Ludhiana, October 17
As many as 35 question papers were found wet with fungus during an exam at SSN Memorial Senior Secondary School, Tibba road. It was during the ongoing board examinations of tenth standard that the out of four question paper bundles, one was found wet and stinking.

"One of the bundles was damp from outside. But when it was opened, about 35 question papers were in a bad condition. They were stinking because of fungus and were completely wet, unreadable and useless," said Sukhdarshan Singh, President, Nakal Virodhi Adhyapak Front.

The controller at the centre, Anju Soni, said some question papers exceeded the requisite numbers and some students being absent, they were able to conduct the examination without much trouble.

"It was by chance that the question papers were in excess, but if all the students had been present for the exam, it would have surely caused problems," said a teacher.

Ludhiana, October 17
There seems to be no end to the preparation of adulterated and poor quality sweets and bakery items ahead of Diwali, and even the relentless sampling and inspection drive launched by the health department across the city, has not been a deterrent.

Close on the heels of the seizure of large quantities of “petha” from two workshops which were operating in grossly unhygienic conditions, a team of health officials today raided the premises of a prominent cheese maker and destroyed large quantities of fungus-infested “khoya” meant to be used in the preparation of sweets.

District Health Officer Kulwinder Singh, along with food safety officers Manoj Khosla and Harpreet, who conducted the raid on Jhallian Di Hatti in Chaura Bazar, said the workshop had cobwebs everywhere and the sanitation level of the place and workers left much to be desired. Utensils being used to make sweets and cheese were also dirty.

“More than 15 quintals of the liquid residue from cheese, which had fungal growth and was stored to be reused, was destroyed. The samples of ‘khoya’ taken from the sweets shop have been sent for chemical analysis,” said Khosla.

The health officials inspected several other sweets shops at Chaura Bazar, Clock Tower and Civil Lines and took samples of ‘barfi’, ‘besan pinni’, biscuits and dry fruits.

Ludhiana, October 17
The industry in Ludhiana -- be it hosiery, textile, auto parts, hand tools -- is facing problems due to shortage of labour during the festival season. The production of units has come down to 10-15 per cent as workers are leaving for their native villages to celebrate Diwali.

Labourers flock at the Ludhiana Railway Station to board a train. A file photo

Also about 10 per cent of the total labour in the city is suffering from dengue fever.

Vinod Thapar, president of Knitwear Club, said the industry was facing many problems due to a shortage of labour. Both skilled and unskilled labourers had gone to their villages to celebrate Diwali. The others who could not go home on Dasehra, are all set to celebrate Diwali with their families in their native villages.

“We are facing more difficulties due to the peak season. Had it been a dull period, we would not have felt the pinch. But now, we are facing huge production losses, especially when manufacturers are supplying repeats to retailers,” he said.

Chairman of Northern Region of Engineering Export Promotion Council SC Ralhan said: “There is production loss to the tune of about 20 per cent due to labour problems. Workers have already asked for a week-long leave from their employers. The problem compounds when they do not return even after a month. Also, several workers have been suffering from dengue. It seems that the authorities are least concerned to curb the mosquito menace. Fogging is needed in areas where industrial workers live in clusters, but machines never reach there and labourers continue to live in unhygienic conditions. We are doing our best for the workers, but the cleanliness part has to be taken care of by the municipal corporation,” he said.

Krishan Yadav, an industrial worker from Uttar Pradesh, said Diwali was one festival which most workers wanted to celebrate with their families. Those who have their families with them in the city face no problems, but the others make it a point to visit their native places during Diwali. “A majority of employers understand this and cooperate with us and we are given bonus, too, to celebrate the festival with our children and families,” he said.

Ludhiana, October 17
Special Judge Paramjit Singh has convicted Vinod Kumar, a patwari of Samrala, for taking a bribe of Rs 500. He was ordered to undergo imprisonment for two years. A fine of Rs 4,000 was also imposed on him.

A case under Section 7, 13 (2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act was registered against the accused at Vigilance Bureau police station in 2003. The case was registered following a complaint by Jagdeep Singh Jagga of Samrala.

