Chandigarh, February 7
Chandigarh and its satellite towns of Panchkula and Mohali seem to have given a cold response to the much-hyped mall culture. Despite high footfalls in the five malls that have now come up in the region, business remains elusive for the few shops that have opened here.

No wonder many shops have actually closed down after running into huge losses and failing to find buyers. Most of the store owners in these malls say that though a large number of people come to the malls, only 10- 15 per cent are genuine shoppers. These malls have become entertainment destinations with the food courts, eating joints and kids play zones hogging all the business.

A visit to various malls in the city and neighbouring Panchkula and Mohali revealed that while over 30 per cent of the shops in DT Mall and over 50 per cent in Centra Mall were vacant, a majority of shops in Shalimar Mall (Panchkula) and Paras Downtown (Zirakpur) have failed to find any takers. Barring three shops, other 140 odd shops in Shalimar Mall are lying vacant. In Paras Downtown, where the anchor store, Big Bazaar, attracts the maximum shoppers, almost 90 per cent of the shops are still vacant.

Mall developers rue that the lack of business activity in these malls was due to the recession and high inflation now. Kewal Garg, main promoter of Shalimar Mall, said high food inflation and recession were the main reasons that the retail sector was unable to expand. “The recessionary phase is over, but everyone is affected by the high food inflation. People are not willing to spend on lifestyle goods, so nobody is willing to open their outlets in malls, as overheads are high,” he said.

Realtors here feel that the rentals in these malls are unrealistic, making them unviable for retailers. “There are no takers for the shops as the rentals are high. The mall developers have failed to come to terms with the recession in commercial realty space, and continue to quote rates that were viable two years ago. This is a major deterrent for people to set shop in these malls,” said commercial property consultant, Kamal Jindal.

Kuljit Singh, a lawyer, says shopping in malls is still an alien culture for Chandigarh. “People here have deep pockets, but all brands that retail in the malls have also set base in the various markets of the region. In fact, the prices at the malls are sometimes higher, and nobody wants to pay more for the same thing. It is only because of the multiplexes that these malls are getting high footfalls,” he opined.

Chandigarh, February 7
Septuagenarian scrap dealer Ram Rattan, a resident of the Colony No 4 here, has been earning his bread and butter by picking up empty liquor bottles for many years. However, over a year ago, his job brought him better life through an Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) poster, which was dumped in a garbage dump at Behlana village here.

And now the grateful sober man is on a unique mission to spread the AA message in the colony where alcoholism has assumed alarming proportions. Ram Rattan has hung his prized possession (AA poster) on the door of his modest tenement to pass on the message to the still-suffering alcoholics.

Ram Rattan says it was in early 2009 when shuffling through the garbage he stumbled upon the AA poster giving the helpline number (94170-37358). "I had been having problem with alcohol, as I used to have my quota in the evening. Most of my meagre earnings went to fetch the bottle in the evening and life became unmanageable," he informed.

However, a few calls at the helpline convinced him that help was available to the suffering alcoholics. "Through AA help and by God's grace, I have been able to quit drinking completely for over a year now. Life is much better now as I have no guilt and remorse in the morning after a binge," he quips.

An AA member said it was a miracle that the man had been staying sober for a long time by passing on the message.

The AA holds daily meetings in different parts of the tricity from 6 pm to 7.30 pm where recovering alcoholics share their experience, strength and hopes with the still-suffering alcoholics.

There are no dues and fees for the AA membership and only a desire to stop drinking is necessary to join the AA.

Ram Rattan, who used to be a habitual drinker, says it was in early 2009 when shuffling through garbage that he stumbled upon an AA poster giving the helpline number (94170-37358). "I had been having problem with alcohol, as I used to have my quota in the evening. Most of my meagre earnings went to fetch the bottle in the evening and life became unmanageable. A few calls at the helpline convinced me that help was available to the suffering alcoholics.”  Ram Rattan with the Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) poster outside his tenement in Colony No 4, Chandigarh, on Sunday. A Tribune photograph

Chandigarh, February 7
A short drizzle late in the night ended the dry spell in the city and neighbouring areas, providing relief to residents.

While the minimum temperature recorded today was 13.8 degrees Celsius against 11.2 degrees recorded yesterday, the maximum also rose to 26.0 degrees Celsius, 0.2 degree higher than Saturday.

"It will be generally cloudy with one or two spells of rain or thundershowers in the next 24 hours in the city. Maximum and minimum temperatures on Monday and Tuesday would hover around 20 and 13 degrees C respectively,” the met official said.

