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With Gosain at helm, postings a cakewalk
Mohali, July 8 In the last few days, consideration other than merit seems to have taken centrestage to get a “preferred” place for posting as a large number of doctors in Mohali, Fatehgarh Sahib and surrounding districts have either got their transfer orders cancelled or modified (two to three times) to be at the place of their choice, thanks to the new Health and Family Welfare Minister Satpal Gosain. Most of the transfers were effected between June 14 and June 30. A perusal of the list of transfer orders of Senior Medical Officers (SMOs) and Medical Officers posted on the official website of the health department reveals that transfers of a number of doctors have repeatedly been changed within a matter of few days. Gosain said it was wrong to cast “aspersion” on the frequency of recent transfers undertaken in the department. On being asked about specific cases where the transfer orders had been modified to suit certain doctors, Gosain said he would take action if such cases were brought to his notice. “We are ducking for cover as no one knows when the next transfer list will be declared. They have made a mockery of the entire system. It needs to be probed,” said a senior doctor who did not wish to be quoted. Some examples of
‘choice transfers’ n Dr Suvir Gupta, posted at ESI Hospital, Industrial Area, Phase 7 Mohali, transferred to the Civil Hospital (Fatehgarh Sahib) vice Dr Ranbir Sandhu who was posted to Fatehgarh Sahib. A few days later, Dr Sandhu was again posted, this time to another Civil Hospital in Mohali. On the other hand, Dr Gupta was transferred to a primary health centre in Dera
Bassi. Dr Monica Arora, posted to a government dispensary in Phase IX, was transferred to the Commando Complex in Phase XI of Mohali vice Dr Ranbir Singh. Subsequently, Dr Arora was posted back to the dispensary in Phase IX and Dr Ranbir back to the Commando Complex.
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Shoddy digging snaps phone cables
Mohali, July 8 Officials of the Punjab circle of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) said despite being repeatedly told, the contractor engaged by the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) did not intimate them in advance. As a result, telephone connections went dead the moment the digging started. “The underground cables were laid 20 years ago and it is not possible to shift them now,” said a BSNL official. GMADA officials, however, said the BSNL had been intimated in advance. Much to the anguish of telephone subscribers, it would take another week for the BSNL to restore the connections.
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No water in MC building as motor develops snag
Chandigarh, July 8 The problem arose after the motor installed in the building to lift the water to fill tanks developed a snag. Employees and visitors in the MC building had a tough time as they had to rush to the adjoining building of the Registration and Licensing Authority (RLA) to relieve themselves or drink water during office hours. Peons of officials were on their toes arranging for drinking water for their bosses and visitors. Long queues of MC employees were seen in front of water coolers at the RLA office. Mayor Ravinder Pal Singh said a technical fault had occurred in the system and it would be fixed by the department concerned. “I came here to get a water connection. I wonder if the authorities will be able to provide services to residents when they are not bothered about their own staff,” a visitor remarked.
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More hitches in BCom online admissions
Chandigarh, July 8 Not satisfied with their earlier choice of college, these applicants have requested a change. So far, 507 complaints have been received by the PU, where students either filled incorrect details or encountered some problem in the online process. Following a verbal dialogue between the registrar, AK Bhandari, and the DHE, Ajoy Sharma, the university authorities have called a meeting of the BCom coordination team headed by AK Vashisht. “We are looking into the problems of students and will address it keeping in mind their interest. However, tampering with the first counselling will mean injustice to other students. Such students can change college in the second counselling. We will hold a meeting with the BCom coordination team,” said Bhandari. He added that some mechanism similar to joint counselling for the All India Engineering Entrance Test (AIEEE), where applicants can change their institute after the second counselling, would be worked out. “We have also been getting these requests. We got in touch with the PU authorities and the only concern is that any decision taken by the university must be uniform. Last year, there was a provision where students could change their college after they were allotted colleges. This year, the process is online and the university has to take the final call on the matter,” said Sharma. Although university officials are tight-lipped on the issue, a case has been reported where a student, who did not fill the online form, procured a seat in a local college through the intervention of the court. “I am not aware of the case. But I will verify the details,” said the Registrar.
