Bathinda, October 7
A visit to the slaughterhouse, run by the Bathinda Municipal Corporation (BMC), is sure to turn you into a vegetarian. Here, animals are butchered without being medically examined and that too in the most unhygienic of conditions.

The medical examination of animals was stopped a few months ago when some animal sellers entered into a heated argument and brawl with veterinary doctors following detection of medically unfit animals.

The animals are brought here for sale from the nearby villages. They are purchased by the local meat shop owners and brought to the slaughterhouse. "We examine the animals physically and ensure that no dead animal is brought for butchering," said a corporation employee, issuing slips for slaughtering the animals, on the condition of anonymity.

He admitted that sick animals pose a serious danger to the health of human beings but expressed his helplessness in resolving the problem at his level.

A visit to the slaughterhouse in the city revealed that apart from unhealthy animals being butchered to obtain meat for human consumption, the place lacked even the facilities for basic sanitation.

Insects were seen crawling up from the open water tanks situated beside the place for the slaughtering of animals.

There are two portions of the slaughterhouse comprising the halaal and jhatka sections.

Both the rooms are divided by a cemented wall and have separate entrances.

The halaal meat is more hygienic than jhatka as only seven to ten animals are butchered in a day in the halaal section as compared to the 70 to 80 animals butchered in the jhatka section.

The Tribune team saw people chopping goats, sheep and pigs in the most absurd manner in the absence of doctors or experts. As many as 70 to 80 animals are butchered everyday at the slaughterhouse. The meat laced with blood and other body parts of the animals is washed using water. There is no other way to drain the polluted water and it is stored in open cemented tanks constructed near the place of the slaughter.

"The stench does not allow the outsiders to stand for even ten seconds. The stench emanates from the polluted water that gets stored in the cemented tanks meant for collecting waster water," said Channa, a local meat buyer, waiting for his turn to purchase goat meat.

The slaughterhouse is situated in a mere 150 square yards but it should have ideally been located in at least three to five acres.

Though it is mandatory to check the animals but due to lack of space and separate provision for conducting health check-ups of animals, the practice of butchering animals without the medical examination is on for the last many years, said the shopkeepers.

"Doctors have now refused to visit the place on the pretext of lacking the basic infrastructure and security," said a meat buyer Bashir.

Though the authorities got an effluent treatment plant installed inside the house to treat the polluted water, but being bulky, it added to the chaos and filthiness. In the evening, polluted water in the open tanks is sucked and clean water is released into the re-filling tanks.

Bhola Singh, deployed to take care of the slaughtering of animals, who, issues the slips by the municipal corporation, admitted to the problems and said efforts were being made to build a new slaughterhouse.

"Three to five acres of land is required for the slaughterhouse. This building was renovated last year but still, a lot needs to be done," he said.

One of the vets for the medical examination of the animals, Dr Rajneek Bhaura said that they have already written to the authorities concerned regarding the lack of basic amenities in the slaughterhouse due to which the doctors could not perform their duties.

Doctors need to quarantine the animals at least 24 to 48 hours before declaring it fit for consumption or butchering and there is no such place to the quarantine animals, said another.

Fact file n Slaughterhouse is in its present place since 1960. Heated arguments and brawls were reported frequently a few months ago when a doctor declared an animal medically unfit. Since then, vets have written to the authorities to provide them with basic facilities and security to perform their duties. n 70 to 80 animals are slaughtered daily without conducting medical examination and the meat is sold at non-vegetarian eating joints, hotels and other places in the city. n Mostly goat, sheep, pig and their young ones are allowed to be butchered here by Municipal Corporation in lieu of Rs 5 to Rs 10 per animal as the fees for slaughtering. Animals can not be butchered for meat anywhere else except the slaughterhouse. n Slip provided by Bathinda Municipal Corporation officials allows the buyers to sell meat in the open market, hotels and other eating points without any hassle. n Shopkeepers in the city who fail to produce slips during inspections at meat shops are fined heavily by the officials of the Bathinda Municipal Corporation.

Bathinda, October 7
CIA in-charge of Bathinda, SI Rajinder Kumar has been booked by the Bathinda police following the High Court orders under sections 182, 384, 511, 451, 506 and 120-B of the IPC.

Kumar along with other cops from the CIA, ASI Kirpal Singh and five unidentified policemen, have also been booked at the Kotwali police station.

All the policemen have been suspended and a departmental inquiry has been initiated against them.

In a petition filed by Ram Sarup Sharma, a resident of Basant Nagar, Abohar, it was alleged that Rajinder, Kirpal Singh and five other policemen had been harassing him for the past few months over one pretext or the other.

As per the copy of the FIR, 65-year-old Ram Sarup filed a petition in the High Court under section 482 of the CrPc for protection of life and liberty of himself and his family members.

Ram Sarup alleged that the cops from the CIA raided his house in search of his son-in-law, Sunder Dass and demanded that he be produced before them.

