An Air Force personnel carries away the unexploded rocket fired from an IAF fighter. Photo: Jaswant Shetra

Jagraon, April 15
Terror and panic gripped thousands of residents of Ramghar Bhullar and Leelan Megh Singh villages when the shell of a bomb, fired from an Air Force aircraft, fell in the fields between the two villages near Jagraon this afternoon.

The bomb was reportedly fired from a fighter aircraft with the Halwara Air Force station during a routine exercise in the SK Range near Sodhiwal, about 15 kilometres from Jagraon, but its shell landed in a farm between Ramghar Bhullar and Leelan Megh Singh village, seven or eight kilometres from the SK Range.

Though there was no loss of money or life during the incident, the villagers complained that it might have resulted in a tragedy in case the bomb fell in the main residential area, only a few metres from the place where the shell fell.

Some farmhouses were located close to the field where the shell was found. A large number of farmers of these two villages, who were busy harvesting the wheat crop, were shocked when the shell fell around 1 pm in a field belonging to Amarjit Singh.

Terrified residents immediately informed the police about the incident. Soon after, a team from the Jagraon Sadar police station reached the spot. They sealed the area and informed the Air Force officials concerned at the SK Range.

An Air Force team reached the spot and took custody of the shell. The residents and police officials were amused at the fact that it took more than half an hour for the Air Force team to reach the spot from the SK Range, situated only seven or eight kilometres from the spot.

The people were relieved when the Air Force team reached the spot and took custody of the shell. The Air Force officials remained tight-lipped on the issue. The officer leading the team refused to tell his name and designation to the police, which irked police officials and led to an argument between them.

When police and CID officials convinced the Air Force officials that they were doing their duty and it was mandatory on their part to prepare a report on the incident, they were told that the Air Force team was from the SK Range and was led by range safety officer Vikrant Bhargav.

“I was standing in front of the gate of my house when something, measuring three or four feet and emitting smoke, fell in the farm in front of my house. Farmers who were harvesting crops in fields nearby started shouting and running away. We came to know that it was a bombwhen a police team arrived from Jagraon,” said Mohan Singh, whose house was situ-ated a few metres from the spot.

This was not the first incident of a shell falling in the area around the SK Range. Many such incidents had taken place in the past. A few months back, a shell had fallen in a street of Agwar Ladhai village, near Jagraon.

Samrala/Ludhiana, April 15
Disappointed over inadequate funds given to the panchayat of Sihala village in Samrala constituency, a group of panches led by the sarpanch has accused the state government of neglecting the village for the last four years.

The members of the panchayat had come to attend the sangat darshan programme of Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal. A meagre amount of Rs 1.25 lakh has been given to the panchayat in the last four years.

Out of the Rs 18-lakh grant sanctioned under various heads under the rural development department, Punjab, for 2010-11, the Chief Minister presented a cheque for Rs 6 lakh to the panchayat today.

The sanctioned amount under various heads for maintenance include Rs 5 lakh for street drains, Rs 2 lakh for main drains, Rs 3 lakh for cremation ground, Rs 2 lakh for a dharamshala, Rs 3 lakh for a panchayat ghar and an additional grant of Rs 3 lakh under MANREGA.

The village has a population of 1,869, out of which 1,283 are voters. But despite their repeated requests, the village residents have been deprived of funds sanctioned under the rural development department in the last four years.

Sarpanch Rakesh Kumar said the proposal was formatted by the area Junior Engineer (JE) today itself. “Our requests have fallen on deaf ears and the village residents are living in poor sanitary conditions. Clogged drains, broken roads and poor upkeep of the panchayat ghar and the cremation ground are a sore point,” he complained.

Former sarpanch Teerath Singh said: “We have already suffered a lot on account of the government’s apathy. But we will not put up with the casual approach any more.”

Ludhiana, April 15
The medium and small enterprises (MSE) sector is one of the vital cogs in Punjab’s wheels of progress and the mainstay of the state’s economy, next only to agriculture, and contributes significantly to the generation of revenue and employment avenues.

The biggest problem being faced by MSEs in Punjab is the high rate of interest

being charged by banks while large industrial houses get loans at lower rate of interest.

A majority of Punjab’s industry is in the micro, small and medium sectors, but it still has to pay a higher rate of interest on loans as the cash credit limit for working capital is not adequate.

Avtar Singh, general secretary of the Chamber of Industrial and Commercial Undertakings (CICU), said banks were charging between 12 and 15 per cent interest on loans to MSEs and 9 per cent to textile mills.

“Desired efforts should be made to remove this anomaly. Though the cash credit limit should be 20 per cent of the projected sale figures of the project approved, banks in general are not willing to grant this facility to MSEs,” he said.

