Panchkula, July 29
Striking again within a fortnight in the town, robbers shot at an ex-serviceman in broad daylight and took away Rs 78,000 here today.

The victim, BN Borax, along with his colleague Vichitter Singh, was returning after collecting the electricity bill amount from Ramgarh when a few assailants waylaid them on the road separating Sectors 26 and 27.

They took away the bag containing the money. One of the bundles of currency, amounting to around Rs 80,000, was not looted as it was lying in the glove box of the scooter.

The Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVN) had outsourced the tasks of recording meter readings and collecting bill amounts to the the Haryana Ex-Servicemen League.

Borax and Vichitter had been working with the league. They collected bill amounts from Ramgarh on the two last days every month.

According to the police, robbers on a motorcycle and in a car waylaid them around 1:30 pm and asked to hand over the money to them.

Pillion rider Vichitter, who had the money, resisted them. To create panic they shot at Borax on a leg. They did not fire at Vichitter, perhaps keeping his age in mind, said the police.

Borax suffered a bullet injury on the knee. He underwent surgery at the General Hospital, Sector 6, where he was stated to be out of danger.

This was the second such incident within a fortnight. On July 13, a gang decamped with cash and jewellery worth Rs 15 lakh after taking 13 members of a family hostage at Sector 10.

Incidentally, the two victims sat at the same office at the Power Colony, Sector 14, Panchkula, where dacoits took away Rs 18 lakh last year.

Instead of going on the busy National Highway 73, the victims today chose to use a road with a thin presence of commuters. They did not ask the local police to provide them with a gunman, despite the fact that the service was available free of cost.

Panchkula Superintendent of Police Manish Chaudhary said there were different versions on the number of assailants and the make of the car was also not confirmed by the victims.

The police had earlier asked the UHBVN authorities to ensure that a gunman accompanied the persons who carried the cash.

Chandigarh, July 29
In a move that will go a long way in ending adhocism in appointment of regular principals in the city’s government run colleges, the human resources development ministry has notified the rules on recruiting them.

Following the notification, the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) will now select new college principals based on their eligibility as prescribed by the University Grants Commission. This would mean the current system of the seniormost lecturer officiating as the principal would be discontinued and seniority will not be the only criterion in selecting a new principal. Confirming the development, UT home & education secretary Ram Niwas said he hoped the new norms would streamline the recruitment process in higher education.

Currently almost all the 11 colleges run by the UT administration are being headed by officiating principals. Since the latter are not vested with decision-making powers most of the decisions are held in abeyance, severely affecting both the administrative and academic decision-making process.

Though officiating principals act as regular ones for all intents and purposes, they do not get any benefits accruing to fulltime heads of the institutions. Even after officiating as principals for years they retire as lecturers only and do not get postretirement benefits entitled to regular principals.

Besides, they do not have any representation in the top bodies of Panjab University, including the syndicate and senate, and most of the decisions regarding government colleges are taken without consent by the university. On the other hand, principals of private colleges find representation in these bodies from the principals’ constituencies and are in a position to safeguard their interests.

Sources said with the new rules in place the colleges would get the best of academic talent from eligible candidates as the choice would not be limited to the seniormost lecturers.

In 2008 UPSC appointed KS Saluja as the first regular principal of Government College in Sector 46.

Chandigarh, July 29
The police arrested a woman and her paramour for allegedly killing her husband at Smadhi Gate locality in Mani Majra here today.

The woman, identified as 22-year-old Mohini, along with her paramour Kuldeep, a resident of Dappar village in Mohali, allegedly strangled her husband Dharam Singh (26) to death after tying his limbs with a rope.

Dharam was an electrician by profession. They were married since five years.

The police said Mohni, mother of one-year-old son, told investigators that her husband used to beat her up.

They had stayed at Kuldeep Singh’s house as tenants for five months before coming to the city. They both liked each other and when Dharam came to know about it he changed the house.

The couple had gone to Dappar a couple of weeks ago, where Mohni met Kuldeep. Dharam saw Kuldeep holding his wife’s hand and thrashed his wife. At this, Mohni and Kuldeep decided to eliminate Dharam and hatched a conspiracy on Wednesday evening at Shivalik Park in Mani Majra. Mohni told Kuldeep that she would call him after midnight to her house, said DSP (East) Jaswant Singh Khaira.