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Grace marks not under our purview: HC
Chandigarh, July 8 Justice Ranjit Singh asserted: “It will not be within the domain of this court to examine the question papers or the answer sheets to notice any discrepancies or inconsistencies either in setting the questions or evaluation thereof. It will certainly not be within the jurisdiction of this court to see if any question has been asked out of syllabus or some answers are required to be corrected or if some grace marks are to be awarded.” The significant assertion came on a petition by SP Bhardwaj and other petitioners. They were seeking directions for holding separate Accounts and Financial Management examination or 21 marks on the ground that parts of some questions were out of syllabus in the examination held on May 10. Referring to a recent Supreme Court judgment in the case of the Himachal Pradesh Public Service Commission v/s Mukesh Thakur and others, Justice Ranjit Singh asserted: “It is held in this case that the court cannot take upon itself the task of examiner or selection board and examine discrepancies and inconsistencies in the question paper and evaluation thereof.” Dismissing the petition, Justice Ranjit Singh added: “The question paper, as set up, was equally applicable to all the candidates, who appeared in the examination. The prayer made in the writ petitions will appear to be beyond the jurisdiction of this court to grant. There is, thus, no ground to interfere in the writ petitions. The writ petitions are, therefore, dismissed.”
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Major fire erupts in basement of Sec 22 shop
Chandigarh, July 8 The firemen tried to contain the blaze for over two hours even though they were equipped with smoke foam. Clueless about the material and the building plans of the shop where the fire erupted, the fire brigade faced a tough time extinguishing the blaze and ventilating the smoke billowing from the shop basement. The incident occurred at 6:49 am and the firefighters took about five hours to bring the blaze under control, using four water tenders, a water booster and an emergency tender. According to a fire official, there were two small shops in the basement, one run by a distributor of dairy products and the other selling computer accessories. According to station fire officer Madan Lal Sharma the building did not have the mandatory fire sprinkler system. Apprehending the possibility of a similar incident in adjoining shops, only notices are issued in routine to them by the municipal corporation’s fire department. In other words, a lot of paperwork is done, but in reality no concrete action has been initiated against those flouting fire safety norms. Neither the UT estate office nor the fire department has taken any action against violators till date. The shopkeepers had encroached upon the basement, balcony on the first and second floors of the market by fixing glazing and grills. It has also come to light that most of the fire extinguishers in adjoining shops were either missing or had been removed after getting the required “no objection” certificates from the fire department.
Fire safety norms * Separate entry/exit points in buildings * No temporary structure in corridors * Proper electricity wiring * Space in corridors for visitors * Fire alarms
Actual situation in
Sec 22 market * Only one entry and exit point * UnauthoriSed temporary structures * Open electricity meters in corridors * Encroachments in most corridors * Obsolete fire extinguishers
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Sec 21 residents open taps to filthy water
Chandigarh, July 8 It is now the turn of those living in Sector 21 to vent their ire against civic officials after getting impure water in their homes for the past few days. Said Shweta, a resident of that sector: “We’ve been facing the problem for many days. The tap water is so dirty it can’t be used even to wash clothes. The issue needs to be addressed at the earliest before it leads to an outbreak of waterborne diseases”. Other resentful residents of the locality had the same story to tell. “When the taps are turned on they not only spout filthy water but also a foul smell, making it unbearable for even to stand nearby”. Students residing in the sector are now buying bottles of ‘mineral’ water to deal with the problem. Abhay, who is studying law, said: “At a time when humidity is very high and power outages occur frequently, water is the only way to beat the heat. Buying ‘mineral’ water bottles is a luxury but we’ve no choice”. PC Sanghi, a Sector 21 resident and head of the Federation of Sector Welfare Associations, Chandigarh (FOSWAC) said the problem was caused primarily due to the leakage in old water supply pipes. “It won’t end till the municipal corporation begins replacing the old pipes with new ones. FOSWAC has always been demanding there should be a mechanism in place whereby the civic staff can detect leakage in water pipes, which results in polluted water coming from taps in almost all the city’s sectors. However the authorities have yet to resolve the problem”. Said area councillor Anju Beniwala: “I haven’t yet received any complaint from Sector 21 residents. However if the problem is severe then I’ll take it up with the authorities and ask them to fix it. Filthy water coming from taps may be due to leakages in pipes and I’ll certainly raise the issue of replacing the pipes at the next MC house meeting”.
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Small traders exempted from e-filing VAT returns
Chandigarh, July 8 This decision was conveyed to a delegation of the Chandigarh Business Council by Naresh Dubey, Assistant Excise and Taxation Commissioner (AETC), during a demonstration on e-filing of the Value Added Tax (VAT) returns by traders. Over 1,500 small traders having turnover tax numbers (TOT No) would be exempt from e-filing of VAT returns, officials informed. Acting on the directions of the Central government, the Excise and Taxation Department of the UT Administration had made the e-filing of VAT returns by the traders mandatory from July 1 this year. While traders having annual turnover up to Rs 1 crore file the returns quarterly, those having turnover above Rs 1 crore file the returns monthly. Officials said small traders had been given relief as the system of the online filing of returns would get fully operational by the next month. The manual filing of returns would prove to be economical for petty traders having no computer infrastructure. Currently, Rs 250 per page is charged by the e-sampark centre for accepting VAT returns. Meanwhile, a press note issued by the Chandigarh Beopar Mandal (CBM) alleged that the e-filing had been made mandatory without the consensus with the trading community. The smaller traders would find it difficult to switch suddenly from conventional format to electronic format and the dealers having turnover of less than Rs 1 crore annually should be given option to avail any mode of filing of return.
