Chandigarh, August 26
Underage drivers are under the scanner of the Chandigarh Police, as the latter today started a special drive to curb the menace in the city.

What the law says: The law has clearly laid down punishments for owners/parents, who allow minors to drive. Section 3 of the Motor Vehicle Act bars minors from driving and spells out punishment of up to three months or Rs 1000 (or both). The same punishment can be handed out to a person held guilty of allowing a minor to drive.

Traffic cops at today’s naka were found in a peculiar situation when they intercepted an underage female driver of a two-wheeler. The offender, who did not have even a single document of the vehicle, made a lot of hullabaloo and then ran away, leaving behind her vehicle.

Giving facts about underage driving, Dr Kamalzit Soi, a member of the Punjab State Road Safety Council-Government, said: 1. Teen drivers, aged 16-19, are four times more likely than old drivers to be involved in accidents. 2. Teens are more likely than old drivers to overspeed, jump red lights, make illegal turns, ride with an intoxicated driver and drive after using alcohol or drugs. 3. Inexperience is the reason why these drivers are more likely to underestimate hazardous situations. 4. Accidents by underage drivers occur mostly on Friday and Saturday nights between 9 pm and 6 am (as per a world report). Parents’ take A local working couple, who have a 15-year-old son, said their son goes to school by school bus, but what to do when he goes for his tuition classes in the evening. His tuition centre is around 6 km from our house. As we both are in service he goes for his tuitions on Activa

Under its “Special drive to catch the minor”, the police chose two schools, Shishu Niketan Senior Secondary School, Sector 22, and Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 16, to lay nakas in front of them at their closing time.

“We are targeting especially minor drivers during our drive. Under it, we will lay nakas on every alternate day in front of the local schools. The aim is to discourage underage driving on the city roads,” said BS Negi, DSP (traffic).

Underage driving has become a major hazard on the roads nowadays. Many underage drivers, especially school students, can be seen riding motorbikes and even jeeps and cars to reach schools.

Ignoring traffic rules, these unlicensed drivers can be seen riding their vehicles at breakneck speed (without helmet or seat belts), jumping red lights and are even intoxicated.

“With such illegal acts, these youngsters not only transgress the law but also put theirs and others’ lives as well at risk,” said Dr Kamalzit Soi, a member of the Punjab State Road Safety Council-Government of Punjab.

Even many local schools have failed to stop their senior students who come to school while riding their private vehicle despite their (schools) issuance of directions many a time.

“If we stop the entry of these students in the school along their vehicles, they start parking these in the nearby markets or places of their acquaintances. In my view, the parents should come forward to stop the menace,” said HS Mamik, president, Independent School Association, Chandigarh.

Talking to a local working couple, who have a 15-year-old son, said their son goes to his school by school bus, but what to do when he goes for his tuition classes in the evening. “His tuition centre is around 6 km from our house. As we both are in service he goes for his tuitions on Activa,” said Sunita, a bank employee.

DSP Negi said the Chandigarh Police had also been visiting the schools to hold traffic awareness campaigns for the teenagers.

Meanwhile, during their special drive, the police has issued 32 challans (19 without helmet, 11 minor driving and 2 miscellaneous) and also impounded three vehicles of the offenders.

Chandigarh, August 26
The ‘third eye’ that is supposed to keep a vigil on the city’s streets has turned virtually blind. Only about 20 per cent of the closed circuit TV cameras installed on traffic signals and other places in the city are presently functional. The police is apparently ignoring violations at unmanned traffic light crossings and other locations.

The eye-opening statements were made before the Punjab & Haryana High Court by the UT administration.

Justice Rajive Bhalla is currently focusing on road safety in the ongoing traffic regulations and pollution control case. In an affidavit placed before him, Ranjit Singh, executive engineer in the UT electrical division, disclosed that only 19 out of the 95 CCTV cameras installed were functional.

Taking on record the affidavit, Bhalla asserted the UT administration had apparently issued a notice to the service provider on June 3. However, the service provider had not apparently rectified the problem despite a lapse of two months. The case will now come up on August 27 for the administration to provide an update to the high court.

