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TOP STORIES

It’s official: Theme park project scrapped
UT Administration revokes bank guarantee
Chandigarh, May 22
It is official. The theme-cum-amusement park, one of the glorified projects of the UT Administration during the tenure of Gen Sunit Francis Rodrigues as UT Administrator and Punjab Governor, is not going to see the light of the day.

Where RTI Act comes to nought
DC office, depts lead in non-compliance
Chandigarh, May 22
If ever there is a review of the implementation of the RTI Act, the office of Deputy Commissioner (DC) here will probably score the lowest, going by its replies to queries by a city resident under the Act. Let alone the DC’s office, when it comes to complying with the RTI Act, departments under the DC’s office are in the forefront of non-compliance.

Finally, law catches up with official
28 years on, Mani Majra NAC ex-secy held guilty
Chandigarh, May 22
Twentyeight years after a former secretary of the Mani Majra Notified Area Committee (NAC) was booked in case of disproportionate assets by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), CBI special judge Darshan Singh today held the public servant held guilty in the case.

2 girls succumb to mysterious disease
Ambala, May 22
Two girls of Samreri village, Deeksha and Priyanka, who were referred to the PGI, Chandigarh, two days ago after they suffered from a mysterious disease, died this evening at the PGI.

Sushmita Sen with Kapil Dev in Taj Hotel, Chandigarh, on Saturday. Sen was in the city to announce the winner of ‘I am Spirit’, a sub-contest for ‘I am She’. Tribune photo: Vinay Malik

Singapore student exchange programme
Govt school students given the miss!
Chandigarh, May 22
The UT education department’s much-publicised student exchange programme with Singapore schools has proved to be nothing more than a “self-financed tour”, which has no place for “cash-starved” government school students. The exchange programme, which was started in 2006 and discontinued last year due to swine flu, has been revived. This time, however, a team of 19 school students does not include even a single student from any government school. Senior officials in the UT education department consider “self-financed” nature of the tour as one reason behind it.

COMMUNITY

Dadu Majra Garbage Processing Plant
Councillors raise controversies every few months
Chandigarh, May 22
Dadu Majra garbage processing plant, which was set up by JP Company on May 21, 2008, for the Municipal Corporation, completed its two controversial years today. Interestingly, after every quarter, elected councillors of Chandigarh Municipal Corporation come up with a fresh issue of conflicts relating to the plant in  the house. At the yesterday’s house meeting, MC councillors alleged that there was foul smell emanating from the plant and its machinery was not properly functioning for the past more than six months and the authorities were not taking any serious action against the company.

Hotel Parkview registers Rs 9.45-cr sale
Chandigarh, May 22
Hotel Parkview, CITCO’s budget hotel, has registered a total sale of Rs 9.45 crore in 2009-10, which is 40 per cent more than the sale recorded in in 2008-09 (Rs 6.78 crore), and posted a net profit of Rs 3.3 crore which was 35 per cent more than Rs 2.45 crore clocked in the preceding fiscal.

Followers come out to support ‘math’
Chandigarh, May 22
Two days after the UT administration served a notice on Chaitanya Gaudiya Math Mandir in Sector 20 for keeping three cows in the temple, followers came out in support against the orders.



BJP leader Sanjay Tandon (second from left), along with others, at Chaitanya Gaudiya Math Mandir in Sector 20, Chandigarh. Tribune photo: S Chandan

Gold medal, laptop stolen
Chandigarh, May 22
A former professor of Panjab University, Dr Raghuveer Singh, lost his gold medal, which he received as the “Shiromani Sahitik Pattarkaar Award” just two days before, in a theft at his residence today afternoon.

IRCTC launches online air ticket
Chandigarh, May 22
With over eight lakh railway tickets booked on its website every day, Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) have also come out to the aid of domestic fliers.

Woman attempts suicide
Chandigarh, May 22
A 25-year-old woman attempted to commit suicide by setting herself afire at her residence in Colony No. 5 here today morning.

Shootout at Mani Majra
48 hours on, police yet to make headway
Chandigarh, May 22
Even after 48 hours of the shootout incident at Mani Majra, in which a man was grievously hurt and was robbed of Rs 7 lakh, the police is yet to make a headway in the case.

Suspected Typhoid
60-year-old man dies at GMCH-32
Zirakpur, May 22 In the first suspected case of death due to typhoid, a 60-year-old man died today at the GMCH-32, Chandigarh.

Petrol pump staff looted of Rs 22,000
Panchkula, May 22
Four robbers looted Rs 22,000 from a petrol pump at Madawala village near Pinjore this morning.

Army officer finds himself in a spot
Panchkula, May 22
High drama was witnessed this evening at the army flats in Sector 4, Mansa Devi, when an army officer was forced to dump his luggage in a passageway leading to his flat after his tenant refused to vacate it.

EDUCATION

Checking violence by student groups during admission
PU to set up help desk
Chandigarh, May 22
After trying out several methods to curb violence in Panjab University, the authorities have decided to go the Gandhian way to check the menace on the campus from the next academic session.