Over 50 more banks to accept returns
Taking a cue from the Income Tax Department, the UT Administration has decided to authorise over 50 bank branches in the city to accept VAT returns. Currently, only the State Bank of India branch in Sector 17 is authorised to accept cash by way of VAT payments resulting in inconvenience to the VAT assessees.
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Extended limits of Mohali MC likely to have 82 villages
Mohali, July 8 Many sectors of Mohali town, which are at present out of the municipal limits, will also be included in the extended limits. Sectors 66 to 69 and 76 to 80 and other areas are out of the municipal limits at present. The general house of the erstwhile Municipal Council had unanimously approved at a meeting held on October 6 last year that all areas falling under the assembly constituency, except Zirakpur, be included in the proposed limits of the civic body, which was to be upgraded to the level of a corporation. Sources said that the case based on the decision of the former elected body was sent to the government two days ago for further action. Maps showing the present limits of the corporation and those of the proposed extended limits were sent along with the other documents. Though more than 45 villages had given their consent for being included in municipal limits, the willingness of other villages panchayats was not yet received. It is learnt that the government does not require the consent of all village panchayats for putting up the case. A notice inviting objections was generally issued by the government after the case was put up by the civic concerned for extending the limits.
Sectors to be included
Many sectors of Mohali town, which are at present out of the municipal limits, will also be included in the extended limits. Sectors 66 to 69 and 76 to 80 and other areas are out of the municipal limits at
present.
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9 injured in road mishap
Panchkula, July 8 The injured, who were rushed to the Sector 6 General Hospital, have been identified as Ved Parkash, Vijay, Ajay, Narinder, Balwan, Ravinder, Mohit, Ram Lal and Balram. One of the injured has been shifted to the PGI where his condition is stated to be serious. According to the police, the incident occurred at 9 am when a Tata 407 coming from Barwala hit the Tata Magic maxi cab coming from the opposite direction. More than a dozen persons were travelling in the maxi cab. Passersby immediately informed the police which took the injured to the hospital.
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No lift at mini-secretariat even after 15 yrs
Panchkula, July 8 Most of the departments, including the office of the Deputy Commissioner (DC) and the Superintendent of Police (SP) are located on the first and second floors of the building. Hundreds of people, including women, physically challenged and elderly persons from the town and other parts of the district visit the mini secretariat for their work. Former Chief Minister the late Bhajan Lal had inaugurated the building in 1995 and had announced that a lift would be installed so that people do not face any difficulty. However, over 15 years have passed, but nothing has been done so far and the work has been hanging fire. Except for the structure, no steps have been taken for installing the machinery to make the lift operational. Recently, finishing touches had been given to the structure by setting granite tile and doors at entry points of each floor of the lift. A senior official of the PWD B&R said they had received a proposal for installing the lift about a year ago and the contract had been awarded to a private company. Some work was pending and it would be completed after the machinery was installed. Deputy Commissioner Ashima Brar said the work of installing the lift had been handed over to the electrical wing of the PWD B&R and necessary directions would be given to complete the work as soon as possible.
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PCR vehicles not found on location, six suspended
Chandigarh, July 8 The drive was conducted to check the response time of the PCR, which is three to five minutes. During the drive, two PCR vehicles of the central division were not found on the location. One PCR vehicle meant to be stationed at the Sector 25 roundabout was found near the PGI while another PCR vehicle meant to be stationed in Sector 11 was found near the road leading to Dhanas. Constables Jagbir Singh, Sandeep Kumar, Sunil Kumar, Parmod Kumar and Home Guard volunteers Harwinder Singh and Phool Singh were suspended. Inspector SPS Sondhi of the PCR said the constables also failed to intimate the Police Control Room that they had left their actual point. A departmental inquiry has also been initiated against them. Only last week, two police personnel, including a sub-inspector and a constable posted with the PCR were suspended for their negligence in handling a case of eve-teasing. The police suspended sub-inspector Rajinder Singh and constable Kartar Singh of the IRB as they had failed to act on a call from a woman who complained that she was being chased and harassed by youths in a car.
