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Admn not to ease norms for Educity project
Chandigarh, September 28
The move comes after the institutes had been pressing the administration for relaxing the terms and conditions. While Narsimonji had sought permission to run more than one course, two others - The Indian Express and Chitkara - had urged the administration to give them some more time to deposit the license fee of Rs 90 lakh. “We had received a request from institutes seeking permission for starting more than one institute in the same premises. The same did not comply with the terms and conditions of the memorandum of understanding. Similarly, some of these institutes have asked for a moratorium as they were not in a position to pay the amount”, said Ajoy Sharma, project director of Educity. The administration considered their requests and has decided not to relax any terms or conditions of the license agreement. Sources said this might lead to the exit of the remaining contenders and even shelving of the project. Interestingly, the administration has also taken note of the fact that the MoU fails to specify the type of courses that an institute would be allowed to run. Meanwhile the department has also cancelled the application of Maya Academy, which was one of the first to be shortlisted. Its status was changed as communicated by the institute’s authorised representative to the then project director of Educity, Vivek Atray, and its eligibility was required to be rechecked. Earlier, the institutes whose candidature was cancelled include DAV College Management Committee, New Delhi, Fortis Healthcare, New Delhi, Tech Mahindra, Pune and Thapar Institute, Patiala.
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Private schools charging exorbitantly, admn tells HC
Chandigarh, September 28 The Punjab and Haryana High Court Division Bench of Chief Justice Mukul Mudgal and Justice Ajay Tewari was also told by the administration that private schools were not complying with its directions to strictly maintain 15 per cent quota for economically weaker sections of society. In an affidavit, the administration provided a list of 77 private schools in Chandigarh, which had been allotted land at concessional rates from time to time. The Bench was also informed that water and electricity was being provided to recognised schools at special rates. It was also submitted in the affidavit that in view of recent directions of the high court, property tax would not be levied on private schools. The UT administration submitted that the scheme for allotment of land to educational institutions on leasehold in Chandigarh was notified on January 31, 1996. In it, reservation of 15 per cent seats or more, as might be determined by the Chandigarh administration from time to time, for economically weaker sections of society was clearly mentioned, but these were not absolutely free and fee was to be charged at the rate applicable in government schools.
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IT park land acquisition probe report complete
Chandigarh, September 28 Appearing before the Punjab and Haryana High Court Division Bench of Justice Jasbir Singh and Justice Augustine George Masih, Assistant Solicitor-General of India Dr Anmol Rattan Singh Sidhu said results of the inquiry had been placed before the competent authority for consideration. After consideration, necessary directions would be issued to the Chandigarh administration. Dr Sidhu made it clear that the administration was bound to go by the decision. The development was significant as the inquiry was entrusted to officer Arun Ramanathan vide an order dated April 1 by the Ministry of Home Affairs. He was asked to look into the role of officers in cases of irregularities “pointed out in the report of a special audit conducted by a team headed by Chief Controller of Accounts (Home)”. The terms of reference of the inquiry also included “to identify the officers who were and are responsible for the irregularities pointed out in the report and the lapses on their part; and to examine whether the lapses attributed to the various officers were intentional and clearly in excess or in violation of their entrusted responsibilities”. As the case came up this morning, the Chandigarh administration also said it would abide by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs’ decision in case it came to the conclusion that the acquisition of land for the expansion of the information technology (IT) park “suffered from any infirmity”. The development was significant as the administration had earlier been contesting the stand taken by the Union ministry. The administration now claimed that “there was no divergence in the stand taken by the Chandigarh administration and the Union of India” on acquisition of land. In an affidavit, Adviser to the UT Administrator Pradip Mehra said the short reply filed by the Union of India in the matter did not indicate “any contrary stand”. He added, “The aspect of land acquisition in question being devoid of public purpose or being in violation of the law has not been considered by the Ministry of Home Affairs; and neither has any such observation been forwarded to the Chandigarh administration by the ministry to indicate that there is any infirmity in the acquisition of land in question”. The affidavit came on a bunch of petitions. In one such petition, Didar Singh and two others from Hallo Majra had challenged the notifications issued by the UT administration’s finance department under relevant sections of the Land Acquisition Act for acquiring land for public purposes, including expansion of the IT park.
