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Another teenager goes missing from Snehalaya
Chandigarh, August 20 This is the fourth incident this year when a child has disappeared from the UT-run institute which has been in the news in past as well for its lackadaisical security measures. Sources in police said Raj Bahadur, who is mentally challenged, was found missing by the authorities last evening while he might have left a day ago. The authorities have surprisingly no record where each child slept. “While he was supposed to be sleeping in the boys dormitory, it came to light that he would sneak out to the vacant hostel block and sleep there. The institute authorities are irresponsible as they have no clue about the child,” said a police official. In May, a 14-year-old boy, Sonu, went missing while nine-year-old Suraj escaped from Snehalaya by scaling the rear boundary wall in February. A similar incident was reported in April. The institute, which has pulled iron curtains for normal visitors and media, has been ridiculed in the past for lack of proper security and trained staff. The institute still has no CCTVs cameras and the walls are easy to scale.
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Elderly woman murdered
Panchkula, August 20 He raised the alarm and rushed his injured family members to a hospital where Shanti was declared brought dead while the other three were admitted to the critical care unit. Prima facie investigations reveal that domestic help
Akhilesh, a native of Bihar, who was serving the family for past three years, committed the crime. However, the motive behind the crime could not be established. The domestic help is absconding. While Praveen was not ht home at the time of incident, his wife and daughters had gone for a walk after dinner. When they returned, they saw the domestic help attacking Shanti Devi. When they tried to intervene, the accused attacked them as well. "We found a broken scissor stained in blood near the body and expect it to be a weapon used for the murder. However, we
can be sure only after investigations," said a police official.
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Healthyway Fraud
Chandigarh, August 20 While seven cases have been registered against Healthyway owner Amit Kakkar earlier this week, sources said the police had been receiving complaints against the consultancy all these years. However, all of these have resulted in a compromise. The consultancy has been functioning from Sector 42 since 2005 when it got a licence. The volumes of complaints against the consultancy that poured in all these years have put the role of the police under the scanner and reflect shoddy policing. The police never bothered to investigate these cases on whether or not the immigration firm was genuine and had
emphasised only on mutual settlements. Sources allege that the owner of the firm enjoyed police patronage. Amit Kakkar has been accused of forging bank documents while applying for visas for clients. As many as 14 banks are under the scanner where the owner opened fake bank accounts of their clients. Police officials said in most of the complaints where visa applications used to get rejected, the affected party used to urge for refund and the police would successfully assist in reaching a compromise. However, the police never bothered to find the reason for the large number of complaints received against the consultancy and have acted only after a foreign mission informed them that their documents were fake.
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Company agents still active
Chandigarh, August 20 Even as the police sealed the office last Saturday, four agents of the company sitting outside the locked office in Sector 42 are still telling their clients that they will resume the work after 10 days. Some of the clients
have also been told that the police will not take any action against them and no more cases will be registered now as a settlement has been effected. Scores of clients of the company daily throng the Sector 42 office of the consultancy as they have been left in the lurch and are looking for their passports, which they
had deposited with the company. Rajiv, a resident of Jalandhar, who came to the consultancy, said the agents told him that he should come back after 10 days. “When I asked them about the police case against them, they told me that Ravi Kakkar, the accused’s father, will run the firm and I can then complete my application for visa,” he said. “To my surprise, the agents said they are not affected by police action at all and will run the firm smoothly,” he added.
Police conducts raids
The UT Police on Saturday conduced raids at various places to arrest the co-accused in the case involving fraud by Healthyway Immigration. The police raided the Dhanas residence of Kuldeep, who was an employee at the firm and had, according to the police, connived with the prime accused, Amit Kakkar, in duping scores of youths on false promises of easy migration abroad. However, Kuldeep is absconding and could not be arrested. The police has now zeroed in on Kuldeep after investigations brought to light that he was allegedly the brain behind the fraud. While Amit Kakkar was the beneficiary of all profits as he owned the company, it was Kuldeep who, the police claim, forged documents and succeeded in duping scores of youths.
