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MC lets down schools
Ludhiana, October 13 The authorities of various schools rue that all their efforts towards proper waste management are brought to a nought every single morning when the LMC tipper comes for garbage collection. In most city schools, there are strict instructions to all students and staff members to use separate bins for separate types of garbage. Schools have even educated the students on what waste is bio-degradable and what is not. However, all efforts of the school authorities are going down the drain by the LMC authorities, who have failed in proper waste management. "We have been running this ‘save environment’ campaign in our school for the past two years wherein we have separate bins for garbage disposal in every classroom, corridor, school ground. In the green bin, bio-degradable waste is to be dumped, while in the blue one, non-degradable waste is dumped," informed Vipra, environment manager, BCM Arya Senior Secondary School. Government Model Senior Secondary School teacher Sushma B. added, "We are very particular about proper waste disposal. There are separate bins across the campus for bio-degradable and non-degradable garbage. Those who do not follow the guidelines are fined." However, the school authorities rue that the LMC has not been supportive in their eco-friendly initiative. "Children are very concerned about the environment and have been religiously following proper garbage disposal guidelines even at their homes," remarked BCM manager Capt VK Syal. "However, it is a matter of great shame that our cash-rich municipal corporation has consistently failed in proper waste management. It does not seem to be bothered about the environment and the health hazards that non-degradable garbage cause," added Capt Syal.
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Daredevilry costs man dear
Ludhiana, October 13 The incident took place when Ajay Kumar was performing a stunt during the Ram Leela programme organised at Rajiv Gandhi Park in Ambedkar Nagar near the Model Town extension late last night. According to an eyewitness, Ajay appeared on the stage during the Ram Leela programme and requested the organisers to allow him to perform a stunt. Vijay Kala, the president of the Ram Leela Organising Committee, allegedly gave nod to Ajay for performing the stunt. Ajay poured kerosene on himself and lit himself afire. Area residents said Ajay had performed this stunt earlier at several political and religious functions. Residents claimed that he used to perform the act successfully, as crew members used to douse the fire with fire extinguishers and blankets following the stunt. But this time, things went grossly wrong in no time, with Ajay screaming and turning into a fireball. The crew members and the spectators, who were witnessing the incident, thought that the screams were part of the stunt. Ajay soon collapsed on the floor and the crew members realised their mistake. They doused the fire and rushed Ajay to Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, from where he was rushed to the DMC Hospital. The condition of Ajay was stated to be critical. He was married two years ago. His wife Suman said despite her strong objections, Ajay used to perform stunts. Meanwhile, SHO Manjinder Singh, who took the charge of the Model Town area today, said the police was investigating the matter and necessary action would be taken against the people who allowed the man to perform the stunt. Despite repeated attempts, the Ram Leela Committee president Vijay Kala could not be contacted for comments. TV programmes to blame: Wife
Suman, wife of Ajay, blamed the dare devil entertainment shows to be the reason behind her husband’s pathetic condition. She said that her husband wanted to entertain the public, and the daredevil programmes shown on television prompted Ajay to perform a stunt. |
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Riot victims cry foul
Our Correspondent
Ludhiana, October 13 Addressing a news conference here today, chairman of the Ludhiana Sikh Migrants Welfare Board Kartar Singh Patna alleged that the flats had been allotted in a whimsical manner. "Against the option for middle income group (MIG) flats, a majority of the applicants have been given either low income group (LIG) houses or those meant for economically weaker sections (EWS)." He said that in allotting houses of lower category than those opted for, the GLADA authorities as well as the district administration had not only betrayed the riot victims, but an attempt has been made to disregard the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court given in the course of a civil writ petition. According to Patna, hundreds of fully and partially built up MIG flats were lying vacant in Sector 40 on Chandigarh Road, Haibowal, Dhandari Kalan and Dugri. "Justice demands that those who had applied for MIG flats in 2000 be given flats of the opted category." He indicated that in the absence of a positive response from the authorities, the riot-affected families would resort to a protest at the district headquarters and also seek relief from the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Refuting the allegations levelled by the riot victims’ body, GLADA additional chief administrator Indu Malhotra told The Tribune that 66 residential flats in Dugri and CRPF Colony were in the process of being allotted to those riot affected families who were already occupying these flats. Out of other 545 allottees, 176 had been given MIG flats, while the rest of them were given allotment of LIG houses in Sector 32 and 40 on Chandigarh Road and Dugri-Dhandra Road in the city.