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CCTVs for major entry points, intersections in Mohali soon
Based on requirement and strategic locations, at least 18 points in Mohali, Zirakpur and Kharar have been identified for CCTVs. City-II DSP Swarandeep Singh said 11 CCTVs would be installed in Mohali. The coverage of the traffic intersections and other points would be based on an Internet protocol (IP) network. Mohali SSP GPS Bhullar said all CCTVs would be connected to the respective police stations so that traffic movement could be monitored on a regular basis. Following a directive issued by the Deputy Chief Minister, the Mohali police, after analysing its demand, had forwarded the case to the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA). The infrastructure was expected to cost around Rs 2 crore. GMADA officials had been directed to procure the equipment on behalf of the police. Police sources said the Phase 7 traffic lights, the PCA stadium traffic junction, the Jagatpura road and the Balongi barrier would be included. In the second phase, all public places like the bus stand and markets would be under surveillance. The four mega-pixel CCTVs had the capacity to record day and night for a year. A server of higher capacity would be installed to make the system functional. The police would use the cameras to issue challans to traffic violators. The CCTV footage would also be used to regulate the movement of traffic during jams and redirect the movement of PCR vehicles, depending on requirement. At a later stage, CCTVs would be synchronised with modern police control rooms (PCRs). PCR vehicles had already been equipped with global positioning system.
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Admn okays councillors’ ‘study tour’ after 2 years
Chandigarh, September 28 Mayor Anu Chatrath had recently forwarded a report on the tour’s “utility” to administration officials. According to the report, one group will visit Gangtok and Calcutta from October 2 to 10 with another traveling to Cochin and Trivandrum from October 18 to 25. The official communication sent by the administration to the civic body today states the proposal for the study tour had been cleared. An MC official said the mayor had decided that two executive engineers would also accompany the councillors’ delegation during their tour to these cities. The councillors will study
the functioning of civic bodies and implementation of the 74th amendment in these cities during their tour. Besides this, Gangtok has been selected to study water harvesting projects. The purpose of the councillors’ visit to Calcutta is to study the overall methods adopted in the area of primary education. West Bengal has also implemented the 74th amendment under which the municipal council there, which comprises 141 members, has been divided into 15 groups that have special powers. The councillors suggested that as the Chandigarh MC is also under the process of implementing this amendment, they would have a close look at the terms and conditions on which they are running their council. Similarly, as Kerala has also executed the 74th amendment in their corporation, the councillors believe while visiting these states they will get an idea about how they should proceed in implementing the 74th amendment in the Chandigarh municipal corporation. Nothing more than junkets? l In 2006 some councillors had met the adviser to the UT administrator and submitted a communication seeking a ban on study tours on account of waste of money, following which the administration had denied its consent for such tours l In November 2007 19 councillors visited Singapore, Malaysia and Bangkok, after which a report was submitted by the councillors suggesting to set up a sensory park in the city. Interestingly, the park was developed but not on the concept of the ‘blind park’ which had been proposed l In 2008 the UT administration turned down a proposal for a study tour on the ground that no output or fruitful results have come out from the previous tours, so there was no need to send the councilors on such tours l In 2009 the MC forwarded a proposal for a study tour of Europe to the administration, which the latter rejected on the ground that the Union government had asked all state governments to cut down expenses, especially on such tours
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Women’s dependence put to rest
Chandigarh, September 28 The meticulously chosen star cast of Bollywood actors led by the invincible celebrity of silver screen, Poonam Dhillon, brilliantly attempted to establish the might of women empowerment and negated the old age belief that women is no longer dependent on the mercy of men. Director Nitin Jagdissh employed characters of a Bihari business executive and his glamorous educated and dynamic wife with Punjabi origin. Both love each other, but wife Tina is subjected to subjugation by her husband, who wants to confine her to four walls of the house. Taking up the challenge, Tina proves her ability and capability by playing a double role of her so called sister Leena. After sequences marked with wit, humour and brilliant acting spells by accomplished actors, especially Poonam Dhillon, Sooraj Thapar and Liliput, who maintained perfect timings with brilliance and drollery of dialogues. They were ably supported by Rekha Sahai, Vinod Kapur, Hemal Dharia and Joydeep Mukerjee. The play was largely influenced by filmy and TV culture and at times the soul of theatre was missing. But Poonam’s instantaneous shifts to another role enthralled the audience. The actors dealt with the traditional theme nicely though they were looking more cosmopolitan. The stage set was both symbolic and functional and Poonam expresses gratitude to the administration and Dr SK Punia, chief festival coordinator. Earlier, Ram Niwas, IAS, welcomed Shivraj V Patil, UT Administrator.