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Auto-rickshaw gang strikes again
Chandigarh, August 20 A fortnight ago, a gang of auto drivers had struck in the night and had robbed three persons in three separate incidents in the city. The UT Police is, however, still clueless and has failed to make a headway in the case. The recent incident took place at 11.30 pm last night when Gobind Singh, Gopal Singh and Ram Singh, apple traders from Kullu, hired an auto-rickshaw from Grain Market in Sector 26. Three persons, including the driver, were already seated in the auto-rickshaw when the victims boarded it. The traders had come to the city to supply apples at the grain market. The police said instead of
taking them to their desired destination, the driver of the auto turned his vehicle to a deserted place near Jeera Mandi in Maloya. The apple traders were then asked to come out of the vehicle where the assailants bashed them up. One of the assailants then took out a knife and attacked Gobind Singh, who sustained injury in the stomach. The traders were asked to hand over all their belongings at knifepoint. While Gobind was robbed of Rs 45,000, Gopal Singh and Ram Singh lost Rs 67,000 and Rs 46,000, respectively. The accused then fled in their vehicle. The police was called and Gobind was rushed to Government Multi-Specialty Hospital in Sector 16 where he undergoing treatment. The police has registered a case of robbery at the Sector 39 police station. A police official said the robbery was the handiwork of the same gang that had attacked three persons in separate incidents on August 6. Rs 1.3 lakh stolen from car
A miscreant on foot stole a purse containing Rs 1.3 lakh cash, two mobile phones and important documents from a car that had stopped at a red signal at Hallo Majra light point. Neelu Grover, who works as an executive with a private company, was on her way to her residence in Mani Majra when the incident took place on Thursday at 9 pm. The bag was kept on the front seat of the car. The police said the victim turned off the engine at the light point as a result the doors of the car was unlocked. A boy opened the front door of her car and fled with the bag. The money belonged to her employer, the police said. A case of theft has been registered at the Sector 31 police station. Incidents reported this month
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UT eviction order leaves Central Club members shaken
Sharing his emotions Col (retd) Amarjeet Singh Chonkar, who has been regular visitor to the club for over three decades, said he had seen the club grow all these years and closing it down would be similar to losing a child for him. “To support the club I along with the other members on several occasions helped the club financially during ad times when it was going through a financial crunch”, he said. The club has many retired as well serving people from various professions as members including judges, top cops and prominent personalities. Vinod Khanna, the secretary of the club who has been associated with it since 1981, said: “Shutting down the club will mean no less then becoming homeless for them (members). The club has become a second home for senior citizens with most of them regular visitors.” The club’s corridors are echoing with discussions by members over the UT administration’s eviction orders, with many of them asking about the issue almost every day. A few of the members even plan to approach the UT administrator for relief. SPS Purthy, another club member, said: “It’s the feel-good factor that always brought me here. But, if the club is shut down then it’ll be a personal loss for me. It will be a painful moment for us if the club is closed as at this age, as this is the only place where we can spend quality time”. The club has 1,080 members of whom about 900 are senior citizens and for most of them the club has become a lifeline without which they cannot imagine spending the rest of their lives. A 78-year-old woman, who has been a member of the club for the past 32 years, said the club was like a “joint family” for most of them. “Every evening the members get together at the club like a family and share their emotions. I desperately wait for the afternoon so that I could go to the club, meet up with friends and play ‘tambola (a gambling game)’”, she added. Rani Nelu Pal Singh, another frequent visitor to the club and a member for over a decade, said: “For us it’s not just a club but also a home. My father was a member and now I’m a member. One can imagine how it feels after losing a family member”, she said.
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Violation of building bylaws
Chandigarh, August 20 Giving details, a senior official of the Estate Office said that a list of over 25 hotels and restaurants in the both sectors had been prepared after a fresh survey, which was done recently to check the latest misuse or building violations at these sites. “Most of the hotels and restaurants were found flouting the rules and regulations with impunity. While some have been found misusing the basements, some are using their backyards for commercial purposes. We have already served notices to around 22 such sites located in these sectors. Now around 30 more sites, which also includes renowned hotels and restaurants, have been identified in the survey and will be served notices very soon,” said the official. “The targeted sites also include violators in the Grain Market at Sector 26,” said the official. The renowned eating joints, which are on the Estate Office’s radar, also include Pizza Hut, Kava, ABS Hotel, Tao and Zaika Voodo. It may be recalled that the Estate Office had issued notices under Estate Rules, 2007 to 15 local hoteliers in
Sector 35 on August 11 for building violations under which the buildings could be sealed and resumed apart from imposing misuse charges at the rate of Rs 500 per square foot.