When Ram Sarup enquired about reason behind the search for Sunder, he was told that Sunder is accused of cheating people and is wanted by the police. Ram Sarup said that police officials, however, did not show any documents related to any case registered against Sunder.

Despite being a senior citizen with an ailing wife and two married daughters, the cops did not sympathize with Ram Sarup. They raided their house early in the morning or late night umpteen times without any documents or registration of case against any of the family members.

In November 2010, the cops took away his son, Sanjiv Kumar to the CIA staff, Bathinda, without his involvement in any criminal activities.

The cops threatened the complainant and his family members with dire consequences and said they would not release Sanjiv until Sundar Dass is produced before them.

Following the petition, the High Court directed the Bathinda SSP to submit a report on the allegations levelled by the complainant.

The complainant also produced a video footage to support the accused cops' presence in their house. The High Court, in its order on May 18 this year asked the Senior Superintendent of Police, Bathinda, to file a reply through an affidavit, to which the SSP replied on August 8.

In its affidavit, Bathinda SSP Sukhchain Singh Gill stated that SI Rajinder Kumar and ASI Kirpal Singh along with other police officials have been found to be at fault and departmental action against them has been recommended. The conduct of the person indicted indicates criminal conduct and commission of cognizable offences.

A case was finally registered against the cops and five others at the Kotwali police station yesterday.

Kotwali SHO Jagdish Lal said no arrests have been made in this regard and he has been collecting documentary evidence.

Police officials said it has been established that neither did the accused cops inform before leaving their headquarters nor before entering the area of the accused.

"As per norms, every policeman should ensure his departure on record and while arresting or interrogating anyone outside his area, should inform the local police as well," said a senior police functionary.

Bathinda October 7
The Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) measured the noise level in the city on Dussehra. The level of sound during the day time at the Dussehra grounds was noted to be between 75 to 96 decibels. In the evening, the level exceeded all the limits and measured 117 decibels. These sound levels are higher than the normal noise limits mentioned in the Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules.

The sound check was done in all the areas of the city where Dussehra was celebrated on mass scale such as the MSD School, its surrounding areas and the markets which witness rush.

PPCB XEN Najjer Singh Manshahia said, "The noise level limits during the day time in the commercial areas is 65 decibels and in residential areas it is 55decibels. At night, the sound limit in the commercial areas is 55 decibels and in residential areas, 45 decibels. These limits tend to increase, especially on Dussehra and Diwali, which is harmful.”

"All educational institutes, hospitals and courts are silence zones where noise limits should be 50 decibels during the day and 40 decibels at night. In the city, a majority of the hospitals, schools, colleges and courts are on the roads where heavy vehicular traffic crosses the whole day. Even the pressure horn sound exceeds the limit of 100 decibels which is hazardous for ears," he added.

Dr Navdeep Sra, ENT specialist, Civil Hospital, Bathinda, said, "The sudden exposure to the high density sound can lead to permanent ear damage. After Diwali, many patients come who are exposed to the sudden loud sound of crackers, which cause even the tearing of their ear drums."

"The constant exposure to high density sound like more than 100 decibels, such as in factory workers, leads to deafness. In the cities, the constant vehicular sound pollution on the roads can cause problems among the elderly like insomnia, irritability, anxiety and high blood pressure."

"The PPCB will make efforts to check the sound pollution. The administration should also take strict measures to curb the pollution in areas that have been declared silence zones," Najjer Singh said.

Bathinda, October 7
Owing to the lackadaisical approach of the Department of Technical Education, Punjab, Scheduled Caste students studying in government-run technical education colleges are facing harassment.

Despite the Punjab government's much publicized declaration of doing away with affidavits, ushering in the recommendations of the Punjab E-Governance Commission, the technical education department continues to ask the students to give affidavits for claiming the SC scholarships.

As per the government rules, 25 per cent seats are reserved for the SC students in technical education and many of these students are claimants for the scholarships available to them through the Government of India.

Today, Scheduled Caste students of the ITI College in Bathinda were seen at the district courts running from pillar to post to get the affidavits.

Most of these students are mere matriculates, who do not have enough confidence to deal with the legalities of court matters.

"It is a daunting task for us to get the stamps, get them typed and then attested. I have never even come alone so far. It is a tedious job. Either my friends come with me or my family members," said a visibly disturbed female student.

Educationists say the very purpose of giving scholarships is defeated as the children face so much harassment.

Agreeing to the problems faced by the students, the officials of the technical education department said they were aware of the government's decision to do away with the affidavits, but have not got any intimation regarding this from their own department.

"There is no instruction from the Director, Technical Education, Punjab, telling us that students need not get the affidavit," college officials said.

However, Assistant Director, Technical Education, Daljit Kaur said she was not aware of it and would only be able to comment after checking it with her office.

Meanwhile, the Assistant Director, Department of SC/ ST Welfare, Punjab, Lakha Singh said that several times, he has written to the Technical Education Department specifying that no affidavit is needed from the students.