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Admn wakes up to monkey menace
Chandigarh, September 28 Taking into account the fact that the monkey menace, which used to be earlier confined to a few sectors, including Sectors 7, 27 and 28 had now spread to other sectors, the officials decided to rope in organisations such as the People For Animals (PFA) and the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) to take care of the problem. It was observed that monkeys had started to make their way towards the city due to the dearth of fruit trees in the vicinity of the city. It was decided to grow all-season fruit trees in Kansal and Nepli as a long-term solution. As an immediate measure, it was decided that the PFA and the SPCA would sterilise 100 monkeys every month. The officials also decided to send a team to study the plan of action followed by the authorities in Shimla to keep a tab on the monkey menace there.
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Musical Fountain-cum-Laser Show at Sec 17
Chandigarh, September 28 Putting to rest speculations that the project, aimed at providing more entertainment avenues for visitors and shoppers, may run into rough weather on account of a variety of reasons, the union ministry of culture has given the go-ahead to the project. In fact, a recent communication from the ministry has said the entire cost of the project will be borne by it, adding that it will go a long way in exploiting the tourism potential in the Union Territory. The communication specifies that the corporation will only be liable to pay the recurring expenditure on electricity of the project. Under the scheme of thing, the existing fountain at the piazza will be utilised for the installation of musical fountain-cum-laser show. The eye-catching musical fountain will use water and light to beautify the environment, bringing a host of entertainment options for visitors. A corporation team comprising Chief Engineer SS Bidda and area councillor and former Mayor Pardeep Chabbra had visited Kolkata recently to watch the presentation by “Premier World” on the project. The visit was aimed at studying the technology to be used for the new project. The corporation has floated a global tender for the Rs 3-crore project, which will make the sector an entertainment hub, given the unique features of the musical fountain-cum-laser show project. Officials said a computerised control room would be set up to manage the musical fountain and laser show, which could in turn be used to beam live telecast of any event in any part of the city. Besides, a projector could be used to beam social messages and feature films for the entertainment of visitors. Since the water screen can be used for the advertisement purposes also, the maintenance cost could be recovered from the corporate world using this facility, a senior official said.
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Church suicide victim’s sister finally gets dues
Chandigarh, September 28 It was the lok adalat that finally came to Monica’s rescue and helped get the salaries of both sisters amounting to Rs 25,000 released. The sisters were working in the church as domestic help. “When we had come to the church we had dreams of earning money and being financially independent. Maya’s suicide had shaken me. I will keep this money close to my heart, as it my sister’s earnings,” said an emotional Monica. After Maya was found hanging in a church in Sector 24 on July 24, Monica had left the church to stay with her grandmother in Sector 28. Monica had moved an application in the office of the SSP on August 12 to get assistance in getting her sister’s as well as her dues. In pursuance of the request, investigating officer Avtar Singh accompanied the applicant along with her relative and advocate to the office of Father Sebastian on August 14 to sort out the issue of release of salary and other belongings lying on the premises. Father Sebastian gave a letter mentioning the amount payable and issued a cheque for Rs 25,000 in favour of Monica. Subsequently, Monica filed a petition in the lok adalat wherein it was mentioned that Monica had no residence or identity proof, as she had migrated from Tamil Nadu. Thus, she had not been able to open a bank account and sought for cash.
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Blood component separation unit soon
Chandigarh, September 28 Of the four blood banks in Chandigarh, all but one at the GMSH-16 have blood separation units. Earlier, NACO had upgraded the PGI to a model blood bank, and the GMCH-32 blood bank and the Rotary-37 blood bank to BCSUs. A bank that collects 5,000 units of blood or more in a year can apply for a BCSU status. Dr Saroj Aggarwal, in charge, GMSH-16 blood bank, said the health department had sent a proposal to NACO in 2009 for upgrade of the blood bank from a major blood bank to a blood component separation unit for approval. “Acting on the follow up to NACO’s nod, we have made a case for the infrastructure required for the unit and sent the proposal to NACO. The cost running into Rs 45 lakh to Rs 50 lakh will be mainly borne by NACO and partially by the department. It is a NACO-supported blood bank,” Dr Aggarwal added. The city tops states and UTs in blood collection with a voluntary collection of 82 per cent.
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Cops hone skills to counter terror attacks
Chandigarh, September 28 In all, 42 constables and eight non-gazetted officers underwent training in the past three months. SP (operations) Rajinder Singh Ghumman said a batch of 10 policemen underwent a training session for 84 days in June at Manesar in Gurgaon. They were imparted training regarding building intervention, bus intervention, cordoning and conducting searches besides learning to use MP-5 guns, stun grenade, explosive detectors and defusing improvised explosive devices. Similarly, 19 constables received training for a month at the Anti-Terrorist Squad at Ghrota, Pathankot. A group of 10 policemen underwent training for a month in bomb disposal and disaster management at Jalandhar, while five constables learned skills for providing VIP security cover at Manesar for 42 days.
