribution to the field of art.

On behalf of the Civil Defence Organisation, senior civil defence instructor, Sanjeev Kohli, will be awarded for his remarkable role in rescue operations in the accident that took place at the dumping site in Sector 31 and a roof collapse accident in the Grain Market, Sector 26. Deepak Devrani, Satinder Sharma, and Master Bikramjit Singh will be awarded in the sports category.

Pooja Thakur, president, the Chandigarh Network of Positive People, Oshima Raikhy and the Shivanand Society have been selected for the award in the field of social services.

ZU Khan, project in charge, SQL Star International Limited, Balbir Singh, platoon commander (HQ), Jasbinder Kaur, architect, department of urban planning, Gian Singh, CTU driver, inspector Hardit Singh, sub-inspector Des Raj, ASI Pardeep Kumar, head constable Surinder Singh, head constable Sanjay Kumar and constable Devi Chand will also be awarded the commendation certificate.

The Resident Welfare Association, Sector 21, and Panjab University will be recognised for their collection of funds on the Army Day.

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Area where grenades were found cordoned off
Tribune News Service

Mohali, January 24
The police cordoned off Zirakpur town in this district and conducted an extensive search of the area with the help of a dog squad after two live hand grenades were found on the Zirakpur-Patiala highway near Nabha village late Saturday. The village is barely 1.5 km from the Indian Air Force station.

The grenades have been sent to a forensic laboratory to determine their source and lethality. Meanwhile, a case under sections 4 & 5 of the Explosive Substances Act, 1908 has been registered against unidentified persons.

The discovery of the grenades not only spread panic in the area but also had residents of the Tricity on tenterhooks.

Dera Bassi DSP JS Khaira stated special teams along with a dog squad were searching the vicinity to gather vital clues.

“Due to darkness it was difficult to continue the search yesterday night. Special ‘nakas’ (checkposts) have also been set up at various places to check vehicles passing through the area. The identity of visitors staying at hotels and guest houses in the area is also being checked”, he added.

Police officials said though the search had resumed today morning, as there was a possibility of more grenades in the area, nothing had been found.

“The live grenades found yesterday were of high potential and could do major harm upon exploding within a distance of 150 metres”, they added.

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Open House
Admn doesn’t let MC grow
Sanjeev Singh Bariana

Ever since the elected house of Municipal Corporation took seat in the Union Territory, the elected body has not been able to free itself from the dragnet of the Chandigarh administration while bagging any major projects of the city.

The clipboard of division of work shows invariable dependency of the elected house on the administrative clearance. Till date, the MC has not taken the pilot seat for guiding stipulated roles of handling primary education and health in the city provided in the MC Act.

The administration continues to keep the maintenance of all main roads in its kitty. Besides inter-state entry exit roads, the inter-sector roads are covered under this category. The administration also continues to control major tourists stations, including the Rose Garden, Leisure Valley and Sukhna Lake.

There seems to be no logic behind the administration keeping the roads and parks under its control. It is a known fact that in the cities wherever the inter-state highway entered the municipal limits, its maintenance became the responsibility of the Municipal Corporation concerned or the committee.

The other way of looking at the situation is that incase the roads, parks and other major projects were taken out of the hands of the administration, it would be left with practically no work on ground. Everyone wants to enjoy power and never wants to let go of the powers one enjoys. The administrative structure of the city has never allowed political leaders to make any noticeable impact on the city administration.

The small time politicians were never allowed to grow and even people feel comfortable in absence of any major political impact on its daily governance.

Let us also accept the fact that the politicians too have never really allowed the post of the Mayor to be higher than the place it exists, currently.

In real terms, a Mayor is supposed to be the boss of the town. This would mean a direct infringement on the power of the MP who is the elected leader to the Parliament. The parliamentarians have largely led the political teams of the corporation, till date.

The councillors continue to cry for a greater role in public outreach programmes in the city.

The UT generates fund on account of property tax in commercial property, parking contracts, water supply, sewerage charges and enforcement. There can be additional revenue on water as the UT charges are among the lowest at the national level. Against the national average of 135 litres per capita per day, the city registers average water supply of 330 litres per capita per day.