Rules flouted
Most of the hoteliers have already spent lakhs on the decoration to convert the basements of the building to run bars, restaurants or banquet halls without any requisite
permission.
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City law firm to aid aviation operators
Chandigarh, August 20 Ian P Veall, representing Donald H Bunker and Associates, Dubai, was in Chandigarh today to formally establish the affiliation between the two law firms. On the occasion, Nitin Sarin of Sarin & Co, an LLM degree holder in air and space law, said: “Through this affiliation, we look forward to rendering prompt, comprehensive, affordable and practical legal and financial advice in the aviation sector in India as well as the Arabian Gulf. We are enthusiastic about the announcement of this affiliation today.” Highlighting the services that would be rendered through this affiliation, Veall, who is a British lawyer practising as an international lawyer in Dubai, said: “There are several issues that airlines encounter like those concerning insurance, finances and other issues pertaining to services and its employees where the companies require assistance and advice apart from its in house legal system. We are primarily into providing legal support in areas that are non-contentious.” Representatives of the two law firms added that the aviation market was forecasted to grow at exponential rates over the next two decades. The law firms are well placed to meet and exceed the requirements of aviation operators (commercial, corporate and private), governmental authorities and related organisations in India and abroad. As part of the affiliation, the firms also intend to initiate a series of lectures open to representatives from within the Indian aviation industry covering a range of topics, including aviation law, insurance and finance under the guidance of Dr Donald H Bunker, currently an adjunct professor of law at McGill University’s Institute of Air and Space Law in Montreal. The signing of the affiliation agreement, which took place at the office of Sarin & Co in Sector 4, Chandigarh, was presided over by Scott Slessor, Consul General of Canada and Justice SS Sodhi, president of the Sarin Memorial Legal Aid Foundation.
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Unhappy ending to online courtship
Panchkula, August 20 Enticed by “his” arresting looks, the girl (name withheld on request) and the boy entered into a strong online “relationship”. Finally, on August 15, the boy came to Panchkula to meet the girl who, however, was in for a shock, when he encountered despair rather than the compliments he was expecting. Not only did the girl have a change of heart but he ended up at a police station. Not aware of his goings on, the boy’s concerned parents filed a complaint with the Jaipur police that coordinated with the Panchkula cops, resulting in police action. However, the local cops later handed over the youth to his family. According to the police, the “relationship” between the minor boy and the girl, a resident of Sector 15, began on Facebook around months ago and thereafter they regularly chattted with each other. This month both decided to see each other in Panchkula following which the boy left Jaipur on August 15. However, when the two met the girl was taken aback to see the boy whose real self did not match with his online profile photo. Thereafter the girl rejected the boy, the police said. In the meantime, the boy’s parents filed a missing person complaint with the Jaipur police. The latter, after placing the boy’s cellphone under surveillance, eventually located the cell tower location to Sector 10 in Panchkula last Friday. The Jaipur police then contacted the Panchkula cops and located the boy in Sector 10. The police also recorded the statements of both the boy and the girl. The police said in her statement the girl stated though on several occasions she had told the boy to return to his home in Jaipur he had declined to do so. In his statement to the police, however, the youth claimed it was the girl who had invited him to come over to Panchkula, the police added. Panchkula superintendent of police Maneesh Chaudhary said: “As the boy had not committed any crime we handed him over his family members. The matter now stands closed as neither side lodged a complaint with the police”.
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UT reshuffles portfolios of officials
Chandigarh, August 20 In today’s reshuffle, the department of Director Higher Education and Special Secretary Health that were earlier with Punjab-cadre IAS officer Ajoy Sharma has now been given to DK Tewari, who is presently the Managing Director, CITCO, additional charge. Ajoy has proceeded on six-month training leave. The portfolio of joint secretary (Finance) has been given to Punjab cadre PCS officer Gurpreet Kaur Sapra. Earlier, the portfolios of director, Cultural Affairs, and chief general manager, CITCO, were held by PCS officer Amandeep Kaur, who had been repatriated to her parent state on August 17. Now the charge of the CGM, CITCO, and the director, Cultural Affairs, has beengiven to the HCS Varsha Khangelwal, who has also been holding
the portfolio of director, Social Welfare. The new postings will be
effective from September 1.