Mohni called Kuldeep from her husband’s phone around 3.30 am and opened the door for him. Dharam was fast asleep and they tied him to the cot where he was lying. When he tried to raise the alarm, Mohni gagged him and Kuldeep strangled him with a string.

They pulled the cot out of the room. The murder came to light around 7 am and the landlord of the house Sabar Ali reported the incident to the police. The police found the body that was lying on a cot with rashes on neck and limbs.

Inspector Gurmukh Singh, in charge of the Mauili Jagran police post, said the circumstantial evidence and the spot examination indicated towards familiar entry into the house. The police quizzed Mohni and found some missing gaps in her statement, which raised doubts.

The police found a list of mobile phone numbers and call details of the victim’s mobile also pinpointed towards the accused, whose location was traced at Mani Majra.

Inspector Charanjit Singh, in charge of the crime branch, said the way the cot was lying outside the house and Mohni’s statement that she was not aware of what happened, raised doubts.

Praising the efforts of the team, the UT SSP SS Srivastva said joint efforts of the area police and the crime branch led to cracking of the sensational blind murder case in less than 10 hours.

Chandigarh, July 29
Panjab University today woke up to the days of possible student group clashes with the recovery of daggers and a pistol.

Giving a serious blow to the varsity’s constant attempts to make campus arm and violence-free, the UT police today arrested five persons from the PU gate number 3 for allegedly carrying daggers and a dummy pistol in their vehicle. Claimed to be outsiders, Sukhdev Singh, alias Sukha, Kewal Singh and Jagsir Singh, all residents of Firozpore, were booked under the Arms Act while the remaining two, later identified as Gurbaz Singh and Gagandeep Singh, were arrested under preventive measures.

According to police officials, security guards of the university recovered the weapons around 8.30 am.

“The security staff was conducting a routine check at gate number 3 when a Toyota Innova refused to stop and crossed the barricades. The car was intercepted near post office where the guards found a dummy pistol, three daggers and baseball bats in its boot. They immediately informed us and the group was arrested,” said a police official.

According to sources, out of these five, Kewal Singh was involved in several cases of heinous crimes in Punjab, including dacoity and assault. The other four have also been booked in incidents of assaults earlier in Punjab.

The incident meanwhile has triggered a war of words between two prominent student groups PUSU and SOPU as the car bore a sticker of PUSU and according to some unconfirmed reports it belonged to PUSU president Uday Singh Wirring.

Chandigarh, July 29
The raid by the Central Bureau of Investigation at a Chandigarh Transport Undertaking depot has put officials of the State Transport Authority (STA) as well as CTU under the scanner over the alleged illegal operation of buses belonging to Ambala Bus Syndicate Pvt Ltd, Ropar, in the city.

While the investigative agency has already seized receipts issued to the private bus operator against the “parking fee” at CTU bus stands during the period in question, CBI sleuths are now trying to find out who were responsible for the delay in implementing the orders issued by UT home secretary Ram Niwas, who is also chairman of the STA.

Ambala Bus Syndicate had filed a petition in the Punjab & Haryana High Court praying for issuance of directions to the STA, Chandigarh, to countersign the stage carriage permits held by the operator on interstate routes.

Following this the high Court on February 3 last year issued directions to the STA to take an appropriate decision in the matter on merit as early as possible but not later than March 31, 2009.

On March 30, 2009 Niwas, disposing of the case, said “since the permits involved in this case don’t fall within the scope and terms of section 74 of the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966 and the provisions of the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988, the permits in question cannot be countersigned. Consequently the buses of Ambala Bus Syndicate cannot be allowed to ply in Chandigarh”. A copy of the order was sent to bus operator the same day.

Despite the directive the operator’s buses continued to ply in the city, picking up and offloading passengers from the two CTU bus stands in Sectors 17 and 43 uninterruptedly till May this year, when a letter reached the CTU director’s office.