The development is significant as the administration has invested Rs 6.4 crore in installing the CCTV cameras. So far the police has largely used the electronic eye to capture in the frame zebra crossing violators. Though traffic cops have fined motorists for other violations also, the number is negligible.

Available information suggests the equipment costing crores of rupees can only capture still shots. They can neither catch nor zoom in on a moving vehicle. As a result motorists continue to jump red lights, zoom down the roads and use mobile phones without being apprehensive of the eye above. Otherwise also the “hi-tech” cameras become inoperative after sunset.

The case also saw UT counsel Sanjay Kaushal informing the high court that the administration was gearing up for holding “weekly awareness” camps at different locations to “educate” the public on driving in specified lanes, use of zebra crossings, right of way on rotaries, the rights of pedestrians and other traffic regulations.

Mohali, August 26
With the aim to transform Mohali into an ultramodern place, the Punjab government has prepared a blueprint for the integrated development of the town and its adjoining areas of Zirakpur, Lalru, Dera Bassi, Chhat and Mullanpur. The total cost of implementing the various projects has been pegged at Rs 2,414 crore that would mostly be spent by the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA).

After holding separate meetings with elected councillors and heads of various departments over the past two days, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal approved 20 major infrastructure projects apart from the plan to modernize the Mohali police. The chief minister told the officials he would be laying the foundation stones for these projects in the next few months and will continuously review the progress on their implementation.

The projects primarily focus on upgradation of roads, storm water and sewage networks and beautification of parks.

At the meeting held late in the evening yesterday, which was chaired by Sukhbir Badal, the GMADA chief administrator gave a presentation of ongoing projects besides those sanctioned for next year. The projects that were approved include augmentation of the town’s water supply scheme by bringing 40 MBD of canal water from Kajauli at an estimated cost of Rs 300 crore, upgradation and widening of the Mullanpur road (Rs 290 crore), the Kharar bypass project from Sector 56A to NH 95 up to the Kharar-Ludhiana-Ropar junction (Rs 250 crore).

Officials were told to expedite construction of a 200 feet wide road connecting NH 21 with Sectors 73 and 74 in Mohali, a 100 feet wide road along Sector 81 connecting various institutes in Knowledge City (Rs 20 crore) and construction of a 200 feet wide grid road in Sectors 80/81 to the Kharar-Banur road. A vertical grid road in Sectors 79/80 to the Kharar-Banur road and a 100 feet wide horizontal grid road connecting junction 99-100/104 with the Kharar-Banur road at the junction of sectors 106/107-109/110 was also cleared at the meeting.

Regarding police infrastructure, Mohali SSP GPS Bhullar, while giving a presentation before the deputy CM, stated that apart from a modern police control room the traffic police had been “reoriented” and a fleet of GPS equipped Chevrolet Tavera multipurpose vehicles as well as motorcycles would man every sensitive point of the town. “Mohali will be under close circuit surveillance and a 24-hour helpline for senior citizens, women and children will begin functioning soon”, he added.

A radio scooter rickshaw service has also been proposed for the town. Reviewing the work of the Mullanpur urban estate, it was decided to set up Medicity and Educity there. It was also decided to set up postdoctoral medical college in Mullanpur.

To have better understanding about the felt needs of the people, the Parkash Badal asked the GMADA chief administrator to regularly hold meetings with any five representatives unanimously chosen by town councillors every month. He said he would hold a meeting of all the councillors after every three months and subsequently the progress of the meetings would be reviewed by him to resolve any contentious issues.

Panchkula, August 26
Former Haryana DGP SPS Rathore, who is serving two-year term in Burail jail of Chandigarh in Ruchika Gilhotra molestation case, has applied for parole citing cultivation of agriculture land as the main reason.

Officials of the district administration on the condition of anonymity said they had received application for parole by Rathore and forwarded it to SP Maneesh Chaudhary for his opinion.

According to sources, revenue officials have begun examining the causes cited for the parole such as cultivation of agriculture land and would give their opinion to District Magistrate Ashima Garg.

SP Chaudhary said both families, Rathore’s as well as Gilhotra’s, had been provided the police security and they saw no threat to both families. He said they had no objection over the parole sought by the former DGP and had already forwarded it to the Deputy Commissioner.