YPS regrets ICSE topper goof-up
Chandigarh, May 22
Reacting to the news report ‘Who is ICSE topper in tricity?’, published in these columns today, Yadavindra Pubic School (YPS) principal Harish Dhillon accepted the school’s fault in calculating the aggregate percentage of Agam Singh Bedi, who it had claimed to be the topper.

‘Volcano eruption caused dinosaur extinction’
Chandigarh, May 22
Dr Ashu Khosla, a researcher at the Centre for Advanced Study in Geology, Panjab University, is part of the six-member team that has for the first time solved the mystery of mass extinction of dinosaurs and other plants and animals 65 million years ago.


Dr Ashu Khosla

Rs 48 crore to be spent on schools
Chandigarh, May 22
An amount of Rs 48 crore is likely to be spent on the upgradation and construction of schools under the Sarv Siksha Abhiyan (SSA) and the Rashtriya Madhamik Siksha Abhiyan (RMSA) this year.

NEIGHBOURHOOD

Mysterious disease grips Ambala village
50 residents complain of swelling in legs, dizziness
Ambala, May 22
Around 50 persons, including 28 women, of Samrehri village, near Ambala Cantt, were rushed to the civil hospital today after they complained of swelling in the lower part of their legs and dizziness.

New traffic plan irks Patiala residents
Patiala, May 22
The newly implemented traffic plan here is once again facing opposition from Patiala residents, especially two-wheeler riders, who feel that the plan instead of facilitating them has created more trouble.

1 killed in road mishap
Ambala: A student of polytechnic, Ambala Cantt, was killed in a road accident on the Ambala-Hissar road near Balana here late last evening. The deceased was identified as Pradeep Kumar (22). According to information, Pradeep was on his motorcycle and going to meet one of his friends. When he was crossing near Balana, a speedy truck hit his motorcycle and he died on the spot. Meanwhile, truck driver fled from the spot. The police has registered a case against the truck driver and the body was handed over to his relatives after a post mortem.

COURTS

Bribe Case
Rajasthan cops in judicial custody
Chandigarh, May 22
Three cops from the Rajasthan Police, who were nabbed red-handed by the CBI team last night while accepting a bribe from a local liquor contractor, have been remanded in judicial custody till June 5 by the special CBI court at Chandigarh.

Arms Act Case
Two inspectors cross-examined
Chandigarh, May 22
A local court today cross-examined Inspector Joginder Singh and Inspector Kuldeep Singh, two witnesses in the Arms Act case of highway robbers.

Rapist gets 7-year jail
Panchkula, May 22
The local court here today sentenced Raj Kumar, a resident of Dehradun, to seven years of rigorous imprisonment on charges of rape and marrying for the third time.

CRIME

One booked in hit-and-run case
Chandigarh, May 22
The police has booked Gurwinder Singh Ball of Sector 15 in a hit-and-run case. A case under Sections 279 and 304-A has been registered against him.

Vehicle stolen
Isha Preet Singh of Sector 44 reported to the police that someone had stolen his Innova Car (PB 01 6414) from outside his residence on Wednesday night.

Taxi driver hurt in brawl
Chandigarh, May 22
A taxi driver, identified as Ranjit Singh, sustained serious injuries on his neck when he was attacked using a sharp-edged weapon by Anil Kumar, another driver, along with his friend, Kalu, following a brawl at the taxi stand in front of the ISBT, Sector 17, here late last night.

Liquor Vend Case
Raids on, owner booked
Chandigarh, May 22
In an effort to nab accused Karan Thapa, who injured his three co-workers with a knife at a liquor vend on Friday, the police conducted raids to identify his associates here today.

Two injured in mishap
Panchkula, May 22
In a freak incident, two children were seriously injured after being hit by a Maruti car at Labour Chowk near Indira Colony here today.

Incorrect tip-off keeps cops on toes
Mohali, May 22
A tip-off received by the police that two persons were carrying a large consignment of heroin turned out to be incorrect after the police nabbed Denny Singh, a resident of Mohali, and recovered white powder from his car. However, a Nigerian, identified as Peter, managed to escape from the spot.

Boy assaulted
Panchkula, May 22
A 17-year-old boy was injured when a group of boys attacked him with sharp-edged weapons in front of a coaching centre at Sector 10 here this evening.

SPORTS

Cricket
Lovepreet restricts Kapurthala to 285
Mohali, May 22
Fine bowling spell (4 for 43) by Lovepreet Singh helped Mohali restrict Kapurthala to 285 on the first day of the second round matches of Punjab U-22 Inter District Cricket Tournament held at the PCA Stadium here today.

Deepak thrash Brijesh in carrom
Panchkula, May 22
Deepak of AG Haryana thrashed Brijesh Aggarwal 25-0 on the second day of the fifth RK Babuta Memorial Prize Money Ranking Carrom Tournament organised by the Panchkula District Carrom Association at Saupin’s School, Sector 9, here.