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Support pours in for Anna
Chandigarh, August 20 Meanwhile, a massive candlelight march was also held in Sector 17
in the evening by Anna’s team. Even five days after the protest the enthusiasm among people is still on, with people from all walks of life participating in
the movement. The chain hunger strike by different organisations also witnessed huge response from the volunteers who joined the hunger strike.
After the protest at the Sectors 17-22 roundabout, members of the IAC took out a candlelight march at Sector 17 with over 100 Anna supporters participating in it. The agitators were joined by the a singer who sang patriotic songs to spread awareness about Jan Lokpal Bill and encourage people to join the campaign against
corruption. Rahul Bhartiya of the IAC said with each passing day they would strengthen their protest. Meanwhile, motivated with Anna Hazare’s anti-corruption movement, a group senior citizens held a meeting and formed an Anti-Corruption Front (UT) to highlight corruption in various departments of the UT. IT professionals took out a candlelight march at
IT Park.
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A bumpy welcome to Sector 7
The roads of the sector have given way to the ongoing construction in the area which has caused big potholes that are submerged in the rainwater. A park near the gate number 4 has virtually turned into a junk yard with broken swings and heaps of garbage surrounding it.
The sector, which had started developing in early seventies, used to be the face of Panchkula town, said KB Malik, president of the Panchkula Estate Welfare Committee. But with the passage of time the glory of the sector had been faded away with its worn out roads and encroachments on the pavements all around the market place, he said. “One of the roads leading to the market is full of potholes, but nobody bothers to repair it,” he said. While HUDA had done its job to repair the road, the officials including the Executive Officer of the Municipal Council never bothered to react to our complaints, said Malik. However, Executive Officer, Municipal Council, KK Jain denied the allegation that complaints of residents were not being herd. “The patchwork on roads is in progress. No one from Sector 7 ever approached me with their problems. Still all complaints coming to me are being redressed,” said Jain.
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Mini-secretariat parking lot muddy, costlier
In this parking lot, the charges of parking four-wheelers is Rs 10 and for two-wheelers it is Rs 5, which is double the price being charged in Chandigarh by the parking lot contractors. In Chandigarh, rates of car parking are Rs 5 and two-wheeler parking is Rs 2. Rakesh Dhiman, a daily visitor of the mini-secretariat and the district court complex, said there was no proper parking lot and even the parking charges were very high. “It is not only about the inflated rates, but also presence of stray cattle which worsens the situation,” he added. Echoing similar view, Sector 16 resident Monika Sethi said: “It becomes very difficult to park vehicles here during monsoons. The parking lot gets filled with water and there is no drainage system here.” The district administration had proposed to set up a multi-level parking lot here. An official said that new parking place would have a four-story structure. Panchkula would be the only region in the tricity to have a four-story multi-level parking open from all sides. But at present District Red Cross Society is running the parking lot. When contacted, Vijay Lakshmi, secretary of the District Red Cross Society, said they would definitely take up the issue of lowering the charges during the next time of allotting the tender for the parking lot. Regarding the ill-maintained parking lot, she added that they would soon have a meeting with the Deputy Commissioner in this regard.
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Consumers’ body seeks check on overcharging
Mohali, August 20 He said a federation team had carried out a survey on August 9 at the Sector 70 Apni Mandi and found that the prices of carrots and capsicum were substantially higher than those fixed by the authorities. The team also found that certain sellers were using weights that they claimed were of 1 kg, but actually weighed 900 gm. The federation president said the supervisory staff at these mandis did not bother to keep any machine to check the weights being used by sellers. The federation said it had earlier brought to the notice of the health department that “substandard” spices and loose paneer were being sold at Apni Mandis, but no action had been initiated. He also claimed that “harmful” colours were injected to fruits and vegetables to make these look attractive. Besides, seller entry slips were not being given in all cases. The president demanded intervention of the authorities concerned to save farmers from exploitation by middlemen.
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Special train to Shirdi
Chandigarh, August 20 On the return journey, the train would start from Manmar on August 26 at 7 pm and arrive at Chandigarh on August 28 at 1.55 pm. The total fare being charged by the corporation for the two-day journey is Rs 3,078.
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CHANDIGARH SCAN Vanamahotsava observed
The welfare committee, Sector 27-D, Chandigarh, in collaboration with the Environment Society of India and horticulture department, UT, observed Vanamahotsava by planting 200 saplings in the society on Saturday. Devinder Singh Babla, area councillor, was the chief guest on the occasion. Rannvijay pockets gold
Rannvijay Singh of St John’s High School, Sector 26, won a gold medal in the U-19 category of UT Inter School Boxing Tournament.