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Waste treatment plant remains a distant dream
Ludhiana, October 13 With no facility for segregating hundreds of tons of garbage, the initiative taken by some city schools has been a futile exercise. According to sources, the fate of the proposed waste treatment plant continues to be uncertain. About two-years ago tenders to hire consultants for the project were floated, following which a detailed project report was prepared by Tetratrack Consultants. In the meantime the state government decided to hire another firm, ILFS, which started working on the project from scratch and sent its staff to conduct door-to-door surveys. Senior deputy mayor Parveen Kumar Bansal said the company was expected to complete the surveys by December 2010. “Solid waste management treatment is need of the hour. The MC has always drawn flak on account of the city’s two main garbage dumps - one on Tajpur Road and the other in Jainpur village near Hambran. The proposed treatment plant with proper facilities to segregate plastic bags, dust, iron scrap, glass, steel, etc, will cost at least Rs 100 crore. Decisions on setting up such projects are taken up at the state level, the MC will just implement them. If things move at the desired pace we expect to set up the plant in the city by 2012”, Bansal said.
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City’s first ‘women only’ police station soon
Ludhiana, October 13 The proposal to set up such a police station that would deal only with complaints of women was reportedly sent by Ishwar. SHO Gurpreet Kaur, who was earlier assigned charge of the Model Town police station, has been appointed as the station house officer of the ‘women only’ police station, which will be housed in the premises of the police’s women cell near the old court complex. She said work on shifting furniture into the new police station was still in process and it would begin functioning soon. Talking to The Tribune Ishwar said: “All cops - from constables to the ‘munshi’ (clerk) - will be women. The decision to post only female cops at the police station was taken keeping in mind the fact that women shouldn’t hesitate in lodging their complaints”. “It has been witnessed a woman feels more comfortable talking to a female cop. We hope the new police station will help in addressing women’s complaints in a better way,” he added. Police helpline for women
If you are a victim of domestic violence dial 1098 and register your complaint with the police helpline, where only female cops will attend the call. The latter will be tasked with on-the-spot redressal of complaints. In domestic violence cases a woman cop at the police station concerned will rush to the spot to help the victim. For this purpose five female cops have been deployed at every police station. |
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Dandiya fever grips city
Ludhiana, October 13 For those who have entered, even once, in the magnetic range of its enticement, it is “poetry par excellence”. Dandiya has successfully traversed all nationalities, religions and sectarian interests and people belonging to all religions can be seen dancing to the tunes of Gujarati folk music. Dandia is performed at most of the mandirs in the city and clubs are also organising special dandia functions. "Initially dandiya was heard only in films and serials but today it has
become part of our lives. Navratras are incomplete without dandiya and I am completely in love with this dance. On every Navratra night I along with my friend go for dandiya and dance up to wee hours. Every day I wear a new dress, it may not necessarily be ghagra choli, but I prefer wearing traditional clothes," said Jhanvi, a college student. Ritu Ghosh added that Navratras are a great festivity time for the entire family and on the last day, the families of their community get together for the puja in the morning. Raas or Dandiya Raas, along with garba, is the featured dance of Navratra evenings, she said. In honour of Goddess Durga Originating as devotional Garba dances, which were always performed in Durga's honour, this dance form is actually the staging of a mock fight between the Goddess and Mahishasura, the mighty demon-king, and is nicknamed 'The Sword Dance'. The sticks (dandiyas) of the dance represent the sword of Durga. Garba is performed before Aarti as devotional performances in honour of the Goddess, while Dandiya is performed after it as part of merriment. Men and women join in for Raas Dandiya, and also for Garba.
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‘Unemployed youth soft target for criminals’
Mandi Ahmedgarh, October 13 The courses, besides enabling beneficiaries launch self-employed projects, make them eligible for specialised jobs in various fields, claimed the authorities. Officials led by Jeet Singh, director of the PSB RSETI, Ludhiana, urged office-bearers of social organisations to help the administration identify unemployed rural youths who could be trained in various vocational courses from time to time. Singh was talking to the Ludhiana Tribune after convening a block level meeting of functionaries concerned with implementation of self-employment projects at office of the Block Development Officer at Dehlon on Tuesday. “Guiding an unemployed youth for capacity building is the noblest cause as this besides saving him from clutches of social evils will make him self reliant,” said Singh maintaining that hundreds of youths including men and women had settled their enterprises by availing easy loans from commercial banks. Computer hardware, software, mobile phone repair, air conditioning, electrical training, motor mechanic and bakery; were most sought for short term courses for boys. Special coaching classes were conducted for girls to train them in knitting, sewing and embroidery, weaving and beauty parlour. Rural youth, aged between 18 and 35 years were eligible for training in various fields. The institute, run under aegis of Government of India, manages free boarding and lodging in case of need.