Chandigarh, August 26
In contradiction to what the UT Education Department did earlier, it honoured 5 such school principals for good board results today who had recently been pulled up for their dismal performance in the same.

The department, which lauded around 5 of such principals at the Government College of Education, Sector 20-D, had recently issued show-cause notice to them for a dip in the overall pass percentage in class X and XII results. “I have got an award today for my school getting over 90 per cent pass percentage in the board exams. However, just a few months back the department had held me culprit for a three per cent dip in my school’s results. This kind of contradictory attitude has really surprised me,” said one of the principals.

This has failed to perturb Education Department officials as District Education officer Chanchal Singh justified it saying, “I know there are some such cases. It happened because of two different criteria adopted at both instances. While issuing show-cause notices we had zeroed in on those principals whose pass percentage had gone down. Those who have been selected for the awards have a pass percentage of around 90 per cent. There are some cases where principals have got a notice for class XII results and award for class X results.”

The explanation has meanwhile failed to convince many, as another senior official of the department said that it was an outcome of deviation from the policy decided by the former DPI.

“Notices were issued during the tenure of Sunil Bhatia. At that very time it was decided that awards would be given only to those principals whose pass percentage had risen by an appreciable percentage but soon after his exit they chose the easier way of giving it to those who were having 90 per cent pass percentage,” said a senior official.

Chandigarh, August 26
Around 25 principals of Panjab University-affiliated non-government colleges boycotted the principals meet organised by the UGC-Academic Staff College, PU, today. The meeting was aimed to discuss higher education and its discontents.

The principals under the leadership of Dr SS Randhawa submitted a memorandum to Vice-Chancellor RC Sobti raising objections on appointment of Professor Keshav Malhotra as associate dean College Development Council.

Repeated attempts to contact RC Sobti for his comments proved futile.

According to the memorandum, though the university has been appointing Deans and associate deans in the past, after retirement of Principal BD Budhiraja no regular appointment has been made so far and the charge has been handed over to AK Bhandari.

According to SS Randhawa, the Vice-Chancellor had recently informed the Syndicate about the appointment of Keshav Malhotra as associate dean and ever since the relations of the university with the affiliated colleges have deteriorated.

“The principals feel that instead of getting support and guidance, they are being humiliated. The cases sent by colleges for appointment of selection committees and approvals of selected lecturers are delayed unnecessarily. In some cases, documents are misplaced, making functioning of the colleges impossible.

The association had passed a resolution to appoint a regular dean and withdrawal of the charge from Keshav Malhotra.

Chandigarh, August 26
Additional Solicitor-General of India Mohan Jain has been made the in-charge of Central government litigation at the High Courts of Punjab and Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir. The responsibility has been entrusted “in order to oversee the litigation in various High Courts and its Benches to implement the National Litigation Policy”.

The Government of India, Ministry of Law and Justice, has issued a notification to this effect. The responsibility, in addition to the present assignment, comes into effect immediately. The HC has received a notification’s copy. Prior to his appointment as Additional Solicitor-General, Jain was Haryana Advocate-General.

The Centre has formulated the National Litigation Policy to reduce the cases pending in courts across the country. The intention is to reduce average pendency time from 15 years to 3 years. The policy was only recently announced by Union Minister of Law and Justice Dr M Veerappa Moily.

The policy is based on the recognition that the government and its agencies are the pre-dominant litigants in the courts and tribunals in the country. Its aim is to transform government into an efficient and responsible litigant.

Chandigarh, August 26
Cracking a whip against encroachers, the Chandigarh Housing Board (CHB) and the Municipal Corporation conducted separate drives in the city today.

While CHB conducted an anti-encroachment drive at Sector 52 and removed 28 illegal constructions in one-room and two-room houses. CHB secretary MM Sabharwal spearheaded the drive. Police personnel also accompanied the staff CHB.

The drive which lasted more than three houses witnessed protest by the residents who alleged that the CHB was following a pick-and-choose policy. However, CHB officials clarified that notices were served in advance and they were given sufficient time to remove encroachments.

The MC also conducted an anti-encroachment drive in Butrela village near Sector 41.