“There is an urgent need to provide adequate credit at cheaper rate of interest to MSEs, marginalised under the existing institutional mechanism,” said Upkar Singh, joint secretary of CICU.

“Banks should offer a special scheme for cluster development, which will help promote the industrial growth trajectory in the state,” he suggested.

“The lead bank in each district should set up a facilitation desk at each district common service centre, which can provide financial advisory services to MSEs,” he added.

Family ‘kidnaps’ minor girl
Marriage proposal was turned down
Jaswant Shetra

Jagraon, April 15
In a strange but interesting incident, that can seem like a scene from a movie, a girl was allegedly kidnapped by the family of a boy which wanted them to marry.

When the family of the girl rejected the offer of boy’s family, the boy, along with his family and some others, reached the girl’s house yesterday.

They allegedly kidnapped the girl after giving her grandparents some poisonous substance, following which they fell unconscious. As per information, the incident took place at Kular village.

In his complaint to the police, Tehal Singh of Kular, grandfather of the girl, stated that Gurjinder Singh of Dehraka village, near Jagraon, came to his house, along with his father Sukhdev Singh and mother Jaswinder Kaur, some days back.

According to Tehal Singh, the family of Gurjinder Singh asked him to marry his minor granddaughter to their son, but when he refused, they started threatening him.

Tehal Singh alleged that yesterday, Gurjinder Singh, along with his parents and some others, came to his house and gave him and his wife some poisonous substance. He added that they fell unconscious, after which they kidnapped his granddaughter.

Chaunkiman police post in charge Mohhmad Jamil said the police had registered a case against Gurjinder Singh, Sukhdev Singh and Jaswinder Kaur under Sections 363, 366, 328, 506 and 120-B of the IPC and an investigation was on.

Ludhiana, April 15
Hurt and disgusted over objectionable remarks in the Congress mouthpiece - Sandesh about martyrs Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru, the functionaries of Shaheed Sukhdev Thapar Memorial Trust took to an indefinite hunger strike in Naughara locality in the old city here today.

However, Bharat Bhushan Thapar, a nephew of martyr Sukhdev, termed the protest as uncalled for and an "over-reaction". He said certain persons were making attempts to gain cheap publicity and draw political mileage in the name of the martyrs, perhaps with their eyes on the coming Assembly elections.

Ashok Thapar and Sandeep Thapar, president and secretary respectively of the Trust, had served an ultimatum to the Indian National Congress on Wednesday to tender an unconditional apology to the nation within 48 hours failing, which they would resort to an indefinite hunger strike at the ancestral house of Sukhdev Thapar in Naughara here.

"In the absence of any response from the Congress party, we are left with no other alternative but to launch the protest," the Trust functionaries stated while commencing their fast. Ashok Thapar claimed that there was a sense of outrage among the public over the manner in which the Congress had shown utter disrespect to the great martyrs, and as if it was not enough, the party was now coming forward to regret its action.

The protesting functionaries of the Trust further claimed that their move had received an overwhelming support from various social, religious, political parties and groups in the city as almost everyone was feeling hurt for showing the martyrs in bad light. "Our indefinite fast will continue till the Congress expresses regret over its remarks and tenders an apology to the nation," they added.

Senior deputy mayor and a BJP leader Parveen Bansal, who visited the spot where the Trust functionaries were sitting on hunger strike to express solidarity with them, said that the entire nation was shocked and outraged at the objectionable remarks against the martyrs in the Congress mouthpiece. "The Congress owes an apology to the nation for showing disrespect to the martyrs."

Ludhiana, April 15
As professional colleges across the state are doing every bit to lure international students, the Paunjab Agricultural University (PAU) has also joined the bandwagon and opened a state- of- the- art hostel to attract aspiring foreign scientist who want to peruse studies in PAU. Punjab Agriculture Minister Sucha Singh Langah today inaugurated the international students hostel at PAU.

Speaking on this occasion, Langah said that PAU had changed agriculture not only in Punjab, but also in the whole country. During pre-partition and post-partition, the country was faced with a shortage of foodgrains and good seeds. It was difficult to have two square meals a day. Thanks to the research carried out by PAU scientists, the nation has become self-sufficient in food grains production, the minister said.

Lauding the efforts of Dr Manjit Singh Kang, Vice-Chancellor, PAU, he stated that under his leadership, the university had scaled new heights in academic, research and extension programmes. The international students hostel was a necessity, as PAU had become the first preference of the students for education, he said.

In his presidential remarks, Kang recalled his own days at PAU and stated, "It is a good facility for the international students. With the coming up of the hostel, the students would find their stay comfortable and fruitful."Dr Kang divulged that more than Rs 20 lakh have been spent on the hostel and more funds were needed for its furnishing.