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Magic Show
A magic show was organised for the primary wing students of BCM, Basant Avenue, Dugri. Magician Samrat created a thrilling aura which engrossed tiny kids and drove them into the magical world. The kids were mesmerised to see a bird coming out from a piece of cloth, papers turning to flowers and water pumping out of the ears of their fellow students. School principal Dr Vandna Shahi said such activities serve as stress busters in the hectic school curriculum. Painting competition
As part of the celebration of the National Postal Week from October 9-15, an inter-school painting competition was organised on Wednesday at the local head post office. As many as 120 students from various city schools participated in the competition. "Imagination of modern post office" was the topic given to the students. Results: 1. Srishti from BVM; 2. Riya Aggarwal from BVM; 3. Savitri Kaura from KVM. Laurels
Guru Nanak Girls College, Model Town, achieved 100 per cent pass percentage in Master of Business Economics, second semester, held by Panjab University, Chandigarh. Babneet Kaur brought laurels to the college by standing 7th in the university and first in college securing 71.41 per cent marks. Principal Dr Charanjit Mahal congratulated the staff and students for their outstanding performance. Students shine
Gobindgarh Public College, Alour, dominated the competitions in Panjab University Zonal Youth Festival, Ludhiana Zone-A, held at SCD Government College, Ludhiana. The college bagged 15 positions in various competitions. More than 12 colleges of Ludhiana, Khanna, Samrala, Doraha and Sidhsar participated in this youth festival. Six items, including rangoli, knitting, cross stitch, pakhi making, poem recitation and folk song got first positions and have been selected for participation at Inter-Zonal Youth Festival which is going to be held at GNN College, Doraha, from October 24-27. Principal Dr Neena Seth Pajni congratulated the faculty members and participant students on their impressive performance. The college got second positions in rangoli, crochet work, vaar gayan (item and individual), geet, group song and third positions in clay modelling, poem writing and group song (individual). Doraha: Students of Guru Nanak National College, Doraha, brought laurels to the institution by bagging 44 awards in 43 items conducted in the Ludhiana Zone-A Youth and Heritage Festival of Panjab University held at SCD Government College, Ludhiana, recently. The items in which the college won the first position included group song, group song (individual), group shabad (individual), Indian orchestra, Indian orchestra (individual), mime, skit, giddha, Gidha (Individual), folk dance, vaar/kali, vaar/kali (individual), geet ghazal (shaunki), classical music vocal, non-percussion, histrionics, story writing and crochet work. The college secured second place in group shabad, bhangra, bhangra (individual), kavishri, avishri (individual, ladies traditional song, folk orchestra, folk orchestra (individual), mimicry, folk song, percussion, classical dance, elocution, dasuti/cross stitch, pakkhi designing and folk instrument and play (individual. Roop Brar, president, college managing committee, Prof Balwant Singh Pangali, general secretary, director Jaswant Singh Gill, principal Narinder Singh Sidhu congratulated the organising secretary of the festival Prof Amarjit Kaur and the prize winners for the great show at the youth festival. Visit
Shree Atam Vallabh Jain College organised an industrial visit for its BSc fashion students to Adinath Dyeing and Finishing Mills on Tuesday. During the visit students came to know about dyeing and printing processes of various fabrics and yarns being used by textile industry. The process starts from colour matching, mixing colours and solutions to prepare ultimate colour, dyeing the fabrics and yarn and finally wrapping the dyed fabrics and yarn into rolls. Students also saw the making of printing slides and automatic process to use
these slides.