MC officials said they had served notices in advance to all the violators. They had also issued instructions to all the residents to get their building plans approved and get the violations removed before the next drive.

Chandigarh, August 26
The face of the Chandigarh Territorial Congress Committee (CTCC) is set to change in the run-up to the Municipal Corporation of Chandigarh elections in 2011.

With the Congress high command nominating at least one-third new members to the Territorial Congress Committee (TCC) the ruling party in the MC is trying to project a “new look” before the electorate in a bid to retain power.Among the new TCC members are Gurbachan Singh, Pushpa Sharma, Chaman Lal Sharma, Sohan Lal, Harpreet Babla, Vijay Rana and Kesar Singh. The new team has been constituted with a view to give representation to every section of the society, sources said.

The new TCC members would hold keys positions in the party such as general secretaries, vice-presidents and treasurer. A look the reconstituted TCC revealed that among the senior leaders former Mayor Kamlesh has been dropped.

The other TCC members include DD Jindal, Satpal Gupta, Ram Pal Sharma, Subhash Chawla, Pardeep Chhabra, Pawan Sharma, Lalit Joshi Bhardwaj, Kamaljit Panchhi, Surinder Singh, Bhupinder Singh, JN Shastri, Jagat Sharma, Chander Mukhi Sharma, Khalil Ahmed, Ram Charam and Ravinder Singh Pali.

Chandigarh, August 26
A sudden change in weather has led to an increase in the number of cases of viral conjunctivitis, commonly called eye flu, in several parts of the city.

Symptoms

n Redness n Swelling n Watering n Itching

Prevention

n Do not share towels, handkerchiefs, or wash clothes with that of an infected person. n Avoid rubbing of eyes. n Wash hands thoroughly after treating “pink eye”. n Avoid exposure to known eye irritants, such as dust fumes, sprays, cigarette, smoke, pollution. n Be sure the dropper is clean and does not touch the eye, eyelid or any surface. Eye drops are washed out by normal tearing, so they should be applied at least three times a day. n During the rainy season one should use a drop of rose water in the morning and evening

In the past one week, around 50 persons from Behlana and Raipur Khurd villages have reported viral infection at all major hospitals or private clinics of the city.

Eye flu presents itself with symptoms like redness of eyes, irritation and watery discharge.

Dr Amrit Sethi, an ophthalmologist, said: “This is a common viral infection of the eye, which is easily transmitted from one person to another. Most common mode of spread is by direct contact like hand shaking, sharing of towels, cosmetics or even the same bottle of eye drops.”

Even though this condition usually has a self-limiting course and recovers by itself within five to seven days, lack of awareness and necessary preventive steps could lead to many other complications such as the infection might worsen and sometimes patient could end up damaging the vision permanently, he remarked.

Sounding a word of caution against self-medication to get relief from viral conjunctivitis, Dr Jai Singh, district health officer and an ophthalmologist, Mohali, said a majority of patients are already using some form of eye drops, which they get either from some quack or local drug store, which can lead to variable amount of permanent visual loss.

He said the problem of self-medication needed to be addressed with urgency and patients be cautioned against its adverse effects.

“The golden rule of curtailing this common infection is that the infected person should not touch his eyes at all. Eyes can be rinsed gently with drinking water only. If children are infected, they should not be sent to school and minimum contact should be made with others. Precaution is the best way to avoid contracting the infection this season,” says Singh.

Panchkula, August 26
Members of the Aanganwari Workers and Helpers Union, Haryana, today blocked one of the busiest roads near the office of the Child and Women Welfare Department, causing problems to the general public here this afternoon.

The protesters dispersed from the site after one-and-a-half hour resulting in inconvenience to hundreds of motorists passing through one of the busiest Sector 4-5 road.

Earlier, workers who had come from five districts, including Ambala, Yamunanagar, Bhiwani, Sonepat, Kurukshetra, besides Panchkula, held a dharna and raised slogans against the state government.

State president CWWD Krishna Dahiya said the state government issued news directives everyday, but had failed to pay minimum wages as was being paid to skilled workers throughout the state.