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Statement issued by PUTA member condemned
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, July 8 Jaspal Kaur Kaang, president of the association, said it was the result of consistent efforts of PUTA executive and faculty members that the screening process for fresh recruitments was in full swing. For certain departments, interviews had already been conducted and for many remaining departments, interview dates had already been fixed as informed by Vice-Chancellor RC Sobti, he added. PUTA officials alleged that Manjit Singh was an elected executive member of the association. However, his individual views and experience must not be treated as PUTA’s stand. “He is already in a committee, which has been assigned the task of filling vacancies. When he is aware of all developments, then why a direct and open letter to the Vice-Chancellor has been sent, which amounts to marginalising the democratic body?” said PUTA officials.
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Founder’s day celebrated
Activists of the ABVP pay tributes to martyrs on the party’s founder’s day at DAV College, Sector 10, Chandigarh, on Friday. Tribune photo: Parvesh Chauhan UT gears up for trade fair
The Chandigarh Administration is all set to participate in the India International Trade Fair (IITF 2011) to be held in November. This year, the theme and emphasis of the trade fair is handicraft. Therefore, the local entrepreneurs dealing in handicrafts manufactured locally will be able to showcase their products at the Chandigarh pavilion for the international and Indian visitors.
National crafts mela
‘Colours and Sounds of South India’ will be the theme of the ‘3rd Chandigarh National Crafts Mela’ to be held in October 2011 at Kalagram where special focus will be on showcasing folk traditions, arts and crafts of the southern states. South India is known for its diversity in terms of landscapes, people and cultures, food habits, art and architecture. This year’s special focus will be handicrafts, handlooms and folk traditions, including authentic fragrances and flavours of rich Indian cuisines, and also folk music, folk instruments and folk dances. During the 10 days, various cultural evenings like folk music, folk instrument, folk dances from all parts of the country will be organised besides day-long performances by renowned artistes.
Officials for caste Census
The Chandigarh Administration has decided to appoint PCS and HCS officers as charge officers for the smooth conduct of socio-economic and Caste Census 2011.These HCS and PCS officers will be in charge of the six charge centres decided by the Chandigarh Administration where data collected during the Caste Census 2011 will be uploaded. Thirteen ‘master trainers’ have been provided training at New Delhi and these master trainers shall impart training to the supervisors/enumerators on July 14 and July 15, for the conduct of the Census. The administration has also decided to set up helpline/complaint centre in the office of the Deputy Commissioner.
Smart card enrolment camp
‘Make city safe for residents’
Move Strong 2011
The Department of neurology, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, under the aegis of the PGI Neurological Society will be organising ‘Move Strong 2011’- MS support group programme on 9 and 10 July. The aim of the maiden venture is to educate patients and increase awareness about multiple sclerosis, allay fears and answer patients’ queries. By bringing together all MS patients of Chandigarh and neighbouring areas, it envisages forming a permanent MS support group/advocacy group in the city with the help of volunteer patients to bring to the fore issues pertaining to MS patient needs, care, psychosocial issues and help find appropriate solutions for the same. The programme will be held at the Advanced Eye Centre auditorium, PGIMER. It will commence on 9 July at 2.30 pm. The programme will feature a lecture and session for the patients by Reiki experts Poonam and Col RN Singh.
Career fair
Indian Institute of Job Training (IIJT), a vocational skills training company, received over 300 jobseekers at the first-ever career fair for the youth in Chandigarh. Over 50 offers were made on-the-spot by the five participating companies, including Karman InfoTech, Westside, Competent Synergies, KC Royal Park and Bajaj Capital at the career fair. This career fair offered over 500 entry-level positions into finance, operations and sales & marketing.
Excellence awards
The Mahatma Gandhi State Institute of Public Administration, Punjab (MGSIPAP), will institute excellence awards for the government functionaries, local bodies, panchayati raj institutions (PRIs) and members of civil society in recognition of their distinguished performance, innovative abilities and outstanding contribution for public good. The objective of these awards is to identify ‘role models’ in different spheres of public life.
Catonomics starts
An academic extravaganza for CAT aspirants ‘Catonomics’ is being organised at Bal Bhawan in Sector 23 from July 8 to 10. Speaking about Catonomics, Aashutosh Jerath, northern region head, Career Launcher, said the event was conceptualised three years back as a pure academic event which provides an opportunity for CAT aspirants to learn researched techniques and strategies for improving their scores. “The techniques significantly raises CAT aspirants level of preparedness through 20 hours of academic rigour powered by the best CAT trainers in the country,” said Jerath. Sessions will be ranging from critical reasoning and intricacies of grammar to modern maths, data sufficiency and stress management.