Interestingly, the STA on March 30, 2009 did not send a copy to the motor vehicle inspector, STA, Chandigarh. A copy of the orders was also forwarded to the latter on May 6 this year for strict compliance with the directive.

The CBI sleuths now are expected to question the officials concerned who were supposed to inform executing officials about the STA chairman’s decision, sources said.

Chandigarh, July 29
With two months left for the retirement of UT’s Director Health Services(DHS), Dr MS Bains, hectic lobbying has started among Punjab doctors to 'grab' the coveted post, reserved exclusively for the state.

Though the UT Administration is yet to receive a panel of names from the Punjab government as replacement of Bains, five names have been reportedly finalised. Confirming this, a senior health official of the Punjab Government said the names are "more or less" finalised and the process of sending a formal proposal to the UT Administration would commence soon.

Sources said that the names that are on the list include two Deputy Directors of the Punjab Health Department and three Civil Surgeons, Dr Lamber Singh (Amritsar), Dr SP Sharma (Ludhiana) and Arjun Singh Gill (Ropar). The sources however, do not rule out changes as this posting is considered prestigious and lots of pull and pressures work here.

Officials privy to the selection process admit that political patronage played a major role and those with the "right backing" made it to the post. Citing the example of the present incumbent, Punjab officials say that Bains had managed to stay as the DHS even a year after the expiry of his deputation without any formal approval for his extension from the state government.

Bains's deputation had ended last year in August and the UT Administration had sought an extension and had sent his file for approval to the Punjab government. Interestingly, the approval hasn't been granted till date and Bains has been allowed to work till he attains superannuation without a nod from his parent state.

The officials reveal that in the face of stiff opposition from Punjab Health Minister Laxmi Kanta Chawla, who had been relentlessly pursuing the repatriation of all doctors whose deputations in UT had ended, the state government did not give a formal approval for Bains extension.

However, since the UT Administration was adamant in retaining Bains and he too was interested to stay back, doors of powers were knocked and he wasn't sent back. When contacted, Punjab Health Secretary Satish Chandra refused to say anything on Bains case but confirmed that the state government had not given a nod for his extension. He refused to go into the reasons of the same.

On the issue of a fresh panel being sent to the UT administration for Bains replacement after his retirement, he said the post of Director, Health Services, in UT was reserved for doctors of Punjab cadre and names would be sent in due course.

Chandigarh, July 29
In 18 years of her life, orphan Maya, who committed suicide in a church on July 24, had never stepped out of her home in Sector 28.

It was the first time that Manju, Maya’s aunt (masi), had sent her to work in the church as a domestic help, earlier this year. She had no idea that sending Maya to the church would prove fatal.

Maya and her sister were sent to the church when the aunt was given an offer that maids were needed on the church premises. The aunt is beleaguered at the question as to what could have led Maya to take that drastic step.

Like any other teenager in love, even, Maya had dreams of marrying Anoop Sebastian, who was a relative of father Sebastian, disclosed Monica. “My sister and Anoop were very close, on weekends he used to drop us at our grandmother’s place. She used to talk to me for hours about Anoop,” she sobbed.

Manju had always dreamt of her nieces as brides. “I had asked father Sebastian to save salaries of the two girls in separate bank accounts as I wanted to get the two married soon. Manju had no clue about Maya’s affair with father Sebastian’s relative. “When I came to know, I questioned father who said he too had no clue about it,” she added.

“Maya had not seen the world. If an orphan gets love and affection from someone she is bound to get attached with that person,” said Manju.

Expressing apprehensions on sending Maya’s sister to work anywhere she said in a trembling voice, “I am really scared of sending Monica anywhere. If she ends up in the similar manner I will not be able to forgive myself.”

Maya’s mother had died when she was two-year-old and father married another woman soon after. Narrating their daily routine, Monica said, “Earlier we used to stay at our step mothers place until my father expired few years back. After his death it was not possible to stay with the stepmother so we shifted to our grandmother’s place.”

17-year-old Monica is an illiterate and is presently in a state of shock. “We used to spend the whole day at home and perform household work. That is what I have done all my life.”