Dr PPS Lubana, estate officer-cum-dean, College of Agricultural Engineering and Technology, PAU, welcoming the chief guest, presiding officer and other dignitaries, said that it was a historic moment for the university. Modeled on the pattern of Land Grant Universities in USA, he added that students of PAU had worked very hard to bring laurels to their alma-mater in the international arena.

Dr Ramandeep Singh, hostel warden, International Students' Hostel, PAU, proposed the vote of thanks. Present on the occasion were registrar, comptroller, deans, directors and faculty of PAU.

Ludhiana, April 15
The new academic session has begun and school campuses are abuzz with talk about who has got the best, the trendiest and the coolest school accessories.

Every school-going kid worth his salt is vying for attention with his latest acquisition, that also happens to be his claim to fame among peers, be it the BEN 10 strolley bag, Dora pencil case, Barbie water bottle or Spiderman tiffin box.

Needless to say, chic school accessories are the latest big thing on kids’ minds. “Look at my beautiful bag. It has BEN 10 on it,” Ankur, a seven-year-old squeals happily, pointing at the image of an angry BEN 10 squirting coin-like-things out of his watch.

His classmate Pushkar, too, is a BEN 10 fan. The child’s entire school collection boasts of BEN 10s, school bag, water bottle, pencil case, tiffin box and little green raincoat. The angry kid BEN 10 has also found a place of pride on Pushkar’s pencils, erasers, sharpeners, crayons and notebook covers.

Just like BEN 10 and Spiderman, Ninja, Jheenga, Pokemon and Shin Chan are the other popular cartoon characters that have found their way onto school accessories. While these action-oriented cartoon characters are a hit among boys, girls prefer Dora and Hannah Montana. Barbie, too, remains the first love of many girls, as do other Disney characters like Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck and Winnie-the-Pooh.

“Last session, my mom promised to buy me my favourite school stuff if I come among the first three toppers of the class. I kept my promise and she kept hers,” exclaims 10-year-old Anahita. The little girl proudly flaunts her Dora the Explorer school bag, the Barbie water can and Winnie the Pooh pencil case.

Another young school-goer, Shraddha, is smitten by Barbie. One can see her affinity and great love for Barbie in her pink strolley school bag, water bottle, pencil pouch and lunch box. The Barbie even stares at the little girl from amid curtains in her room.

The craze is not only limited to tweens and teenagers. Even pre-schoolers and primary students have their own favourites when it comes to choosing the ‘right’ school items. Not surprisingly, Scooby Doo, Popeye, Fred Flintstone, Bob the Builder and Noddy are the hot favourites of this category of children and can be found on almost everything that a child needs at school.

The great cartoon character fixation has the parents in a fix as their children’s never-ending demands for the latest in the market makes them loosen their purse strings too often. “My six-year-old son Kishley wants to be the coolest kid in town and for that, he needs to have all the latest Pogo and Cartoon Network characters in his school bag, quite literally,” avers Sangam Mitra, a housewife.

She adds that every few days, her son comes up with a new demand. “Just because one of his friends at school has brought a new water bottle, he wants a similar one too, no matter how ‘new’ his own bottle is,” Mitra rues.

Another mother, Mamta, confirms that school-going children today are highly trend conscious and would not settle for anything but the latest. “My daughter is always telling me about the new things her classmates bought recently. Though I indulge her with goodies, I feel that there is a need to draw a line somewhere and make the child understand that fashion accessories are not the only incentive to do well at school,” she says.

Unlike Mamta, Animesh feels that it is good to be in tune with the times. "Moreover, school accessories are the only trendy stuff that children can indulge in at this age. If the parents can afford, it is not at all a bad idea to let the kids have all the fun with BEN 10 bags, Barbie geometry pouches and Shin Chan tiffins,” says the father of two school-going children.

Doraha, April 15
“Management Summit-2011” was organised to deliberate on the emerging management paradigms by students of the Doraha College of Education and Doraha Institute of Management and Technology, Doraha, recently.

The programme was inaugurated by Sukhpal Singh, chairman, Doraha Group of Institutes. Japvir Singh, director Doraha Group of Institutes; Dr Sandeep Sawhney, principal Doraha College of Education; Supreet Kaur, coordinator, Doraha Institute of Management and Technology; faculty and students of MBA and BBA were present during the summit.

Dr Sandeep Sawhney was the guest of honour.

Dr RK Lekhi highlighted the changing scenario of management globally.

He said in today’s dynamic work place, a manager was a valuable asset to an organisation. He must be effective, interpersonal and communicative with employees.

Ashu Sharma, a BEd student from Doraha College of Education, highlighted the benefits of e-commerce.

She said e-commerce was a part of e-business that was related to buying and selling of goods and services through the Internet.

Vaneet Kaur and Pardeep Kaur, both students of MBA, stressed on the role of women managers in organisations. Present scenario in India is that IT companies employ 20-25 per cent women, while BPOs employ over 50 per cent.