The complainant had said he had taken a loan from Co-operative Agriclutural Development Bank to purchase a tractor. In lieu of that loan, he had mortgaged his land in favour of the bank. He handed over a copy of the deed to the patwari and requested him to prepare the relevant papers. But the patwari demanded Rs 1,000 for the work. The deal was struck at Rs 500. The complainant reported the matter to DSP Sarwan Ram of the Ludhiana Vigilance Bureau. A trap was laid and the accused was caught accepting the bribe.

Ludhiana, October 17
The Punjab Minister for Jails, Tourism and Cultural Affairs Hira Singh Gabria today claimed that the Punjab government had gone in an overdrive mode for infrastructure development, provide clean and safe drinking water, sewerage facilities to the people, bring reforms in the education sector and increase power generation so as to make the state of Punjab foremost among other states in the country.

Addressing a function organised by the area residents in Manjit Nagar at the residence of late Punjabi singer Narinder Biba, he said development projects worth Rs 5 crore had been undertaken in the Ward No 51 which had led to redressal of problems related to sewerage, water supply, streets and roads in several surrounding colonies.

Paying tributes to the late Punjabi singer Narinder Biba, Gabria placed on record her significant contribution towards the promotion of Punjabi culture through her songs. He said a computer and a vocational training centre for girls-named after the singer, would be set up in the locality. He also announced a grant of Rs 1 lakh for this purpose. Responding to the demand put forth by the area residents, the minister said a model dispensary would soon be set up in the area to cater to the need for better primary health care, especially for the poor and needy people.

Prem Mittal, political advisor to deputy chief minister Sukhbir Badal, SAD-B vice-president Amarjit Singh Bhatia and former MLA Inder Ikbal Singh Atwal, among others, were also present.

Ludhiana, October 17
Girl students of PAU hostel went on a strike late evening today against the change of their hostel timings. About 100 students sat outside the hostel gate to protest against the recent orders issued by the PAU authorities.

The timings were changed about 10 days ago. Earlier both the undergraduate and post-graduate students were to enter the hostel premises at 8:30 pm but now in winters, the under-graduate students of varsity have been asked to report at the hostel by 7 pm while the timings of PG students remain unchanged.

This move has brought unrest among the students who feel that it was too difficult to enter the hostel so ‘early’ since a majority of the students sat until late in the library during examination days.

Expressing ignorance about the strike Vice Chancellor BS Dhillon said the timings had been changed about two to three months ago and the development was not recent.

Ludhiana, October 17
The state assembly elections are round the corner and the political scene in the city is hotting up. Even though Congress leaders have said the list of candidates will be announced soon, Ajay Johar, son of former minister Harnam Dass Johar, has already projected himself as the candidate from the Atam Nagar constituency here and has started distributing pamphlets related to the work done by him in areas falling under the constituency.

“I will seek a ticket from the Congress. My father has been representing the Ludhiana (West) constituency, a major part of which now forms the Atam Nagar constituency, for the last four terms. My family knows about this constituency more than anyone else,” he said.

Asked why he had “announced” his candidature well in advance, Johar said: “I am new to this constituency and so I thought that I should project myself as the candidate else the constituency might get a ‘parachute’ candidate who will not be able to do anything good for the constituency. Moreover, I have been working for the welfare of residents for the past several years. I want people to know about me.”

He said if he was denied ticket, “it would be up to the people of this constituency to decide about my next course of action”.

Despite no party backing him yet, Ajay Johar has put up his posters along most roads and even placed advertisements in local newspapers. Alongside pictures of Mahatma Gandhi, Shaheed Bhagat Singh and Dr BR Ambedkar, he has mentioned details about his assets, bank account number and much more on the posters which he has distributed in the constituency. 

Mandi Ahmedgarh, October 17
Vicinity to some hospital or a medical institute is no more a first choice for entrepreneurs opening new chemist shops, as stores situated near educational institutes have started flourishing equally.

Profitability was reported to be higher in case of purchases made by youngsters, including students and their peers than those made by patients admitted to hospitals.

While patients and their attendants normally bargain while purchasing standard medicines, youngsters rarely bother about the price being charged for medicines of their choice.

Drugs such as Corex, Restyl, Phenesedyl and Spasmo Proxyvon are quite popular among youngsters.

Investigations revealed that drug stores and chemist shops were no more confined to hospitals and medical institutes. Educational institutes, including colleges and senior secondary schools, were emerging as another choice of entrepreneurs aspiring to open new drug stores.