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Mining mafia has police, forest dept at loggerheads
Mohali, September 28 The last Sunday night’s incident of forest officials being threatened by weapons by the mining mafia has added yet another dimension to the illegal activity. Every time the police action is either lacking or week enough to facilitate easy escape for the suspects. Forest officials cry foul as the police seems to have an upper edge in handling the situation. In the last 18 months, 45 cases under the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA) have been registered against members of the sand-mining mafia and fine of around Rs 5 lakh was realised from violators. Around 20 tractors used in ferrying the sand were also seized. However, the action by the forest department is of little concern to the suspects who continue with mining, mostly during night hours. Conservator of forest, Shivaliks, Parveen Kumar said the department had been trying to tighten its noose around the violators. However, the Mohali police seems to be under pressure to help out the main suspect, Manga Singh, who was found to be bringing the sand. Though the police claimed that a compromise had been reached between the suspects and the forest officials, the latter denied it. “We never reached any compromise and it was rather the police which was threatening to register a case against us if we pursue the matter further,” said a forest official, adding the suitable action against the suspects was being perused in the Kharar court. The police was competent to investigate whether any offence had taken place at the site or not. The police claims at 12.10 am the suspects were repairing the tractor in the darkness. Rather than going deep in to the case, the police seems be towing a compromise line. It would be not out of place to mention that in February, when a forest guard was badly assaulted, forest minister Tikshan Sud had intervened and DGP, Punjab police, had been asked to intervene. The crime, however, continues. The illegal sand quarrying in the forest area in Chandigarh’s periphery is resulting in several seasonal rivulets changing their tracks, making agricultural land and human settlements vulnerable to erosion. Truckloads of sand for construction are being removed without being checked by forest officials. The ecologically fragile forest area is locked under various provisions of the Forest Act. What the Forest Act says As per Sections 4 and 5 of the Punjab Land Preservation Act, no non-forestry activity can be carried out in the area locked under the Act. The Act also bars any type of tree cutting and quarrying, be it removal of sand, earth or pebbles. The land closed under the PLPA also attracts provisions of the Indian Forest Act, 1980, which also specifies the punishment for the violators. Besides, a judgment of the Supreme Court (dated December 12, 1996) completely prohibits quarrying in the forest area, be it private or government Economics of illegal quarrying Inquiry revealed that after arranging quarrying machinery, an operator of this illegal trade removes sand from the rivulets and ferries it to the construction site at a rate of around Rs 2,500 per trip. Due to large-scale urbanisation in Chandigarh’s periphery, the demand for sand has gone up suddenly, resulting in a number of people jumping into the business
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Woman run over by train
Panchkula, September 28 According to railway police sources, the incident took place around 9 pm when Vidhya Rani was returning from a shop, along with her son Shiv Kumar, on motorcycle. The railway crossing was closed. While she was crossing the track, suddenly her lunchbox fell down. When she bent to pick up her lunchbox, she was hit by a train which led to her death, sources added. The victim’s body has been sent to General Hospital, Sector 6. A railway police official stated that a case has been registered.
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Workshop on quality standards in labs
Chandigarh, September 28 The workshop is being conducted by the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) and Centre for Disease Control (CDC), USA. A total of eight states, including Uttaranchal, Jammu & Kashmir, HP, Haryana, Punjab, Delhi, Rajasthan and Chandigarh are participating. The workshop was inaugurated by Dr MS Bains, director health and family welfare, Chandigarh Administration. He said the workshop was intended to improve the quality standards of HIV testing in India.
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Workshop on energy auditing
Chandigarh, September 28 RC Sobti, Vice-Chancellor, inaugurated the workshop and addressed participants through video conferencing. Principals and teachers of various schools, besides faculty and students of the UIET and other engineering colleges participated in the workshop. Eminent experts in the field-AS Chug, executive director, Future Computing and Energy Solutions, S Chatterji, head, department of electrical engineering, NITTTR, Chandigarh, were present. The workshop aimed at imparting knowledge on energy auditing methods, energy management and conservation techniques. Speakers of the workshop stressed on regular energy auditing and implementation of the recommendations of energy audit and adoption of energy conservation techniques in day to day life.
