|
|
|
|
Varsity’s proposal upsets intellectuals
MTP orders challenged
Uprooted road dividers lead to mishaps
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
New Innings Punjabi movies as popular as Bollywood flicks: Gurmeet Amritsar, November 1 Television is a resourceful medium and its actors a versatile lot. The gradual change witnessed by the entertainment industry has closed in the gap between television actors and their 70mm counterparts.
Witches, vampires have a ball
Kids dressed up as vampires, witches and ghosts participate in a Halloween party in Amritsar on Tuesday. Photo: Sameer Sehgal
Bhaktanwala residents to bear stink for some more days
35 Haryana trainees visit Pingalwara farm
GND varsity professor on HP panel
3 snatching incidents reported
Tributes paid to Jagjit Singh
Power loom training programme
|
|
Varsity’s proposal upsets intellectuals
Amritsar, November 1 However, following a dissent note submitted by the School of Punjabi Studies wing yesterday, the authorities withheld the proposal and constituted a 22-member high-powered committee to examine the pros and cons of the new format of undergraduate classes, especially the proposed status of Punjabi subject. Intellectuals feel the final decision will fail to safeguard the prime interest of maintaining the sanctity of Punjabi language as the committee has members from science background. At a meeting chaired by Vice-Chancellor AS Brar on September 15, it was decided to arrange workshops by Deans of faculties in collaboration with the head of the respective departments to frame the syllabus under the new pattern in arts, medical, non-medical and commerce streams. The idea was to prepare the syllabus and ordinances as per proposed move. In the proposed elective subject combinations, Punjabi has been excluded in the options segment. In the official document, in possession with The Tribune, Punjabi is no more part of the options for students who opt for combinations like economics, history, social science, public administration, psychology, computer science, home science, geography, defence studies, music, philosophy, et al. Terming it as a “wise decision”, the university authorities viewed that the expert committee has been constituted to study the impact of the proposal and that science background experts have been included in the committee because the inconsistency about the synchronisation of Punjabi subject with science needed a thorough study. VC AS Brar stated that the sanctity of Punjabi would be the prime objective and any amendment would be introduced only after reviewing the recommendation of the committee. “We have included at least eight best-known Punjabi litterateurs who would submit their observations within two months. Action will be taken before the beginning of the next academic session, from which the new semester system pattern for undergraduate classes has been proposed,” said the VC, adding: “All apprehensions are baseless as there is no attempt to undermine Punjabi.” However, Dr SP Singh, former VC of the university, said the present university governing body had attempted to reduce the stature of Punjabi by twisting the recommendations of the National Knowledge Commission and the Central government policies. “The reason being that the current who’s who of the university have science background and they could seldom realise the importance and significance of Punjabi language. What was the point of raising the issue of reducing Punjabi syllabus when their earlier attempts had invited strong criticism? This implied that they have bad intentions. What if out of 22 they have chosen eight from Punjabi field, still the rest of the members of the committee, which included the deans of all key segments, have nothing to do with Punjabi literature or culture. I would stress that these hardcore scientists have hardly any respect for the sanctity of Punjabi language. That’s why they repeatedly make attempts to downgrade it. In my tenure, I made it sure that the degrees of hardcore professional courses or even semi-professional courses would be granted only if the aspirant had successfully completed requisite span for learning Punjabi language,” he said, while appreciating that the university has chosen to have an expert opinion before implementing the final pattern. Chairperson of the Board of Control for School of Punjabi Studies Paramjit Singh Sidhu said: “The committee was formed in the evening only when we objected to the university’s move to degrade Punjabi language and the students were not given option for for the same in the proposed pattern. It was so damaging that had it been implemented, the existence of Punabis would have been extinct in the days to come. We submitted our strong criticism and I appreciate that the authorities took a note of it and went for an expert opinion before finalising it,” he said. Official Speak The sanctity of Punjabi is our prime concern and any amendment will be introduced only after reviewing the recommendations of the committee. We have selected at least eight best-known Punjabi litterateurs who will submit their observations within two months. Action will be taken before the beginning of the next academic
session. |
||
|
MTP orders challenged
