In a city where the drivers take out their mobile phones at the very moment they are signalled by a cop to stop, the police has failed to check these traffic violations. It has been seen that traffic rule violators connect their phones to their “highly placed relatives or acquaintances” and use it as a way to pressurise the cops on duty.

The administration needs the cooperation of general public and political leaders to solve the problem. Without this even if the administration checks the wrongly parked vehicles on one day, these would again come on the next day. Strict laws and their implementation are required.

— Dharam Pal Gupta, MC Commissioner

The city needs more parking places and the fee should be a nominal one. The fault is with the administration authorities, who want to run these parking lots as profitable ventures. The authorities must slash the parking fee to Rs 5 or 10 per vehicles and then see that people would prefer these places.

— Rakesh Mahajan, Shopkeeper

The irresponsible parking of vehicles is the reason for the usual traffic jams. The drivers have a duty to park their vehicles in such a way so that the road is not blocked. The traffic police, too, needs to teach some parking rules to the defaulting drivers.

— Sahil, Private firm employee

The roads are not that narrow as they look during the daytime. The cars parked on their sides make them look narrower. If you come here (inside Hall Gate) early morning and late evening when there is no car parked you would wonder that how wide these roads really are.

— Kamal Kishore, Commuter

The traffic here is chaotic and wrongly parked vehicles add to the woes. The traffic police needs to act more strictly. The residents are in a habit of parking on roadsides. Their fathers and grandfathers used to do the same, but at that time number of vehicles were very less. Now when the number of vehicles have increased they need to change their habit.

— Ajay Kumar, Entrepreneur

Amritsar, November 15
At the tender age of 10, Agam Shinghari is an ace tabla player as his skill was acknowledged by the Union Government by bestowing him with the National Children Award for Exceptional Achievement on this Children’s Day in New Delhi.

The award was introduced by the Ministry of Women and Child Development in 1996. Agam became the first child in the city to receive the national award.

The Union Government felicitated 30 children drawn from all across the country displaying excellence in their chosen fields on the birth anniversary of Jawahar Lal Nehru. Agam was the only child from Punjab.

A visibly beaming Agam, who was accorded a warm welcome by his alma mater DAV Public School upon his arrival at the school from new Delhi today, credited his family and schoolteachers for the national award.

The certificate issued by the ministry states that Agam has been given a silver medal and a cash prize of Rs 10,000 for his excellent ability in the field of tabla playing.

His mother Shaweta Shinghari credited Agam, his teachers and his grandfather Vijay Shanghari for the award. She said Agam’s grandfather had been submitting papers for the coveted prize with the ministry in New Delhi for the past three years. “Without any fail he made it a point to personally submit the claim at the ministry office in New Delhi,” she recalled.

At this tender age, Agam has enthralled thousands of viewers with his performances on the tabla at many prestigious stages of the country.

He was the youngest performer at famous Harivallabh Sangeet Sammelan in Jalandhar in 2005 as he was over four year years’ old then. He featured in the 2007 edition of the Limca Book of Records as the “youngest tabla player”.

With numerous awards under his belt, he performed at “Sa Re Ga Ma Pa’s L’iL Champs” and appeared on Zee’s popular show “Shaabash India”. He also figured in “Funjabi Chak De”, a show on Star One channel. He received many state-level awards.

The All-India DAV College Managing Committee presented him a gold medal in New Delhi in 2008.

Agam also appeared on a show, “Jhil Mil Tare”, on Doordarshan continuously for three years from 2007.

Agam is fondly called “Future Zakir Hussain”. His mother Shaweta says, “His skills of effortlessly playing ‘tabla’ on the dining table at the young age of two and half years dawned upon the family to introduce him to the instrument.”

Agam thanked his present trainer Mukesh, a tabla teacher in Khalsa College, and also his previous trainer Lakihchand for enabling him achieve the award.

Mehak Gupta practising skating in Amritsar. Photo: Vishal Kumar

Amritsar, November 15
A local skater, Mehak Gupta, was deprived of getting the National Child Award for Exceptional Achievement, instituted by the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development. The reason was that her case file allegedly didn’t reach the state department in time. Otherwise, she, too, would have shared the dais with Agam Shinghari, a 10-year-old tabla player, for receiving the award from the President of India in New Delhi on November 14, the birth anniversary of Jawahar Lal Nehru.