There is little interaction between senior officials of the administration and Municipal Corporation, except for “once in a while formality”. Even the citizen’s advisory council has remained only a namesake in the city with the UT administrator in the chair.

A former Mayor said, “No attempts have been made by the administration to get us on a common forum for discussions. The post of the administrator appears to have ordained the robe of a monarch. As elected representatives, we carry the voice of the people. Let us hope for a reprieve under the changed head of the administrator.”

The division of the existing workforce of the municipal and administration works remains an issue of legal pendency in the city courts.

Only one year tenure for a Mayor was definitely less going by the nature of the job. Every year, the last month was wasted in the election process and virtual halt of work on new projects.

The first month was spent on the new incumbent settling down in his office.

In reality, the Commissioner holds the key to the municipal work under the existing conditions and the junior officials are often seen scuttling between his office and that of the Mayor to “please” both at the same time.

Even the Commissioner is often seen in the waiting list of the visitors in the offices of the UT secretariat.

A majority of the parks, within the sector limits, are handled by the MC. Due to the lack of manpower, the majority of them lie unattended. At the same time, it is also worth arguing why the MC delayed handing out the park care projects to new parties. After judging the maintenance work at a spot for a certain period, the park contracts should be given for longer periods.

At the same time, the MC has no justification in delay of implementing the property tax in the residential quarters of the city. NABARD has given a clear instruction that funds for developmental projects will be given incase the MC imposed tax. The matter has only been postponed, till date.

Interestingly, the MC here unlike most of the cities, is not a cash starved one. From a cash deficit of Rs 34 crore, a few years back, the MC today has a cash surplus of more than Rs 500 crore. However, the amount has not been utilised for any mentionable achievement.

The surplus revenue of the UT is sent to the Central pool. Out of the money sent to the Central pool, the UT gets its share out of a demand charter forwarded to the Centre. The remaining amount is sent to other states “deserving cash support”, including Bihar, UP, Orrisa, besides others.

The Municipal Corporation calls its administration’s apathy, while the administration says there has been no initiative to revamp the ancient water supply pipelines in the city, particularly in the northern sectors.

Again difficult to pinpoint blame on a single party, the matter of fact is that that none of the multi-storeyed parking projects in the city have taken off till date, despite heavy vehicular congestion. The issue gains tremendous importance in wake of the increasing traffic rush. At least a couple of parking projects in the city have been taken up in the house at regular intervals.

Chandigarh Tribune will like to have your opinion on the existing Municipal Corporation services in the city and needed changes, if any, particularly in reference to the Chandigarh Administration. Write your experiences and suggestions to the Open House, Chandigarh Tribune, Sector 29, Chandigarh, or openhouse@tribunemail.com

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BJP holds rallies against price rise
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 24
The local unit of the BJP today held protest rallies in Maloya Colony and Colony No. 5 against price rise. Addressing the rallies, local BJP presiden SanjayTandon alleged that the Congress was not bothering about the poor who were striving hard for one square meal.

The party is organising agitations in January in all the mandals and all the districts. The state-level agitation will be held on February 6, he added.

Prominent party leaders who addressed the gathering included former MP Satya Pal Jain, Arun Sood, Ramesh Nikku, Santosh Mishra, Gurpreet Dhillon, Ramvir Bhatti, Sachin Lohtia, Ravi Sharma, Balwinder Gujral and Prem Kaushik.

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Mushiara enthrals audience
SD Sharma

Chandigarh, January 24
“Mujhe pakeeza aanchal ki hawaien milti rehti hein, Mujhe har roz jannat ki fazayein milti rehti hein, Faqiri mein bhi muhje milti rahi shaahon ki taqdeer, Mujhe maa ki mohabbat aur duayein milti rehti hein.”

The couplet in salutation to the pious sanctity of motherhood and motherland by eminent poet Padmashri Kashmiri Lal Zakir set the pace for a patriotic fervour in the Urdu mushaira titled “Jashan-e-Janhuriat” at the Museum Hall here today.