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PU VC inaugurates website
Chandigarh, September 28 The website consists of more than 150 websites of different departments and facilities, although experts say that the process of upgradation and processing is ongoing. All departmental websites have now similar appearance and the information relevant to a particular department available at main site could also be viewed at their respective departmental sites. The new features like the forms relevant to different branches or sections will be available under different heads. Telephone directory, PhD thesis, Syndicate, Senate proceedings, news and announcements will also be made available on departmental websites. The new website will be more useful to the people, as it will have cohesive and uniform information for students and general public, said Tankeshwar Kumar, director, computer centre. He added that the website had been fully conceptualised, developed and hosted at computer centre, DCSA. Prior to inaugurating the launch of the website, the Vice-Chancellor extended the facility of the National Knowledge Network (NKN) provided by the Ministry of Human Resource Development to the university staff and students. Tankeshwar said National Knowledge Network was an expandable network in which all universities, including IITs, IISc would be connected through a high-speed bandwidth extendable up to 10 GBPS. The NKN facility will provide access to computational resources, high-speed connectivity, data sharing, increased peer group interaction. The university will be able to develop virtual laboratories, virtual classrooms, video conferencing facilities and online electronic resources. Officials claimed that PU is the first university in the region in which National Knowledge Network facility has been provided at the first phase. Besides, students and staff will be benefited, as they could set up country-wide real time class rooms, grid computing applications and will be able to collaborate with other networks in other countries for experiments like LHC and ALICE.
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Biogas plant on campus soon
Chandigarh, September 28 Speaking on the occasion of “World Tourism Day” at the University Institute of Hotel Management and Tourism (UIHMT), he insisted on chalking out plans to promote tourism. Expressing concern over the wastage of water, he listed measures that the university had initiated to conserve water. The Vice-Chancellor announced that a biogas plant and water harvesting project would be set up shortly. He urged students to find out why India was not a popular destination for international tourists. He cited examples of unplanned development at places like Hemkunt Sahib and Shimla. The event included a poster-making competition to highlight the theme of World Tourism Day, besides a lecture on “Ecotourism” was delivered. Anish Slath from the UIHMT faculty proposed the vote of thanks. Students of hotel management showed their skills in food production and service. Earlier, Arun Thakur, faculty member, highlighted the importance of World Tourism Day. He said the concept of celebrating the day started in 1980, and every year one country was chosen for the celebrations. “The host country this year is China with the theme “Tourism and Bio-Diversity”, he added. Prashant Gautam, faculty member, made a presentation on sustainable tourism development in India with the help of three-case studies titled “Small stories, big dreams”.
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Teachers’ training programme ends
Chandigarh, September 28 The theme was “academics and activism”. Shelley Walia, director, Academic Staff College, said an ambient academic atmosphere was needed to provide participants with a chance for professional growth. He emphasised that these training programmes should try fresh approach to bring out the creativity of teachers like music, fine arts and theatre. BS Ghuman, Syndicate member, Panjab University, and a former Dean, Social Sciences and currently a senior professor in Public Administration at Panjab University, who was the chief guest spoke about strategies to improve and enhance the quality of orientation and refresher courses. Participants reported that the orientation course provided them with an opportunity to get in touch with the core skills of teaching and gave them an exposure to novel technologies in education.
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Now, fund details a click away
Chandigarh, September 28 The new website, which was inaugurated today, also reveals the occupancy in various hostels on the Intranet that operates within the campus. The website, which is being upgraded further, would shortly reveal details of circulars issued in each department and training programmes for students on the campus as well. Another student friendly move is availability of admission forms on the website. Eligibility criteria for various courses and approximate fee structure for courses have also been made available. “The process of uploading thesis for students’ reference is under way,” said prime contributors to the website-Anil Sharma and Mamta of PU computer centre. Replication of data on the website is feasible now. “Data related to tenders, thesis, job notifications, RTI information will be posted at one place and would automatically be replicated on other pages, if it’s available there also,” said Anil. “Consistency and transparency will be ensured through the new website. Websites of the departments and that of university are also interlinked. If there is a change in the name of a chairperson of the department, information will be uploaded only at one place,” said Tankeshwar Kumar, director, PU computer
centre.
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Chandigarh, September 28 The campaign was organised by Oxfam India in collaboration with an NGO Yuvsatta where students from across the globe took a pledge to initiate actions related to sustainable consumption. They also called upon the world leaders to take the globe on a low-carbon pathway. The participants donned green ribbons as a symbolic gesture to do their bit for greener planet. Pawan Bansal, Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs and Water Resources, launched an online campaign: “We Pledge, You Promise”. A big canvas comprising pledges and promises was posted at GGD SD College auditorium for delegates to express their solidarity for the climate change movement. — TNS
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Going a step further, administration officials sent letters to these institutes clarifying they could either accept the terms and conditions as they were or pull out of the project. The institutes include Shri Vile Parle Kelvani Mandal (NMIMS), Mumbai, The Indian Express and The Chitkara Educational Trust, Chandigarh.
Mohali, September 28