Poor visibility has not interfered with flight take off or landing till 3 p.m. "All operations till now are normal," said an airport spokesperson.

Train movement schedule was also normal, said RK Datta, Station Superintendent, Chandigarh railway station.

The minimum temperature in Punjab rose by 1 to 4 degrees with Ludhiana recording 13.4° Celsius (6 degrees above normal). In Patiala, the minimum temperature also rose by 3 degrees to settle at 12.5°C.

In Haryana, Karnal registered a low of 10.2°C, while in Ambala the minimum temperature was 12.3°C.

Chandigarh, February 7
The southern sectors continue to be poor cousins of the privileged northern sectors with regard to civic amenities.

The Chandigarh Municipal Corporation authorities have once again committed that the long-pending demands of residents of southern sectors, particularly with regard to providing basic civic amenities, would be fulfilled by the year-end.

It is pertinent to mention that almost same promises were made during the tenure of the preceding two mayors. However, nothing happened on ground.

Crores of rupees were allocated in the budget to upgrade the area, but little seems to have been done.

It may be mentioned that in the year 2008, Rs 12 crore was allocated for the re-carpeting of roads in southern sectors, but it was only for the areas under the jurisdiction of the corporation. Very few works have been initiated on ground.

Similar is the case of streetlights of the area, which are under the corporation. A majority of them are non-functional.

The corporation also seems ignorant about the menace of stray dogs in the entire area.

Residents have repeatedly complained about the step-motherly treatment being meted out to them by the municipal corporation as far as the maintenance of roads, streetlights and littered garbage in vacant plots of the sectors and public parks are concerned.

Residents are up in arms against the municipal corporation for not providing them basic civic amenities. They revealed that roads had not been carpeted since they shifted to Sector 50.

The condition of public parks in the area is also in a very bad shape, as weeds and Congress Grass have grown in it. Although green belts have been developed by the administration, after the sector had been transferred to the Municipal Corporation, they are also nobody’s baby now.

“Streetlights in our sector always remain out of order as there is no system in the corporation to check whether these are functioning properly,” Sarita Kumari, a resident of Sector 50, said.

Ram Prakash, a resident of Sector 51, said for the past more than three years, the authorities had promised us that a separate budget had been allocated for the provision of all basic civic amenities in their area, but the ground reality is that the condition of our residential quarters is getting worse year after year.

Area councillor Ram Sumer Morya said this year the MC mayor Anu Chatrath had taken into account all works which were lying pending in the southern sectors so that she could allocate a separate budget for them. A majority of them will be taken up this year.

Chandigarh, February 7
The Federation of Sector Welfare Associations (FOSWAC) held its executive meeting here today. The meeting, which was attended by 45 representatives of different Residents Welfare Associations (RWAs), urged the Chandigarh administration to formulate an integrated comprehensive development master plan for the tricity on the pattern of the National Capital Region (NCR) to ensure orderly growth in the area. The Punjab Periphery Control Act, 1952, as applicable to the UT, has lost its relevance.

Unplanned growth has come up in the peripheral area around Chandigarh, as the administration has no control on it as it falls in Punjab and Haryana. There is an urgent need to prepare an Inter-State Regional Plan for the periphery of Chandigarh in co-ordination with states of Punjab and Haryana otherwise the area is set to emerge one of the largest unmanageable urban agglomeration in North India, the meeting felt.

The concept of participatory democracy has been lacking in the city. It needs to be implemented with greater participation, involvement and consultation of the people through RWAs on the pattern of Bhagidari Scheme of Delhi Government, the meting said.

The city has become an educational hub and a large student base due to availability of best education facilities, strong social infrastructure and safe environment. The administration should take the urgent steps to construct more hostel accommodation to check the mushrooming of unauthorised paying guesthouses in the residential buildings causing of public nuisance.

The city has the highest number of auto vehicles in comparison to its population causing lot of traffic congestion, chaotic traffic jams and increasing cases of accidents. The administration should take urgent steps for widening of roads, improvement of roundabouts and traffic lights, construction of flyovers, under passes, multilevel parking in the commercial areas and community parking in the residential areas and most importantly implementing the Composite Mobility Plan of introducing Bus Rapid Transport System and Metro Railway System, the meeting observed.

The administration should take steps to remove the feeling of bias against the southern sectors by upgrading the infrastructure and civic amenities like roads, drainage system, street lights, parks, markets, bus queue shelters, primary health centres, community centres and setting up of a club in Sector 42.