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Cong councillors to take on Dhanda at MC meet
Ludhiana, October 13 Dhanda, on the other hand, has maintained being a public representative he had every right to ensure taxpayers’ money was not wasted on unnecessary projects. Talking to The Tribune, Congress councillor of ward no 53 Gurpreet Bassi Gogi said Dhanda had virtually "halted" all development projects in his ward. “Not only have the projects been halted but he has threatened the contractors to get their payments stopped if they continued with the work. Like Dhanda we’re also public representatives and have every right to provide the best of facilities to people in our wards. He has no right to interfere in those projects. If he has to point out some shortcoming in a particular project he should take the area councillor into confidence”. Hem Raj Aggarwal, leader of the opposition in the MC house, said councillors were instrumental in drawing up all cost estimates for development projects in their wards. “They were the ones to get the payments released and they have right to show the development being done in their areas. Why should they be stopped by the MLAs? Works are being done by councillors whereas MLAs keep on taking all the credit, which is unfortunate", he asked. Another Congress councillor, Parminder Mehta, said MLAs could interfere in assembly quota works but not in the MC's regular development projects. "Only the mayor should interfere to see the pace of regular development, and not Dhanda", he added. Meanwhile, Dhanda said he had every right to ensure the projects were being implemented in the desired manner and that taxpayers’ money was not wasted. “Following complaints by the public I visited Ghumar Mandi and Civil Lines where I found several discrepancies in the ongoing works. Some councillors are wasting funds on unnecessary schemes while in many wards the public is suffering due to lack of funds for critical projects”, he added. Mayor to be ‘spared’ Most of the Congress party councillors have decided to "spare" mayor Hakam Singh Gyaspura from any uncomfortable questions at tomorrow's MC general house meeting. Some senior Congress councilors, requesting not to be quoted, said they will target the Punjab government and not the mayor as the latter was "instrumental" in getting many of the works done in their respective wards.
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Lung diseases cause 7 pc deaths: Expert
Our Correspondent
Ludhiana, October 13 He said spirometry was the most common method for testing lung function. It is simple, quick and non-invasive. The test specifically measures the amount (volume) and speed (flow) of air that can be inhaled and exhaled by the lungs which further helps in assessing conditions such as asthma, pulmonary fibrosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). According to Dr Akashdeep, spirometry serves several purposes. Firstly, it increases the awareness for lung health and to initiate action in community to combat lung disease. Secondly, it conveys the message that most respiratory diseases are treatable, but that prevention is highly cost effective. And thirdly, it is an opportunity to spread the message that clean indoor and outdoor air is a fundamental human right and should be recognised as such. He disclosed that in a random community-based study conducted at the hospital involving 535 subjects, it was found that 20 per cent had some degree of airway obstruction, nearly 50 per cent were smokers and another 5 per cent had asthma. Emphasising the significance of spirometry, he said the test helps to detect airway obstruction at an early stage of disease and hence convince the asymptomatic smokers to quit smoking before they develop the diseases. The department of pulmonary diseases at the hospital, he added, would be organising events on the occasion of the World Spirometry Day to provide knowledge to the patients, community and the doctors. Some of these events include free spirometry camp, lecture for the patients and their relatives and a lecture for the junior doctors. The main objective was to create opportunities to raise awareness about lung health through the public and the media. The European Respiratory Society (ERS) and the European Lung Foundation (ELF) are coordinating this event.
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No headway yet in fake bill scam case
Ludhiana, October 13 Following the local bodies department’s latest directive to file FIRs against the "tainted" officials, the file on the case has been moving back and forth between the MC and the police department. Calling the latest instructions "biased", senior MC officials said the "tainted" officials had already been suspended for almost eight months whereas the key suspect - the contractor (grandson of Punjab assembly deputy speaker and senior BJP leader Satpal
Gosain) enjoyed the same clout. They said the local bodies department should have initiated a departmental inquiry against the officials and FIRs had to be registered against the contractors who had committed the fraud. A top MC official said on condition of anonymity these officials had already suffered a lot. "There’s no denying the fact they were part of the Rs 75 lakh fraud. But there are other ways to punish them. Their increments can be withheld or they can be transferred, but FIRs are certainly not required to be filed against them. They may even lose their jobs. On the other hand the ruling party failed to take action against the influential contractor who happens to be Gosain’s grandson. We’ll not call it justice. An open-and-shut case is being complicated by the department to save the contractor”, the official stated. Moreover, MC officials claimed the contractors deposited the entire amount of money (Rs 75 lakh) into the civic body’s account in June-July 2010. “This was enough evidence that fraud was committed by the three contractors in connivance with certain officials. FIRs should be registered against them for cheating the civic body”, the officials added. Meanwhile, police commissioner Ishwar Singh told The Tribune he had sent back the file on the case to the MC as he had no clear instructions on registering