While owners of drug stores used to pay huge amounts as ‘pagdi’ for hiring shops near hospitals earlier, the trend seems to have changed during the past years. They now prefer to run stores near educational institutes as capital investment and overhead charges are lower there (away from hospitals).

Though the turnover was found to be higher in case of shops situated near hospitals, the profitability had witnesses a downward trend for obvious reason of competition due to the presence of more shops there. A wide range of specific medicines for different ailments had forced shopkeepers to invest more in maintaining stocks of high cost medicines.

Regrettably, none of the social organisations and management committees of educational institutes had shown concern over unethical practice of selling scheduled drugs to students without checking any prescriptions.

The administration, too, has turned a blind eye to the trend.

Admitting that running a chemist shop near educational institutes was not less remunerative, owner of one such shop argued that the sale of cough syrups and sedatives was not the only factor behind the success.

“We do a good business through students as a majority of villagers ask their wards to bring medicines prescribed by doctors practising in villages. It depends on a chemist whether he adopts unethical methods for short terms profits or tries to earn goodwill by sticking to rules,” said the chemist. 

Ludhiana, October 17
The Punjab Kisan Sabhas (farmers’ bodies) affiliated to the Communist Party of India (CPI) and Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) today staged a dharna at the Mini Secretariat here in protest against the hike in prices of fertilisers. Farmers demanded a rollback.

Kisan Sabha state secretary Kartar Singh Bowani asserted that the hike would have an adverse impact on the food grain production.

Members said the price of DAP had gone up from Rs 468 to Rs 910 and that of potash had increased from Rs 253 to Rs 565, while urea prices had also increased from Rs 241 to 268.

The farming community was already reeling under high prices of farm inputs and burden of debts would not be able to absorb this extra burden, which ultimately would have to be passed on to consumers, they added.

“Any further increase in the agricultural produce at this stage will have disastrous effects on the national economy and the prices of food items which are going through the roof.” They urged the government to roll back the prices. They said a proper mechanism be put in place and farmers should not be left at the mercy of private companies. 

Ludhiana, October 17
As the festive season has set in, city residents are all set to celebrate every moment of it. Bazaars are all decked up, with market giants offering lucrative discounts to woo customers.

From the old Chaura Bazaar to the high-end Sarabha Nagar market and from Ghumar Mandi to various shopping malls, every place is abuzz with activities.

Though the rising prices and reports of spurious sweetmeat material being sold in the market is denting the festive fervour, residents are taking it in their stride with a pinch of salt.

There is always a buzz in markets. Be it crockery shops or electronic appliances stores, all are full with late-night shoppers.

“Girls kept coming to me for applying “mehndi” on their palms till around 2 am. The craze was unbelievable. I earned enough to support my family for the rest of the year by working the whole day and night for three days. I ensure that everything goes right these days so that I earn the maximum,” says Raju, a henna-applier.

As October has a series of festivals, Ludhiana Tribune takes a peep into the lives of city residents to know their plans to spend the month. While residents are all set to spend lakhs, only a few are willing to speak their heart out.

For the teacher couple of Gurmeet Singh and Jaideep Kaur of Basant Nagar, the month means a lot of expenditure, exchange of gifts and holidaying with children.

Though Navratras, Dasehra and Karva Chauth are over, the ‘real’ festive spirit is about to begin. Dhanteras and Divali make the period a lot more enjoyable, says Jaideep.

“Bursting of crackers is a matter of delight for children. We do not want to kill their joy but at the same time we are in a profession wherein we have to set an example for children,” says Gurmeet.

“Most importantly, we are environment lovers. We have spared Rs 1,000 for crackers. We have saved some money for buying home appliances on Dhanteras,” he adds.

TS Anand, former principal of GGN Khalsa College, has seen the season of festival transforming into a commercial extravaganza.

“Not only the values, even the method of celebrating the festive season has got a new meaning. Earlier, the festive season meant white washing the house and celebrating the festival with family,” says TS Anand.

“With the changing times, the festive season has undergone metamorphosis. Now people celebrate the festival as if they are preparing for a big fat Indian wedding,” he adds. His educationist son Gaganjot Singh supports his father's views.

“The price war between the companies has actually become buyers’ delight. Sadly the festive season has lost its aesthetic charm and has become more of a shopping mela,” he adds.

Harjinder Singh (25), owner of The May Fair Foods, said Indian festivals were gaining popularity across the globe.