Amritsar, November 1 Hotel and Restaurant Association president Surinder Singh said the buildings raised above the stipulated height were not commercial and belonged to spiritual heads of different organisations. He said the area around the Harmandar Sahib was one of the oldest parts of the holy city. It was under the non-scheme area and no land use was in place, therefore the hotels and lodges could not be branded illegal. Citing the example of other holy cities like Haridwar and Varanasi, he said even these towns have lodges in narrow streets. He said the municipal corporation must have taken a notice when these hotels were being constructed. He claimed they had been regularly paying annual commercial house tax, conservancy tax, water supply and sewerage taxes to the AMC in the name of these hotels. Hotels and inns have mushroomed around the Golden Temple since 1995. There are about 150 hotels in the walled city and a majority of them were constructed on less than 150 square yards area. Municipal Town Planner (MTP) Shakti Bhatia said the area being the oldest part of the city was out of the preview of any scheme and land use. When asked why these hotels and lodges were not objected to during their construction, Bhatia said it was not feasible as many of the houses were converted to hotels. He said hotels and lodges could be set up in the walled city after constructing a parking lot, with permissible height, floor area, registered under the Serai Act, NOC from the fire brigade, environment clearance from the Punjab Pollution Control Board and other relevant NOCs. He added that the realisation of commercial house tax, conservancy tax, commercial water supply and sewerage taxes did not mean regularisation of any hotel and lodge. |
||
|
Uprooted road dividers lead to mishaps
Amritsar, November 1 Reason: Due to lack of any concrete base, shopkeepers in the area uprooted these dividers apparently to facilitate the people to drop in at their shop at the first instance. Shopkeepers were against the idea of fixing the dividers fearing that their business would be hit. Their ‘trade practices’, which have been the prime cause of accidents, goes on unnoticed by even police personnel deputed at the spot. Encouraged by this, commuters have started uprooting the dividers to facilitate their way to their homes located on both sides of the road. When questioned, police personnel deputed at the site said they had no powers to challan violators. Nevertheless, some months ago, the police department in collaboration with the Amritsar Municipal Corporation had erected these dividers following road mishaps. Besides giving an apt look, these dividers also helped in solving the traffic problems to a great extent. However, in the absence of any check, shopkeepers have uprooted the dividers opposite their shops. Following lack of maintenance, the broken slabs of these dividers have spilled over the road leading to accidents, especially during nights. The number of damaged pillars is increasing by the day. Official Speak
|
||
|
New Innings
The latest to join is actor Gurmeet Chaudhary aka Maan Khurana of Star One’s popular serial Geet- Hui Sabse Parayi. The suave actor, who made his television debut as Lord Rama in Ramayana on a TV channel, is in Amritsar shooting for his debut movie “Yaar Mera Rabb Varga”. This is also his first Punajbi movie. “Films mark an ultimate and obvious progression as an actor. So for me too the decision to take up movie offers is a planned move,” says Gurmeet. But why choose a Punjabi movie over a Hindi film for a debut? “Why not? Punjabi cinema is doing great business wise and good Bollywood actors are taking up lead roles. Jimmy Shergill is as popular as SRK in Punjab,” he reasons. Well, for someone who quite fits into the rugged Punjabi gabru image, the decision might not come as a shocker. “I have played the character of a sardar in Geet, donning pagri and learning the body language. It was popular with the audiences. And I have been getting film offers since I started working in Geet. So, I came prepared for my innings in Punjabi film industry.” Gurmeet clears the air about another confusion that he has to deal with every time he mentions the word Punjabi. “Most people think that I am a Punjabi which is not true. I belong to Patna, though I was born and brought up in Chandigarh. My looks too support the confusion, but I am glad now since it will make me connect easily with the Punjabi audience.” Not revealing much about the movie, Gurmeet only gives out that fact that it is a complete masala entertainer with action, romance and emotion. The lengthy shooting schedule made him experience the famous Amritsari Diwali, which he enjoyed in the company of his wife Debina. “It was amazing. We went to the Golden Temple and saw the city’s electrifying energy during the celebrations.” Also, he enjoyed getting mobbed by his fans here. “It was good in the beginning but now I have to wear a disguise to go out.” Back to work, any expectations from his first Punjabi venture? “It’s too early to say anything but even SRK started with television. I hope to follow,” signs off Gurmeet on a confident note. |
||
|
Witches, vampires have a ball