Ludhiana, April 15
The Christian Medical College and Hospital (CMCH) witnessed a flurry of activity as minimal access surgeons from across the country gathered for a skill course of the Association of Minimal Access Surgeons of India here yesterday.

Lectures were delivered and advanced laparoscopic surgical procedures demonstrated in a video presentation. The conference was attended by over 200 delegates and 25 faculty members. Surgeons watched with anticipation as procedures were performed.

“This course has not been held in this part of the country before and has been received with more warmth and excitement than we anticipated,” said Dr Navneet Kumar Chaudhry, course convener, professor and head of surgery.

Ludhiana, April 15
The department of entomology, PAU, in collaboration with the Indian Society for Advancement of Insect Science will organise the congress on insect science from April 18 to 20.

The congress will focus on the theme “Pest management for food security and environment health”, said Dr AK Dhawan, head, department of entomology and organising secretary of the congress.

He added that the congress would see participation of project coordinators from National Agricultural Research Centres (ICAR), heads of entomology departments and entomologists from 20 agricultural universities and national agricultural research institutes, along with professionals from pesticide, bio-pesticide and seed industries from across the country.

Dr Dhawan said the congress would also have participation of Dr S Ayyappan, director general, ICAR; Dr Gurbachan Singh, agricultural commissioner, Government of India; and Dr GS Kalkat, chairman, Punjab State Farmers Commission.

“The climate change was threatening useful arthropods, especially pollinators and natural enemies of pests. On the other hand, many new pests like mealy bugs, cereal aphids and leafhoppers were emerging in the agro ecosystem,” said Dr Dhawan, adding that deliberations at the congress would help in formulation of strategies for preserving useful insects and for eco-friendly management of nefarious pests.

He disclosed that the three-day congress would have technical sessions on insect biodiversity, novel approaches in pest management, information technology and IPM (integrated pest management), ecological basis of pest management, environment health and public-private partnership.

In addition, experts will deliberate on cost effective technologies for combating agricultural pest problems for the benefit of farming community and nation.

Ludhiana, April 15
Kudos to the confidence and professionalism of this visually impaired athlete. He has sacrificed everything for the sake of sports. He has dedicated his life to sports.

Balwinder Singh, an international-level athlete from Machhiwara, has become a role model for other visually impaired athletes taking part in the National Sports for the Blind at Guru Nanak Stadium here.

An employee with the Punjab health department, Balwinder has represented the country in the Beijing Olympics. He also took part in the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games in 2006.

Talking to the Ludhiana Tribune, Balwinder said, “Despite my family insisting on it, I have decided not to get married. I focus on sports and promote it among the visually impared people.”

Balwinder claimed that his family, particularly his elder brother Gurpreet Singh, had always supported him. “I have always received full support from my brother, who is my pillar of strength,” he said.

He said, “I have suffered a lot. Now I am going to support the people who are special, just like me. I will motivate the visually impared towards sports and support them to stand on their own feet.”

“I am very lucky to have a secure job. There are numerous others who are denied even the basic necessities of life. I will fight for their rights. I find sports the only perfect field to make our present felt,” he said.

Balwinder was also the president of the Punjab Blind Sports Association. “I have numerous plans in my mind for the upgrade of sports and the uplift of visualy impaired sportspersons,” he said.

Reacting to Balwinder’s determination, his brother Gurpreet said he would support him in every field and on every decision. “He has brought laurels to the family. After being influenced by his achievements, my daughter has begun participating in sports events.”

Gurpreet urged the state government as well as the Centre to provide grants for visually impaired sportspersons. “These people are contributing in a major way to sports,” he said.

Ludhiana, April 15
Harmanpreet Kaur (16), an international-level visually impared athlete, will meet Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal tomorrow to request him for a financial grant to take part in the World Youth Games for Visually Impaired, to be held in the US this June.

An optimistic Harmanpreet, talking to the Ludhiana Tribune, hopes that the Chief Minister will agree to facilitate her. “The state government had ignored my requests of financial support two years ago. A request was given to the Ludhiana Deputy Commissioner. He forwarded to SDM Payal, who forwarded it to Chandigarh, but to no avail,” she said.

“After trying hard to get a grant, but failing to do so, my father decided to take a loan to bear air travel expenses, that was around Rs 1.25 lakh. But he cannot afford my journey this time,” said Harmanpreet, disappointment writ large on her face.

“I was convinced that the state government would help me as it honoured me with the state award for my outstanding achivements in the international championship,” she said. A class XII student, she resided at Chhraudi village, near Machhiwara.

A contingent of 11 persons, including eight athletes, took part in the championship in 2009. She was the only athlete from Punjab and had secured a gold medal in shot put and a bronze medal in 100 metres.