The event organised by the Readers and Writers’ Society in collaboration with the Haryana Urdu Akademy on the eve of Republic Day featured more poets, while thematic content gradually shifted from patriotism to romanticism.

Even society secretary Saba Hoshiarpuri, an advocate, failed to assess and arrest the intensity of pain in her ensuing ghazal, “Pse manjar bhi ikk nazara hai, uski zanib jo nazar jaye kahin, dil pe guzre ke jaan pe guzre, dard hadd se guzar jaye naa kahin….” Another poet from Malerkotla, Dr Rubina Shabnam won applause for her couplets like “Hsm pe jab tak meharbaan mausam rha, dil ki shakhon pe hari patein rahin, mujhko shabnam chaand banker kya mila mere hisse mein vhi raatein rahin..”

Despite the absence of invited poets, young poets stole the show. With a powerful satire on corrupt leaders or officials, poet Shams Taberzi expressed amazement in his kalaam, “Naa jaane kaun si pag dandiyon pe chalt hein, voh chand log jo sookhe mein bhi fisalteh hein..”

Afzal Manglori delineated the extent of his psychic pain due to failure in love as “Ab jayen kahan kaise udde dil ka prinda, perr kaat ke kehte hein, jaa chhod diya.”

Besides Ved Diwana, MP Chaand, Pannu Parwaz, SL Dhawan and others presented their kalaam.

Saba Hoshiarpuri conducted the mushaira with the expertise of an able anchor and Dr ID Singh proposed a vote of thanks.

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Residents against GM foods
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 24
A section of residents today resolved to write to the Punjab and Haryana governments as well as the Chandigarh Administration, urging these not to allow the entry of genetically modified food products within their respective jurisdictions.

At a seminar on “People's dialogue on health impacts of GM foods” held at the Centre for Research in Rural and Industrial Research today, participants were of the view that such food items would be harmful for humans.

It was felt that while a number of countries had banned such food items on health grounds, the Indian government's stand to allow such product was unethical.

Representatives of various NGOs, women's forums, doctors, agriculturalists and lawyers attended the seminar.

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Syndicate Meeting
New re-evaluation system to be discussed
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 24
The issue of introduction of re-evaluation of examination papers under the guidelines of the Dental Council of India will be taken up at the Panjab University’s syndicate meeting, scheduled for January 30.

Under the proposal, two examiners will evaluate papers and the average score of the two will be considered.

Also on the agenda, which includes 50 items, is the review of the proposal to grant Rs 150 instead of Rs 100 as travel charges for syndicate and senate members, who reside in Mohali and Panchkula, attending meetings.

The same has also been suggested for flying squads and observers in examinations.

The recommendations of the GGDSD College principal (reported by Chandigarh Tribune on January 10) will also be taken up.

These include a resolution to review the property tax fee of Rs 12, being charged from around three lakh students across 180 colleges for paying the tax of PU and the issue of charging Rs 1,300 as late admission fee, which is to be deposited if late admission is sought with Vice-Chancellor’s permission within one month.

To fulfil the commitment to Prime Minister’s 15-point programme, the UGC has also directed Panjab University to submit details of whether it is including a member of minority community in selection boards and committees. The matter will come up for discussion at the meeting.

A discussion on the credit-cum-grading system in professional course offered in UIET, UIPS, etc. is also on the agenda.

The minutes of the meeting held earlier in January regarding teacher’s evaluation will be taken up in the next meeting.

After a series of arguments between a cross-section of teachers and student leaders, the issue is likely to invite some debate at the meeting.

Besides, the matter of granting more seats to affiliated colleges, including third unit for SGGS College, Sector 26, will also be taken up. However, the issue of long pending demand of DAV College, Sector 10, to grant 60 seats for MBA still awaits attention.

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Carmel girls reach out to slum children
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 24
Setting an example of breaking the economic divide in educational set-up, Saathi, an NGO formed by girls of Carmel Convent School, Sector 9, took the initiative to educate 310 slum children about personal hygiene.