“The buzz is just the same. Such discounts and similar activities are witnessed during the end of the year in western countries,” he says.

Being the owner of Yellow Chillies franchise, he feels that if the prices have gone up, then the income has also gone up. “For us Divali means a lot. We have to interact with different people and exchange gifts with them,” he says.

“Though I am gadget savvy, but this time, I am not planning to buy anything as I already have a Black Berry handset, an I- Phone and my favourite I-Pad, so no gadgets for me this Divali. Yes there will surely be lots of crackers and lots of masti,” he adds.

For Amit Behal, festive season means enjoying with friends and relatives. “One gets a chance to meet relatives and friends and revive relations,” he says.

“Life would have been so monotonous, if there were no festivals. Every festival has its own charm and sanctity and I try to enjoy every festival to the hilt,” he adds.

Ludhiana, October 17
Diwali-the festival of lights is celebrated lavishly by “cash-rich” society in the city. Affluent people do not mind spending lakhs on celebrating the festival in style, fulfilling every demand of their children while the downtrodden section celebrates the festival by watching others bursting crackers worth lakhs of rupees, exchanging expensive gifts and performing pujas.

Raju, who works with a tea vendor, will spend Rs 100 on crackers, as he has to nusre his ailing son; and (right) Radheshan, a rickshaw-puller, has no savings to go home this Divali.

A rickshaw-puller, who has been in the city for the past 20 years, Radhesham, said Diwali was the festival which brought too much of joys and sorrows together. “It is altogether a different day, when everyone is in a festive mood. The festival is much-awaited by Indians, when the whole nation is decorated like a bride. At the same time, I curse my stars for not doing anything for the family. My family is at Mahasimra village in Uttar Pradesh. Kids and wife wanted me to be with them this Diwali. But with no savings, how can I go home, they expect new clothes, sweets and other gifts. Besides, I have to spend for the train-ticket fare. Still I sent a few bucks to them. As far as I am concerned, I spend about Rs 200 on buying sweets, candles and having a good dinner with friends here,” said Radhesham.

Raju, working with a tea-vendor at Bhadaur House, said for him Diwali used to be a much-awaited festival. But with his daughter dying of dengue recently, the day holds no importance for him. “I could not afford the expensive treatment for my child. Besides, my son has been diagnosed with some blood infection, entire money is being spent on his treatment which is about Rs 300 a day. I am not earning much. Still, I will spend about Rs 100 to buy a few crackers and sweets for my children. I want to see them happy,” said Raju in a choked voice.

Most of them enjoy watching others enjoying the festival in a lavish manner. “I tell my children to look at the people who spend lakhs on bursting crackers. I make them understand that this is wastage of money. But in heart of hearts, I feel sorry for them as they are deprived of everything- good clothes, sweets, crackers, lights and candles. I have to bring-up a huge family and I am not earning much to celebrate the festival,” said Bhupinder Singh, who puts a rehri near the AC market.

Mandi Ahmedgarh, October 17
Even as only nine days are left for Divali, none of the local traders here have sought permission for putting up stalls to stock and sell crackers. Meanwhile, the administration has warned vendors against unauthorised storage of explosive material.

Sources in the SDM’s office at Malerkotla said none of the local traders had sought permission to stock and sell crackers.

Sonali Giri, IAS, SDM, Malerkotla, had restricted the sale and storage of such material in the thickly populated, commercial and residential areas, including Malerkotla and Amargarh, besides the local town.

She has also directed vendors to look for new places as the area at the rear of MGMN Senior School was densely populated.

Though the administration had been earmarking special places for allowing sale of crackers and explosives for the past many years, none of the local traders had ever applied for the same.

Caring two hoots for the orders of the administration, they continued posing a threat to the lives of residents by stocking huge stocks of explosives in hired buildings situated in thickly populated areas.

Taking cognisance of reports about violations during the past years, the administration has warned the traders against illegal storage and sale of crackers.

“I have deputed executive magistrate Bhupinder Singh to ensure that necessary arrangements are made at earmarked places for sale of crackers. In case someone is found storing and selling crackers and explosives at places other than the specified ones, stern action will be taken against him or her,” said Sonali Giri, while maintaining that no trader had approached her for seeking permission to sell crackers.

A public announcement will also be made to warn the prospective vendors against the unauthorised sale and storage of restricted material.