Amritsar, November 1 The traditional costume party turned into a competition, where everybody, dressed as witches, vampires and Dracula, tried looking more evil than the other. Putting together their costumes seriously, the Bloody Mary’s, Oscar the Friendly Ghost and even Osama bin Laden were a sight true to the Halloween spirit. Not exactly a popular festival in this part of the world, Halloween was a reason to have some good fun for them. “Halloween is celebrated as the day for the dark and deadly things in the West. Just popularising the concept among kids here, we decided to arrange for this party. These kids have put in a lot of effort with their costumes and it feels good to see them carry off so well,” said Dalbir Kaur Madaan, owner, One Up. “Trick or treat” was the most enjoyed part of the party where kids were loaded with generous amounts of chocolates and candies. Supporting their children, some of the parents, too, were a part of the celebrations. There were some surprise gifts for the kids after the party got over. The winner of the best costume contest was a brother-sister duo, who came dressed as a vampire and a ghost. |
||
|
Bhaktanwala residents to bear stink for some more days
Amritsar, November 1 According to information, the court, which was to pronounce its decision on October 31, has reserved it till November 7. The Rs 80-crore project, under the JNNURM, was launched as per the Municipal Solid Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2000, by hoards of politicians, including Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, which would have processed the garbage of the holy city into eco-bricks and green fuel, but the work was stalled midway due to official rigmarole and the company, which was allotted the work, moved to the court in 2008. The dump pond got filled up to its limit, that too due to mismanagement on the part of the authorities. Consequently, the heaps of garbage mounted with each passing day and the residents were compelled to live under most unhygienic conditions. Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Dharampal Gupta said, “Since the matter is in the court, the whole process has been revoked. We are bound to proceed as per the court’s directions.” |
||
|
35 Haryana trainees visit Pingalwara farm
Amritsar, November 1 A group of 35 trainees from the Agriculture Department of Haryana, led by PK Jain, today visited the farm where particularly sugarcane farming has given groundbreaking results. Interacting with mediapersons, Rajbir Singh of the Pingalwara society, said the input cost on sugarcane crop was not more than Rs 30,000 per acre, while in the very first year the production was 400 quintals per acre, which was expected to go up to 600 quintals in the second year. |
||
|
GND varsity professor on HP panel
Amritsar, November 1 Dr Balvinder Singh said the heritage buildings and some areas in Shimla and Chamba towns are of great historical importance and have distinct architectural designs, facade elevations and religious as well as tourism importance. These have been identified and notified as Heritage Zones. |
||
|
3 snatching incidents reported
Amritsar, November 1 In the first incident, two unidentified miscreants snatched a purse, containing mobile phone, Rs 4,000, pair of earrings, gold pendant set and other documents, from Kiran, resident of Jalalabad Road, Petrol Pump Gali. The incident happened on the Chamrang road, near Ravinder Palace. In the second incident, two motorcycle-borne youths snatched a mobile phone from Aman Kapoor of Kucha Nakada Bazaar near Bhaktanwala Chowk. “I tried to resist, but they injured me. In the absence of any policeman in sight, they fled from the spot easily,” Aman said. In the third incident, on a busy stretch near Anam Cinema two motorcycle-borne youths snatched a purse from Meenu Singh, resident of New Jawahar Nagar. “My four ATM cards were in the purse, besides some cash,” Meenu said. |
||
|
Amritsar, November 1 The evening saw some fine rendering of Jagjit Singh’s famous gazals by Surinder Kakar and Shemsher B. Singh. Kakar regaled the audience with Jagjit’s popular number “Yeh daulat bi le lo”. It was Shemsher who virtually stole the show with Shiv Batalvi’s “Main ik shikra yaar banaya”, sung in his inimitable style. Surinder Seth was the chief guest, — TNS |
||
|
Power loom training programme
Amritsar, November 1 As per a press note issued here today, the participants must be at least 18 years of age and have passed Class VIII or matriculation exam. The training programme will be divided into three parts - operating machines, maintenance of power loom and designing of clothes. — TNS |
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | E-mail | |
Amritsar, November 1
The police administration is planning to fix permanent dividers. The work for the same has already started with earthmoving machines digging up the road so that concrete poles can be erected. For immediate relief, I would depute extra staff up to the rank of an ASI to take stock of the situation on Lawrence Road and ask the AMC officials to get the broken dividers
repaired.
The violators hardly take notice of our presence as we have not been delegated any power to challan them. Area shopkeepers and residents damage the dividers to facilitate their
way.
Amritsar, November 1