Her parents, Lokesh Gupta and Anju Gupta, blamed it entirely on the negligence of the district administration. Defying it outrightly, the administrative officials in turn held her parents responsible for the entire lapse, if any.

Eight-year-old Mehak, student of Class III at DAV International School, has immense talent in skating and was an avid contender for the national award.

Despite the fact that Mehak was recognised by the state government for her achievement in skating during the Independence Day function held here, the alleged inefficiency of the official machinery cost her deprivation from the national-level honour.

Charanjit Singh, Assistant Director of the state Sports Department, said the case of Mehak Gupta did not reach them.

Deputy Commissioner Rajat Aggarwal stated that the parents of the child had approached him once only and the recommendation they had asked for was for another category of award. “It was totally baseless to blame us for it. As far as I remember, they had come to me only once and that too for the National Award for Bravery and Meritorious Services for Children. Since this award demanded instances wherein children had done some courageous act of saving someone from drowning or from attack by wild animals, this particular case did not deem fit for the award. In fact, keeping in view the talent of the child, I had endorsed her case for the state award, which was presented to her on Independence Day. Other than this, our office did not receive her case and her parents are mistaken,” he said.

On the other hand, Lokesh Gupta said he was sure that he had approached the DC for endorsing Mehak for the national award for exceptional achievement in sports and not for bravery. “It is the lacking on the part of DC’s office that they did not follow it up and now they are blaming us for the lapses,” he said, while adding, “my motive was that such lapses should not occur again because it directly hit the morale of the child”.

Mehak had clinched her maiden bronze medal when she was just three. After that there was no looking back. She has to her credit a number of achievements, which included national gold medal-2010 in Kolhalapur, besides other state and district skating awards. The most prominent achievement, which brought her to the limelight was that she covered a 30-km stretch from Company Bagh to the Attari-Wagah border in 80 minutes on skates.

Amritsar, November 15
Jim Morrison, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendricks,… Ranbir Kapoor. Well, the resemblance between the real-life rock stars and “reel” rock star is the fan following. While the rock legends still live through their legacy, Ranbir’s broody neurotic act as a rock star in the latest release have made the young and the restless follow the suit. Though not manhandling the guitar or using it like a coconut scrapper, some of the youngsters in the holy city are trying their hand at polishing the Janardhan Jakkar, aka Jordan, inside them by taking up understanding the rock music genre and stringing the guitar tune it.

While Ranbir Kapoor went to epic proportions to play the “Rockstar”, city lads are taking a cue and learning to master the guitar. The quiet and cultured city of Amritsar is waking up to the loud, so-called noise called Rock. Shares Vishal Khosla, a musician who trains these rising stars, “My students are mostly teenagers, youngsters between the age of 14-21, smitten by the popular culture. Though very few continue to take it up professionally, but they are happy satisfying their ‘rock’ instincts as long as it lasts.”

Running his own academy Guitar Acad at Rani Ka Bagh for three years now, Vishal takes five batches per week of youngsters fascinated with guitar and the popularity it brings along. “For them, may be its the easiest way to impress somebody,” adds Vishal. But then it also means serious business, “This whole aura and hoopla surrounding the image of a rock star is what attracts youngsters. Even in the movie, Ranbir’s character is shown as aggressive, rebellion and free. The entire concept is glamorised, but rock music is a serious genre.”

Even before the movie, the awareness was there. But Rockstar has definitely given a positive push. “I have been learning to play guitar and drums for two years now and I want to take up rock music,” says Tapandeep Singh Bhullar, a 13-year-old boy from the city. His favourites include the Rolling Stones, Linkin Park and Coldplay. His ambition is to become like one of them. Playing guitar, he says, is the first step towards it. Given his age to understand the music, Tapan, too, has an opinion regarding the “Rockstar” craze. “I really like the movie as it has shown how a rock star’s life is. Though not the negativity, but I would like to become popular.”

Similarly, Rohit Bhandari, another student who loves his guitar, shares his ambition of forming a band. “Becoming a rock star is not just about learning to play guitar, but it sure is the most important aspect of rock. I have been learning it for the past one year now and after ‘Rockstar’ feel inspired enough to go to the next level.”

Amritsar, November 15
The 22- member expert panel constituted by GND University authorities to examine the status of Punjabi language in the proposed new format for the undergraduate classes, especially in the science stream, has asked experts on the subject to submit their views over the matter by November 22.

The panel has already declared to maintain a status quo over the status of Punjabi till a final decision comes in the matter.