"We just need an undertaking from the college principal concerned that the student is a genuine beneficiary. I have raised the issue repeatedly during the meetings with the technical education department also, but somehow, the department employees fail to understand. In this entire tussle, it is the students who are at the receiving end," the Assistant Director added.

Bathinda, October 7
The Irrigation Department is all set to shift from its 110-year-old office comprising 25 rooms to the new office consisting of 11 rooms in the new building of the Mini-secretariat.

The Bathinda Development Authority (BDA) is likely to put the present building's land, situated in the Canal Colony, on sale to raise funds for its coffers. The Bathinda Irrigation office has even districts under it including some portions of Ludhiana, Sangrur, Barnala, Moga, Muktsar, Bathinda and Faridkot. It also includes the sub-divisional offices of Raikot, Saina in Rampura Phul, Bathinda sub-division and Teona in Gidderbaha.

The present building has 25 rooms wherein a XEN, four sub-divisional officers (SDOs), Deputy Collector's headquarters and the ‘taar ghar’ (an office maintaining the record of level of water in various water bodies) are housed.

“Our building was built during the British era and remained the epicentre of all activities related to irrigation and agriculture. Built before 1899, the building has weathered the vagaries of time and stands erect and strong. A little bit of repair and whitewash would make it last for at least the next 60 years,” said the Irrigation officials.

They added that time and again, the district administration was informed that at least 15 rooms are needed to house the office of the XEN and its attendant paraphernalia. “The Canal Lining Department has also been allotted 11 rooms, which may be enough for them as they do not deal with the revenue work. The government has taken a wrong decision in doing so,” said the employees.

They added that instead of hammering down a building of historic importance, the government could have preserved it.

“Besides the building and its dwellers, the tranquility and the serene environment would also disappear,” the officials rued.

Bathinda, October 7
“The prevalence of knee problem is the highest in Punjab as compared to other states of northern India,” stated Dr Manuj Wadhwa, Director and Head, Joint Replacement Unit, Fortis Hospital, Mohali. He pointed out that the changing lifestyle had even made ythe young population undergo total knee replacement for a better quality of life.

Dr Wadhwa was here to speak on the fourth generation knee implant. He said the fourth generation knee implant was the most advanced design available in the world to meet the needs of the demanding population. He said it could provide a high range of motion up to 150 degree, a longer implant life and enable patients to live free of pain.

He said though he had conducted over 10,000 knee replacement surgeries so far but as the fourth generation knee implant had been introduced just two months ago at the Fortis Hospital (Mohali), therefore, during these two months, he had conducted 107 fourth generation knee implants. “The fourth generation one knee implant costs Rs 1.75 lakh while for both the knees, it costs Rs 2.90 lakh,” he added. He said the modern lifestyle and increased life expectancy had resulted in greater number of patients opting for the total knee arthroplasty at an earlier age than ever before.

Considering the need for active lifestyle and long life expectancy, the new generation knee design of Sigma CR-150 was a new age knee implant to address the vital needs of the demanding patients, who are young and want to have the freedom of movement enabling them to indulge in sports, travel, driving, trekking, sitting on the floor and socialising.

He said to suit the Indian needs, where it is customary to squat and fold legs and sit on the floor for performing rituals, it is essential to have a cure that could allow patients to do so even after the surgery. He said the new technology had come as a boon for the patients.

Bathinda, October 7
The Bathinda district, especially the Bathinda city, seems to be in the grip of dengue disease as the total number of dengue positive cases in the district has risen to 241so far, including 204 from the Bathinda city alone, during this season.

Besides the Bathinda city, remaining dengue positive cases have been reported from Talwandi Sabo block (23 cases), Goniana block (six cases), Sangat block (four cases), and Nathana and Bhagta blocks (two cases each).

It may be mentioned here that during this season till September 24 last, the number of dengue positive cases in the Bathinda district was 137, including 103 from the Bathinda city alone. Thus during this fortnight 101 more dengue positive cases have been detected only from the Bathinda city till today through Mac Elisa test.

Due to the large number of dengue patients and seekers of platelet rich plasma (PRP) bags in the city, the bags were brought from Mansa and Barnala yesterday by the Blood Bank staff. Even today these bags were not available with the Blood Bank.

However on the Apheresis machine, meant for separating platelets from blood, 60 Apheresis procedures have been conducted during past 20 days.

However, no death of any confirmed dengue positive case has been reported from any part of the district so far. However, a large number of fever cases are also being treated by the private doctors as dengue cases but district health authorities are not ready to consider them as dengue cases till the same were confirmed by Mac Elisa test.

A total of 100 patients, suffering from fever were undergoing treatment at the Civil Hospital today . However, the SMO of the hospital Dr Satish Goyal said a large number of these patients might be dengue patients but till they were tested positive during Mac Elisa test they could not be declared as dengue positive cases.

Since September 30, the larva mosquito, causing dengue, from 207 houses in Bathinda has been detected by the anti-larva teams.

The BMC Commissioner Uma Shanker said the BMC had pressed its three fogging machines into service to kill the mosquitoes in the city.