She said their demands included regularisation of services of old workers, abolition of VLC Scheme, construction of buildings to set up aanganwari centres, waiving of age bar in the selection of supervisors.

Dahiya said the government should also stop interference of panchayats and non-governmental organisations in the schemes and functioning of the aanganwari centres.

She said workers should be given departmental promotion besides implementing the ex-gratia schemes. She further demanded that government should introduce the medical reimbursement schemes.

She demanded that whenever the members of the union participated in some conference the wages should not be cut but instead should be treated on special leave.

She demanded that before implementing any new scheme or policy, the government should take into confidence the members of the union. Maternity leave should also be introduced for workers.

She warned the state government that if their demands were not fulfilled they would be forced to go on chain fast.

She said their union would protest and workers from Jind, Kaithal, Panipat and Mewat would hold a dharna on August 30.

Panchkula, August 26
Delay in the construction of B-Block of the Sector 6 General Hospital will now cost the state exchequer to the tune of Rs 8.5 crore. From Rs 1145.57 lakh, the time when the project was commissioned, the cost estimates of the Block B have now touched Rs 20 crore. The construction of B-Block was started on January 23, 2009 and was to be completed by July 22, last. According to sources, the financial crunch had delayed the project, which was now delayed by about a year.

The new block, which would have OPD besides a diagnostic centre, would have the capacity of 150 beds taking the total to about 300 beds, which would help in decongesting the rush from the present A block. Earlier the Health Department had tried to provide state of the art facilities for the patients in the hospital but keeping in view the patient rush the authorities decided to construct the new building.

After the completion of the work the diagnostic centre and operation theatre would be set up in the new building, which would help in dividing the patients between the two blocks.

Medical Superintendent VK Bansal said that construction work of the building would be completed by December 2011 and number of beds would increase to 300. He said patients from Zirakpur, Dhakoli and other areas of Punjab also visited the hospital resulting in huge rush at the OPD. He said about 1,500 to 2,000 patients visited the OPD daily that would be divided between the two blocks.

Bansal further announced the work on the renovation of A block has already been started at an estimated cost of Rs 12 crore. He said the work of renovation would be done floor wise so that patients do not face any problem in getting the treatment at the hospital.

Chandigarh, August 26
Rift in the incumbent Chathrath-Goyal group in the Panjab University’s political arena has become wide open.

Senator GK Chathrath and his fellow senators today reportedly disowned five members of their lobby on the charges of threatening and pressurising university functionaries over the issue of appointment of the PU Registrar and Controller of Examinations.

Chathrath today said that they had been betrayed and any attempt to threaten the university’s image would not be tolerated. Allegations of purposely creating hindrance in the appointment of a senior official of the varsity as Registrar have been levelled against two prominent faces of the Chathrath lobby.

The selection for these posts was scheduled for Wednesday and the recommendations of a high-powered selection committee have been forwarded to the Syndicate meeting scheduled for August 31.

Among those members who have been disowned include two professors of University Business School, one from the department of English and cultural studies and a college principal in addition to two prominent faces of the Chathrath- Goyal lobby.

Certain members of the lobby also accused a senate-syndicate member of using an RTI activist to create hindrance in the appointment of a contestant of the same group for the post of university Registrar.

Chathrath, along with nearly two dozen college principals, held a meeting at the PU faculty guest house today for discussing the issue of selection of Dean College Development Council also.

After a clean seep in the syndicate elections in past and more recently winning elections of the Panjab University Teachers Association (PUTA), the Chathrath-Goyal group is now on the verge of a break-up.

Even as the insiders say that there are chances of a patch-up in the lobby, the political melodrama within a prominent lobby of the PU has overshadowed the excitement of the forthcoming student elections.

When questioned about the divide in his group, hinting at certain Senate members of his own lobby, GK Chathrath said, “We will not let anybody threaten the peace of Panjab University. Certain members have betrayed us and they have been pressurising and threatening the PU authorities. We have disowned them and we stand by our statement.”

A disowned member of the lobby, when approached for his comments, replied, “We are one and there are no differences.”

Chandigarh, August 26
The countdown has finally begun for Panjab University elections starting from today.

The university officially announced the election schedule with specified guidelines to be followed by various student parties.