Home decor exposition
A premier property and home decor exposition - Real Estate-cum-Home Décor Expo-2011 was inaugurated at Parade Ground in Sector 17 by CS Talwar (IAS), special secretary, department of finance, Punjab government. The exhibition will be on till August 22. The expo is a mega event of the real estate.
MOHALI SCAN Run for a cause
People from all walks of life participated in the first-ever run against drugs organised by the District Athletics Association and Masters Athletics Association, Mohali, at the newly constructed stadium in Sector 78. Chief guest NK Sharma, joint secretary, Shiromani Akali Dal, and chairman of the District Planning Committee, SAS Nagar, also took part in the event. He said an amount of Rs 100 crore was being spent on the construction of eight sports stadia.
Urja divas
Gian Jyoti Institute of Management and Technology organised Rajiv Gandhi Akshay Urja Divas to mark the 67th birth anniversary of Rajiv Gandhi. JS Bedi, chairman, GJ-IMT, said, “It is a great moment to remember the great visionary leader.”
Manav Mangal Smart School, Mohali, held an exhibition. Twenty eight rooms with different themes were set up by the creative efforts of students and teachers. Two rooms were set up by the arts department. The science department also set up two rooms one on ‘Modern Weaponry’ and the other one on live experiments.
Students awarded
Three students of Continental Group of Institutes were awarded degrees by Padma Vibhusahn awardee Anil Kakodkar, who is an eminent Indian nuclear scientist. The students, who got the awards, include Maninder Kaur, Hemdeep Kaur, and Balminder Kaur.
— TNS
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‘Admn block officials not tech savvy’
Chandigarh, August 20 With the official work such as maintenance of records being done manually, students have a harrowing time getting their work done. “We are ready with the equipment and training modules, but they are not interested. The computerisation was supposed to be completed last year. A majority of officials are not tech savvy. We have many a times asked the authorities to hold a training session, but nothing has happened so far. We have raised this issue a number of times, but to no avail,” said an official of the centre. “In this tech savvy world if we have to remain ahead of others we need to get more and more work done online. The centre holds free training sessions twice a week and more and more officials should attend it,” said centre head Tankeshwar Kumar. Registrar AK Bhandari said he would call a meeting to deal with the issue.
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Treat for classical music lovers
Chandigarh, August 20 Versatile and Suave Saili, the foremost disciple of Ashwini Bhide Deshpande and a doyenne of Jaipur Atrauli ghrana, spelt magic with an incredible rendition of raga Sur Malhar. After an elaborate alaap, Saili presented a slow paced composition “garjat aaye baadrva” which melted into a drut lya bandish “ badrva barsan in teen tal. She delineated the monsoon fervour in an uncommon raga Partteksha as she sung “kaari badriya” to perfection. After a Kajri “barsan laagi swan bundiya” and a Yaman Jhula based in folklore of UP, Saili doled out a bhajan and an “Aphang”. Chief guest Pandit Bhimsen Sharma honoured the artistes.
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GMHS-36
A special Janamashtami assembly was held at GMHS-36-D on Saturday. Teachers explained the importance of religious functions to students. Students were dressed as
Lord Krishna, ‘Radha’ and ‘Goppies’. AKSIPS -45
Janamashtami was celebrated at AKSIPS -45 with great zest and fervour. Tiny tots performed a group dance. They were taken to Laxmi Narayan Temple, Sector 44. Meanwhile, the pre-primary wing of AKSIPS-41 also celebrated Janamashtami. Students came dressed as ‘Radha’, Lord Krishna and ‘Meera’. Kendriya Vidyalaya
Janamashtami was celebrated at Kendriya Vidyalaya, Sector 31, on Saturday. Students came dressed as Lord Krishna and ‘Radha’. A beautifully decorated cradle was
put up. Sharda Sarvhitkari school
Students of the Sharda Sarvhitkari Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 40-D, celebrated the birth of Lord Krishna with religious fervour on Saturday. A cultural programme was held. Principal of the school BS Kanwar narrated short stories.
— TNS
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Chandigarh, August 20
Panchkula, August 20
Even an ongoing construction of a school building on one of the plots in the congested area of the sector has given sleepless nights to the residents.
Panchkula, August 20