Though the Chandigarh Police has gone hi-tech, yet its policing needs to be strengthened to check the increasing cases of motor vehicle thefts, burglaries, chain snatchings, incident of group clashes, stabbings, extortion, violence among youngsters. Important issues like corruption, encroachment on government land, adult rations of food articles, hoarding and black marketing, which have a disastrous effects on the society, need to be tackled strictly, the meeting observed. 

Chandigarh, February 7
A total of 77,632 children were administered polio drops on the first day of the fifth round of the Pulse Polio Immunisation Campaign here today. The main objective of the campaign was to cover maximum children.

Additional workforce was pressed in. As many as 70,294 children in the 0-5 age group were immunised last month.

A two-day door-to-door campaign will be launched tomorrow to cover the remaining children.

Kharar: As many as 3,316 children were administered polio drops during a pulse polio campaign here today.

Acting SMO Dr Balwinder Singh and pediatrician Dr Aurobindo said two mobile teams were constituted for Mundi Kharar and main Kharar, respectively. The mobile teams vaccinated 118 children. They added that volunteers of the Rotary Club and NCC from local physical education college helped in the campaign.

Also, two transit points were constituted- one at main bus stand and at the other at local bus stand, wherein 712 children were administered polio drops. Total 6,500 children would be covered under the programme.

Mohali: As many as 7,724 children up to five years of age were given polio drops at various centres across Mohali.

Dr Raju Dheer, nodal officer of pulse polio, Mohali, said the drops were administered at 67 booths, five mobile camps and four transit camps.

Bassi Pathana: The local health department in collaboration with religious and social organisations administered polio drops to children here today.

SMO Kuldeep Singh Kang inaugurated the campaign at a local civil hospital. He said health department had constituted 14 teams, including mobile and transit teams. Besides, 12 polio sewa booths were also set up. He said the department had fixed a target of 3,250 children, where as 1,602 had been administered
the drops. 

Chandigarh, February 7
Resentment prevails among thousands of Indane LPG consumers with regard to poor supply of LPG in Raipur Khurd village for over a month.

Consumers of the Ram Chander & Sons agency said as the agency had discontinued delivering cylinders in the village, they were asked to collect gas delivery slips for LPG cylinders from its agency in Sector 30 and pick up the same from its godown in Industrial Area, Phase II.

Some senior citizens of the village alleged that the supply of LPG cylinders to the consumers in the village caused a great inconvenience to them.

The gas agency sources, however, blamed the villagers for non-cooperation with the deliveryman of the gas agency, as it was reported that in one case, a widow of the village had manhandled a deliveryman who refused her LPG cylinder without booking.

It was also reported that a complaint in this regard was lodged by Kamal, the agency owner, with the Indane authorities in Sector 19, who ordered the stoppage of the LPG supply to the village with immediate effect.

When contacted, the owner of the agency refuted the charge and said there had neither been any order from the Indane authorities to stop the LPG supply to the village nor was there any shortage of the LPG for genuine consumers.

However, he admitted that there was a backlog of only three-four days for his company's consumers in the city. He said as per his information, the backlog of the LPG booking in the case of other companies was also just seven to eight days.

Meanwhile, he assured that the LPG supply to the genuine consumers of the village would be normal from tomorrow.

Most of the gas consumers alleged that gas distributors do not book the cylinder before a period of 21 days after the cylinder has been supplied. But there is no such bar, said an IOC official.

He said a refill could be booked as and when required by a customer to meet his/her genuine requirement of the LPG for domestic cooking purpose. No time-gap has been specified between the date of supply of a domestic LPG cylinder and the date for booking of the next refill, he added. 

Chandigarh, February 7
Traffic problems near railway yard at Darua village have multiplied over a period of time with an increase in the number of trucks coupled with the indifferent attitude of truck drivers and practically no control of the police on the situation.

Lack of proper parking slots and the haphazard parking of trucks and trailers on the busy main road to city railway station have led to traffic jams and accidents on many occasions. A resident said it was difficult to find any motor vehicle in the city passing from that area, which had not met with an accident.

The roads in the area are hardly repaired and there is one-way traffic on these. Parking of trucks, including Army trucks, and cars on these roads only add 
to the chaos.

Stray animals and the lack of proper streetlights, apart from the callous attitude of road users, are among the factors, which have led to an increase in the number of accidents.

The authorities concerned have done little to seriously tackle the traffic problem and residents feel it is time they took the corrective measures.

Pritam Singh, a resident of the area, said it was difficult to drive on this track during night, as there were no signboards or reflectors indicating about the road leading to the railway yard or to the adjoining market.

A large number of carriers that transport iron bars are seen parked at any time of the day on both sides of a one-km stretch of the road connecting Vikas Nagar, Mauli Jagran and Darua.