MOHALI
SCAN NK Sharma, chairman of the District Planning Committee, SAS Nagar, today distributed cheques worth Rs 15 lakh among three panchayats of Daun, Kurdi and Dharmgarh for development work. Sharma, who has initiated a campaign to review development works being carried out in the district, said Rs 2 lakh would be spent on the tunnel for discharging waste water, Rs 1 lakh on dharmashala of the village. He said Rs 4 lakh would be spent in Kurdi on the construction and repair of streets, whereas Rs1 lakh would be spent on graveyard meant for the Muslim community. He said link road connecting Dharmgarh village to Phase XI would be repaired soon.
Auction of VIP numbers
At an auction of the remaining numbers of PB 65 N series, district transport office earned Rs 14 lakh. Karan Singh, district transport officer, said PB 65 N 0013 went for Rs 92,000, PB 65 N 0071 went for Rs 85,000 and PB 65 N 0011 went for Rs 65,000. A total of 10 numbers were auctioned.
PANCHKULA
SCAN Rohit Rohilla and Surinder Goel have been elected as president and general secretary of the Panchkula Press Club as they defeated Ashok Sharma and TD Pandey, respectively. Rohilla got 36 votes while Sharma polled 17 votes. Similarly Goel secured 36 votes and Pandey got 18 votes. A total of 54 members exercised their franchise while one vote was declared as invalid. — TNS
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BSc in biotechnology gets popular
Chandigarh, July 8 Now, the UT department of higher education is mulling over introducing this course in Postgraduate Government College for Girls, Sector 11, and Postgraduate Government College, Sector 46, from the coming session. “Government colleges are giving a tough competition to private colleges, especially in courses like BSc biotech honours. Across the nation, this course and other hybrids like it have gained popularity over pure sciences. We will be extending this course to other two colleges as well,” said Ajoy Sharma Director, Higher Education. For BSc computer science, over 700 applications have been received so far for 160 seats available in government colleges. PGGC, Sector 11, has received 1,411 applications for 280 seats in BCA. The Government College for Commerce and Business Administration, Sector 42, has received 1,050 applications for BBA for 120 seats. PGGCG-42 and PGGCG-11 have got 200 forms each for the 60 seats available in PGDCA, while PGGC, Sector 46, has so far received more than 300 forms for 30 seats for MCom. Around 13,500 prospectuses were sold in five government colleges this year.
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PU students protest against fee hike
Chandigarh, July 8 Joint BED admission
Coordinator of BEd online admissions-2011 Dr Nandita today said RC Sobti, Vice-Chancellor, Panjab University, will inaugurate the website for online submission of forms for joint BEd admissions-2011 (for Panjab University, Chandigarh; Punjabi University, Patiala; Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar and Chitkara University, Punjab) at the Computer Centre of Panjab University on July 9, 2011, (Saturday) at 10 am.
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30 teachers relieved, reinstated
Chandigarh, July 8 “These teachers work like regular teachers, but were asked to leave at a moment’s notice. If the UT has decided to get deputationist from other state, then it should ensure that this does not mean that many are left unemployed,” said Swaran Singh, representative of these teachers. “We have re-adjusted everybody because we sympathise with them, but we wish to clarify that their contracts clearly say that their services will be discontinued once a regular teacher is available to replace them. The re-adjustment is our concern, but not their right,” said a senior official of the UT education department.
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The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) the founder’s day at DAV College on Friday by paying tribute to martyrs. ABVP members pledged to work for the benefit of the student community.
To enable the Above Poverty Line (APL), Below Poverty Line (BPL) and Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) beneficiaries having a ration card registered with the fair price shops in the UT to get their smart cards, the food and supplies department will organise different camps from July 8 onwards. The smart card enrolment camp for APL/BPL/AAY registered beneficiaries will be held fair price shop-wise. The camps will be held for 30 days at the venue as given in the schedule. The schedule of the camps will be provided in the leadings newspapers and the same can also be sought from the fair price shop owners. The list of registered APL/BPL/AAY ration cardholders has been pasted at fair price shop and at the venue also. All the beneficiaries are requested to go through the list and obtain a token from the fair price shops where their ration cards stand registered before proceeding to the venue for enrolment purpose.
Anil Kaushik, Director General, Punjab Police (Prisons), has asked Rotarians to make the city safe for residents by instilling in them better driving sense. Speaking on the installation ceremony of the Rotary Club of Chandigarh at a function organised in the CII here on Friday, he stressed on the need to encourage them to be a part of the community policing efforts.