Chandigarh, July 29
In the backdrop of major ongoing development projects aimed at pushing the city into the metro league, the Chandigarh Administration has sought a Rs 900 crore Plan Budget.This demand was raised at a meeting the top UT officials had with the Planning Commission officials at New Delhi today.”We have put the demand under various heads to the Planning Commission and are hopeful of a substantial increase in the plan outlay,” a senior officials informed.

Sources said with major projects, including the Metro, International Airport, slum rehabilitation project and upgradation of the urban infrastructure underway, a major jump in the planned outlay from the Rs 450.91 crore to Rs 800 crore had been demanded to provide world-class facilities to the residents of India's first planned city.

The Union Budget 2010-11, the non-plan outlay showed a decline of Rs 10.68 crore from Rs 1,478.68 crore to Rs 1,468 crore than the last financial year. The plan outlay registered a marginal increase of Rs 69 lakh from Rs 449.22 crore to Rs 450.91 crore - a development, which spelled good news for the proposed projects.

During the budgetary provisions at the time of the last Budget, the UT's expectations had fallen short of the demanded Budget. The UT Administration had sought about Rs 800 crore and Rs 1,866 for the plan and non-plan heads, respectively.

The sources said the UT Administration was pinning hopes on the revised Plan Budget Estimates from the existing share of Rs 450.91 crore. The hope stems from the fact that the UT got a whopping Rs 120 crore more (up from Budget Estimates of Rs 319.22 cr to Rs 449.22 crore) in the revised Budget Estimates in 2009-10.

With Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs and Water Resources Pawan Bansal pressing for more funds for the development of the city, the additional funds should not be a problem.

Even during a meeting of the National development Council (NDC) in New Delhi on July 24, UT Administrator Shivraj Patil had pleaded for more funds for the city on the plea that on the plan projects Chandigarh's financial performance in the 11th plan had been close to 100 per cent.

Panchkula, July 29
Even as the Panchkula police has claimed to have busted 51 gangs involved in vehicle thefts, robberies and snatchings in 2009 alone, recent incidents of crime are a small pointer to a rise in the crime graph here.

On July 16, a gang decamped with cash and jewellery worth Rs 15 lakh in the wee hours after taking 13 members of a family hostage at Sector 10. Just two days before this incident, some unidentified youths took away the Skoda car of a Sector-4 resident from Sector 26.

These were not rare occurrences as there had been about 18 burglaries during the past year and-a-half. There were 164 thefts and 17 snatchings, both showing traces of organised crime.

The number of thefts and snatchings had gone up considerably this year as 130 thefts and 16 snatchings had already been reported till now.

Policing in the district came under sharp focus, with a spurt in burglaries and snatchings. About 21 burglaries and 33 snatchings were reported during the past year and-a-half.

While the police claimed to have solved 22 snatching cases, it had fared badly in solving robbery cases as only 12 had been solved till now, making residents feel unsafe.

About 18 cases of rape, including the gangrape-on-wheels at Kalka last year, had been reported tilldate and the police claimed to have solved all cases.

Though the number of murders had gone down considerably in 2009, as compared to 15 in 2008, cases of murder had again shown a significant increase this year. Nine cases of murder had been reported this year so far, of which the police had claimed to have solved seven cases.

Chandigarh, July 29
The enforcement wing of the municipal corporation impounded five cranes and six two-wheelers during an anti-encroachment drive at Mani Majra here today.

The team of the department impounded these vehicles as mechanics there had been using road berms on the roadside to repair these vehicles.

Enforcement inspector Kashmira Singh said they had received complaints that crane owners had been using their parking space. He added that they also impounded a car from Sector 17.

Chandigarh, July 29
In what may have erupted into another incident of campus violence at DAV College, Sector 10, party members of two student groups PUSU and SOPU entered into a heated argument while campaigning today.

The trouble started to brew when both student groups tried to ‘ help’ same group of freshers who had come to complete their admission formalities today.

The group leaders started arguing over their turn to speak to them and ended up hurling abuses at each other. Within minutes a large number of other supporters joined the war of words and the traffic was blocked for about half-an-hour. It was then that somebody called the police that reached the spot and dispersed both the groups.

Though things might have come under control as of now but according to the police officials the college needs to tighten its discipline mechanism to avoid any unwanted violence.