As many as 20 volunteers of Saathi, along with Punita Singh and Harpreet, educated the children of AIE centre at Government Middle School, Sector 52, with their projector and laptops.

The volunteers, in groups of three, went into different classrooms to introduce different subjects to these kids for better lifestyle.

The introduction was followed by half-an-hour lecture on etiquettes, including washing hands before and after meals, combing and brushing teeth everyday, healthy food and lifestyle, punctuality and cleanliness were covered.

The eager kids were hooked to the animated cartoons and attractive presentation and listened and responded to several questions.

Appreciating the efforts of the girls, Diljeet, a school teacher said, “Your presentation was simple yet efficient, and was a good way of teaching these young children the basics of healthy living.”

Punita Singh, who is heading the team of girls, said, “Teaching these children was a hand on job, and our volunteers have worked hard to organise these lessons.”

Sachi, project leader for the event and student of Carmel Convent school, said, “The experience was a unique one. Even though we were teaching, we still gained a lot in return.”

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Over 100 participate in creative writing contest

Chandigarh, January 24
The Chandigarh Sahitya Akademy has been organising workshops and contests to cultivate the skill of creative writing, poetic potentiality and the art of expression by young writers of the city, said CSA chairperson Manju Jaidka.

The creative writing contest was organised by the CSA in collaboration with the PGGS-11. Over 100 students participated in the workshop and contest . Over 100 students drawn from city colleges and Panjab University participated to display their vision, impulse and command over their chosen language. A panel of eminent writers declared following winners in merit.

Poetry writing (Hindi): Tarun Gupta, Dhanwantri Ayurvedic College, Rupali Gautam, DAV-10, Komal Pal Arora, SD-32.

Poetry writing (English): Nishtha Berri, GCG-42, Ruchika, GCG-42.

Poetry writing (Punjabi): Sandeep Kumar, Mass Com, PU, Amardeep Singh, PGGC-11, Harsumit Kaur, MCM DAV.

Prose writing (English): Monika Dhingra, GCG-42, Shareen Bansal, GCG-11, Anuj Malhotra, Mass Com Dept, PU.

Prose writing (Hindi): Naveen Jot Sodhi, SD-32, Karan Tiwari, DAV-10, Sudesh Kumari, Dev Samaj College.

Prose writing (Punjabi): Maninder Singh, PGGC-11, Gurmeet Singh, PGGC-11. — OC

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PU don invited to Bangladesh
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 24
Dr SM Kant, director, youth welfare, Panjab University, has been invited to Bangladesh to oversee the arrangements for the fifth South Asian Inter-University Youth Festival to be held at BRAC University, Dhaka, Bangladesh, from February 28 to March 4.

Nearly 250 budding artists from Universities of South Asian Countries will participate in the event.

The fourth South Asian Inter-University Youth Festival was held at Panjab University last year.

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Mgmt students bag second position in quiz contest
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 24
A team of Gurukul Vidyapeeth Centre for Management Studies has brought laurels to the region by securing second position in the National Students’ Management Quiz-2010 organised by the All-India Management Association at Chandigarh Business School, Landran.

The team comprising Pradeep Sachdeva and Chetna became the only team in Punjab Technical University (PTU) to qualify for the final to be held at Delhi on March 5.

Gurukul Vidyapeeth Group CEO Manmohan Garg congratulated the students.

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Cultural activities mark annual function
Tribune News Service

Panchkula, January 24
Vijay Public School celebrated its annual function at Sector 17 here today. SL Thakur, Commissioner, IRS, was the chief guest on the occasion. A cultural lamp was lit. The programme started with a vandana.

Various folk and cultural activities marked the occasion. The chief guest appreciated the efforts put in by students.

Earlier, Amit Jain, principal of the school, presented the annual report and enlisted the achievements of the school.

He congratulated teachers and students.

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Talent hunt
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 24
The Legendary Mukesh Musical Arts and Cultural Society will organise its first audition at Government High School, Vikas Nagar, Mauli Jagran, for the selection of amateur, semi-professional singers and other artistes from the slum and weaker section of the particular area.

President of the society ML Singla said talented youngsters from the slums would be invited by the society.

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