As part of the move to convert three-year courses into six semesters, the GND University had proposed certain changes in the combination of subjects, which had apparently curtailed teaching of Punjabi in the proposed syllabus.

In the proposed elective subject combinations, Punjabi was excluded in the options' segment as it was 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 etc.

It was only after the Punjabi littérateurs, which included GND University's School of Punjabi Studies' teachers protested, the proposal was stalled and a committee was constituted to review the pros and cons of the move before implementing it in the syllabus for the next academic session.

Dean Academic Affairs, GNDU, Dr Rajinderjit Kaur Puar, who is the convener of the committee, said it was decided during the recent meeting that before giving a final recommendation to the university over the matter, the views of subject experts from outside too should be called in.

“Since it is a very sensitive matter we decided to invite the comments from the teachers, academicians and subject experts from various walks of life. They will give their views about how much quantum of Punjabi should be included in courses like B.Sc. They can send their views either through post or by hand at my office till the stipulated period," she said.

Prof Joginder Singh Puar, former Vice-Chancellor of Punjabi University, Patiala, and the chairman of this committee said maintaining the sanctity of Punjabi in the syllabus would be their prime concern.

“Punjabi will be a part and parcel of the syllabus during the entire session and there will be no cut on it. Yet, the new pattern of syllabus and the combination of subjects vis-à-vis Punjabi, will be studied within a span of two months and the final recommendations will be forwarded to the university for its implementation,” said Puar.

Amritsar, November 15
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has once again deferred its pronouncement over the issue of awarding solid waste management plant at Bhaktanwala to November 30.

It is for the fourth time that the court has reserved its verdict. The Punjab and Haryana High Court had earlier fixed October 31 to give its final decision. Later, it was postponed to November 7, then to November 15 and now to November 30.

The representatives of AKC company, which had filed a writ petition in the Punjab and Haryana High Court against the authorities for refusing to award it the job, could not appear in the court today.

Earlier, the decision of the Punjab and Haryana High Court was deferred for want of an environment clearance certificate by the company.

Amritsar Municipal Corporation commissioner Dharampal Gupta while confirming the development said the court had fixed the new date after the company representatives did not come to the hearing.

Amritsar, November 15
Academic competitions organised by Punjab School Education Board, Mohali, today took off to a colourful start at Khalsa College Senior Secondary School.

Students from five districts, including Amritsar, Hoshiarpur, Kapurthala, Gurdaspur and Tarn Taran are taking part, said School Principal, Nirmal Singh Bhangu.

The competitions will be held for elocution, shabad singing, folk singing, painting, poetry, solo dance, kavishari, general knowledge, bhangra, giddha and creative writing. In the competitions held today in writing, Munish Kumar from Khalsa College Senior Secondary School stood first, Jaspreet Kaur from Government Elementary School, Mugowal in Hoshiarpur, bagged the second position followed by Navneet Kaur from Central Public School, Ghuman at the third position.

Similarly, in painting, Sneha Gautam from Mahaveer Jain Model School, Phagwara, Pardeep Singh from Baba Gurmukh Singh Uttam Singh School, Khadoor Sahib and Ajay Kumar from Khalsa College Senior Secondary School stood first, second and third, respectively.

In the solo dance event, Daljitman Singh from MD Public School, Batala, Gurpreet Kaur from Central Public School, Ghuman and Prabhjot Kaur from Baba Gurmukh Singh Uttam Singh School, Khadoor Sahib stood first, second and third, respectively.

Amritsar, November 15
In a keenly-contested hockey match played at local Khalsa College ground, Springdale Senior School today lifted the trophy at the annual hockey tournament while Khalsa College Senior Secondary School was declared the runners up after the finals of the tournament.

The teams slugged it out in a competitive match so well that no one could strike any goal even in the extra time.

The winning team was then decided in the basis of the penalty strokes.

The two teams had entered the final after defeating their rivals as a total of eight hockey teams from various schools took part in the two-day hockey tournament.

The team from Government High School, Modde, bagged the third position in the tourney on the basis of their scores in the entire tournament.

Khalsa College governing council honorary secretary Rajinder Mohan Singh Chhina and college principal Dr Daljit Singh had flagged off tournament yesterday.

The participating teams include Khalsa College Senior Secondary School, Ryan Public School, Government High School, Modde, Guru Nanak Stadium, Amritsar, Government High School, Kotli Mallian, Mahta Academy, Government High School, Pakharpura, and Springdale Senior Secondary School.