“In absence of traffic police, truck drivers park their trucks as per their wish,” said a resident.

Truckers and trailer operators often park their vehicles near liquor shops because liquor was available round the clock. They also defecate around the parking zone and resort to ugly postures much to the horror of the residents.

Talking to the TNS, truck drivers asserted that they were also facing parking problems, but they had no option except to park their trucks on the roadside.

The UT administration and its other wings look the other way while operators of private carriers subvert rules by converting a stretch on the Darua village road as parking zone.

This has assumed the character of public nuisance not only for the residents of the adjoining areas, but also the commuters.

Chandigarh, February 7
An inter-tutorial declamation contest was organised at GGDSD College, Sector 32, in the college seminar hall here recently.

Students expressed their views on social, political, cultural and moral issues, including female foeticide, drug addiction, science and religion, etc.

While Rajat Jain of BCom I won the contest, Akanksha of BA II and Harsimran of BCom III were adjudged the first and second runner-up, respectively.

Senior faculty members of the college, Dr Balraj Thapar, Ashima Dhir and Kusum Sharma, judged the contest.

Dr VP Malhotra, coordinator Manav Dharam Kendra and HOD department of mathematics, coordinated the event. This activity is an annual feature of the college and it culminates general tutorial programme and offers all-round development of the students’ personality.

Mohali, February 7
The seventh Kerala Food Festival turned out be a hit as a large number of persons visited the Kerala Bhavan in Phase XI here today. The event was organised by the Malayalee Samajam, Mohali. Family members of the samajam had prepared mouth-watering dishes.

There were different varieties of Kerala cuisine like biryani, idli, vada sambar and masala dosa.

The festival was inaugurated by Vishwanathan Nair, general manager of the Syndicate Bank, Chandigarh.

Benny Thomas, president of the samajam, said the festival was organised to give insight in to the culture and cuisine of Kerala.

The visitors also had a chance to learn about the nutritional value of dishes like kappa fish curry, porotta and Kerala style biryani.

A lucky draw was also held. The president said the first phase of construction of the Kerala Bhavan was in progress.

It is on record, rather a historical fact, that a majority party alliance, in the city, had allowed election of a Mayor from the opposition due to inside party bickering. Recent media reports spoke about a free for all in the house of MCC. The name of Mayor is missing from big administrative functions and senior administrative functionaries are often missing at MC functions.

There has always existed a huge gap of differences between the offices of the Mayor and the Municipal Commissioner. The status of the Mayor has been downgraded considerably. The Mayor has, once, not been allowed by the administrator to proceed abroad to attend an international meeting of Mayors, against an official invitation. To rub salt on the injuries of the Mayor, a bureaucrat was detailed in his place. There are endless examples to prove the point. The quoted precedents present a wrong picture of the municipal autonomy.

Till the time the counsellors of different political parties got together, neither can they deliver the expected work to the residents nor can they maintain and retain the dignity of the institution of the Mayor. Rather they will remain pushed to the wall by bureaucracy.

Stray dogs are having a field day in Sector 17, the heart of the city. Though the office of the Municipal Corporation of Chandigarh (MCC) is at a stone's throw from here, yet the civic body seems to be least bothered to check the menace.

Touted to be a walkers' paradise, the plaza area seems to be worst affected by stray dogs (see picture).

Besides giving the area a shabby look, the stray dog menace keeps the shoppers and shopkeepers at the receiving end.

However, repeated representations to the MC seem to have gone unheeded.

Panchkula, February 7
Hansraj Public School has adopted Yadavindra Gardens for its upkeep and cleanliness.

Schoolchildren started the campaign to keep the garden neat and to protect it from environmental hazards on Friday.

The project is being taken up in collaboration with the Haryana Tourism Department.

Keshni Anand Arora, financial commissioner (tourism), said it was a pleasure that youngsters had joined hands with the department in maintaining country’s heritage. “I hope that this effort will go a long way and would inspire others,” said Arora.

The project adopted under the Central Board of Secondary Education, New Delhi, guidelines would involve students’ campaign in cleaning the garden, creating awareness against littering and preparing, documenting and researching about the garden, a true reflection of gardens of the Mughal era.

It would be conducted under the supervision of principal Jaya Bhardwaj with Anupama Sharma and Nidhi Sood as its general secretary and coordinator, respectively.

Chandigarh, February 7
Dr Sudhir Hindwan, a senior faculty member in the department of political science at GCG, Sector 42, has been invited to present research paper on “The Trauma of Refugees” in a series of the International Peace Research Association conference to be held at the University of Sydney, Australia.