FIRs. Factfile
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Sportspersons take to streets
Ludhiana, October 13 It is learnt that the protest was triggered when one of the coaches broke the news to players that the organisers of the Art of Living concert have refused to shift the venue from the stadium. Perturbed over this, players hit the road and raised slogans against the state government for allowing a spiritual programme at the stadium. The players were soon joined by Teja Singh Dhaliwal, general secretary, Punjab Basketball Association, Shivtar Singh Bajwa, president, Ludhiana Football Association, and veteran weightlifter Parwaesh Chander Sharma, who won three gold medallists in the CWG. Teja Singh Dhaliwal said: "The organisers have told us that they have deposited Rs 1.5 lakh for organising the Art of Living programme and they would not shift the venue. As this stadium is meant for sports, we urge the authorities to spare the stadium for sports activities." Deputy CM in dock
The action committee of the sports association has accused Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal, who is also holding the portfolio sports minister, for giving approval for holding the Art of Living programme at the stadium. The action committee alleged that the sports department had refused the Art of Living Foundation for holding a programme at Guru Nanak Stadium, following which they approached the Deputy CM and managed to get the approval for organising the programme at the stadium
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Balanced diet is Indrani’s fitness secret
Ludhiana, October 13 Sharing her beauty secrets, Indrani says she has at least three glasses of water in the morning. Indrani is a lip-obsessed person and in the evenings she enjoy using pink and red lipsticks. Super-lash enhancing mascara for longer lashes and kajal are her other favourites. For her cheeks, she usually opts for pink glows or highlights the cheekbones in shades ranging from link pink to light brown. On her fitness, Indrani says she is not too much of an exercise freak and usually visits a gym only around once a week. "Sometimes I jog in the morning or do weights at home. I maintain my figure by sticking to a balanced diet. I avoid oily, rich food and prefer eating at home, mostly vegetarian food, focussing more on fruits, vegetables and toned milk. I believe exercising is not for fighting the bulge alone but to feel good. And a good exercise routine of any kind, be it a workout, a jog or a sport can be a wonderful, healthy addiction," she adds. Beauty tips “Make sure you invest your time and money in choosing the perfect concealer. I notice a lot of people, including models, use a wrong shade of concealer. Most skin blemishes can be fixed with the help of the right shade of concealer. And the best way to blend in the foundation is with your fingers,” said Indrani
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Trade unions hold joint conference
Mandi Ahmedgarh, October 13 Sukhwinder Singh Sekhon, secretary, CPI (M), Kartar Singh Buani, secretary, CPI, Sikandar Singh Jartoli, president the Punjab School Teachers’ Union, and Baldev Latala, general secretary, Punjab Kissan Sabha, led their respective jathas during the conference. Speakers said the prices of essential commodities like pulses, flour and others were increasing rapidly and it had become difficult for the common man to survive. “Aam admi” expecting relief announced by Congress chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was the worst affected due to the spiralling prices of essential commodities. Leaders alleged that the UPA government was busy looking after the interest of the corporate houses. — OC
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PAU, HDFC Bank ink MoU
Ludhiana, October 13 The MoU was signed today in a special function by PAU Vice-Chancellor Dr Manjit Singh Kang and HDFC Bank assistant vice-president (human resources) Ishlesh Bhaskar in the presence of the PAU registrar, deans, directors and faculty members from the department of business management. After exchanging the MoU papers, Dr Kang said banks were playing a major role of providing credit to farmers thereby contributing to the state’s progress. He said the banking sector was also offering placement to PAU students. Dr Kang wished that the collaboration between HDFC Bank and PAU would prove beneficial and a win-win situation for both.
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Punjabi book released
Ludhiana, October 13 He has also made an attempt to illustrate the impact of 12 ‘desi’ months on daily life. The author has narrated different festivals in different seasons. The inclusion of one chapter on different seasons highlighting the scientific principles by Lakhveer Kaur Dhaliwal and Sukhdev Singh Hundal has further enriched various impacts as realised by Kehal.
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Job fest
MANDI GOBINDGARH: The Desh Bhagat Institute of Management and Computer Sciences organised Visionzz-3 Mega Job Fest on the college campus on Wednesday. More than 3,500 students of MBA, MCA, BTech (CSE, ECE, IT), BBA, BSc-IT streams participated from various colleges/universities of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Western UP, J&K, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh. Punjab Additional Joint Labour Commissioner PK Jain inaugurated the job fair. Companies like Hindustan Media Limited, Tech Mahindra, Tata Teleservices, Eon Infotech Limited, Ind-Sigma Infotech, Red Alkemi, Indiamart Intermesh Limited, Mahindra Retail, Red Alkemi, Fore Solutions, Rana Polycot Limited, India Infoline Limited and Amtek Group shortlisted 480 students for various vacancies through technical test, group discussions and HR interviews.
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Students honoured
Ludhiana, October 13 The award has been donated by Roop Singh Roopa, former president of the PAU Employees' Union. Vice-Chancellor Dr Manjit Singh Kang felicitated 21 children on the occasion.
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