Jalandhar, December 10
Even as the 17 labourer and farmer unions called off their strike late in the evening today, thousands of commuters suffered due to the road blockade at Beas for the fifth consecutive day today.

Long distance passengers who get trapped at Beas have to travel through damaged link roads to reach their destinations. The worst affected are patients, pregnant women, elderly persons and children who are forced to take a detour of 50 km to 80 km on link roads due to the blockade.

While the locals are opting for village link roads to reach Amritsar from Jalandhar and on the reverse route, it’s passengers of the long route vehicles that are taking bumpy rides on the link roads to reach Amritsar and Jalandhar.

Vehicles heading towards Amritsar have been diverted from Subhanpur to take Nadiala-Begowal-Sri Hargobindpur-Mehta road to rejoin the GT Road near Amritsar and vice versa. The drivers also prefer the Pathankot bypass-Tanda-Pul Kanjri-Sri Hargobindpur road to reach Amritsar. Local commuters, however, are forced to trudge for a long distance to reach Beas from Subhanpur and in the reverse direction.

The deadlock between the agitating unions and the government that completed its fifth day today has also set the cash register ringing for the Railways. The occupancy rate of a majority of trains on the Jalandhar-Amritsar route has picked up in past four days.

Heavy vehicles have damaged the internal roads. The bitumen has peeled off at many places and the roads have started developing potholes. Traffic chaos is a common sight in villages where the roads are narrow.

Jalandhar, December 10
It does not seem like there is an end to the plight of aided school teachers. In the absence of the DEO (secondary), aided school teachers had no person to countersign their salary bills. However, the new DEO (secondary) has countersigned their bills, the treasury department officials say they have not received the grant as yet.

Without salaries for the past nine months, the teachers say: "It will not be a 'happy' New Year for us." A local aided school teacher, Manish Aggarwal, says: "We had been waiting for the new DEO to join and were overjoyed when she came. But now, even after we got the bills countersigned from her, the treasury is not accepting them saying they have not received the grants. While all government schoolteachers are receiving their salaries, the government always falls short of money in our case. That's why we demand to be put directly under the government ambit."

Kulwarn Singh, head of the Aided Schoolteachers Association, Jalandhar, said: "A salary is something we receive on a monthly basis, but for aided teachers, it's always about pending salaries. Ever since the computerisation of records, we are dependant for go-aheads right from the secretariat level. We have sent two e-mails to them to show our salary amount details, but there has been no response. The treasury will only give us the salaries when they receive a green signal from there."

"Since the time of computerisation, every one is facing similar problems. Instead of speeding up our accounts, it has rather slowed them down," said another teacher.

The aided schoolteachers are without salaries for the past nine months - from April 2011 top date. While some of the schools received the salaries just a few days ago, others got them in August. However, all schoolteachers handle households at shoestring budgets even as they anticipate some action before the New Year sets in.

Jalandhar, December 10
Authorities have a different idea of a world-class city. Roads are designed for cars and heavy vehicles. Flyovers and highways have no space for pedestrians, cyclists or rickshaw pullers though they are an integral part of the city.

Even as the city police commissionerate has procured radars for challaning over speed vehicles, it has not thought over an idea of creating separate lanes or tracks for slow moving vehicles, including cycles and rickshaws.

In what may be termed as discrimination towards cyclists and rickshaw pullers, there is no separate track or lane for slow speed vehicles and pedestrians on any of the city roads. This not only creates problems for cyclists, rickshaw pullers, horse cart pullers and bull cart pullers, but also for the high speed vehicle drivers as the slow speed vehicles come in their way, reducing their speed.

Further, the mix traffic on various roads in the absence of any separate lanes causes snarls. A rickshaw puller, Ram Prakash, said: “He feels difficulty while pulling his rickshaw on city roads as traffic has increased manifold during the past several years. Separate lanes for slow speed vehicles will make the movement of vehicles easy.”

An industrial worker, Avtar Singh, who goes to his work on a cycle, said: “Cycles are environment friendly. The administration should take care of them as cyclists have also equal right of using roads.”

Sagar Bhardwaj of Kangniwal village, who uses his car to come to the city, said: “Separate lanes will ensure smooth traffic on roads as when a slow speed vehicle comes before any high speed vehicle, it reduces the speed.”

Jalandhar, December 10
Unlike many students, who do not pursue their cases of getting admission fee refund from institutions that they had left to join other institutions, Vivek Kumar Sikka moved the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum, Jalandhar, against CT Institute of Management and IT at Maqsudan and emerged victorious.

Accepting Sikka's complaint as per law laid down by the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, the district consumer forum directed the CT Institute to refund Rs 41,670 to him after deducting Rs 1,000 as processing fee.

In its decision, the forum, comprising forum president Surinder Mohan, members Jyotsana Tatai and Darshan Singh, cited an order passed by the national commission.

In his complaint, Vivek Kumar Sikka of local P & T Colony said that he had deposited Rs 37,270 towards fee for doing MCA vide receipt dated 10.09.2008 and Rs 5400 for dress and miscellaneous expenses vide receipt No.2579 dated 10.09.2008 with CT Institute.

Later, he got admission in DAV Institute of Engineering and Technology on September 15, 2008 and deposited a sum of Rs 46,000 in the institute for doing MCA. Subsequently, he approached CT Institute many times for the refund of fees, dress and miscellaneous expenses, but the institute lingered on to refund the said amount on one pretext or the other.

The complainant further said as per educational rules and norms, the institute is liable to refund the above amount, but it failed to do so and refused to refund the amount. The complainant served a registered legal notice dated August 7, 2010, but the opposite party did not refund the aforesaid amount.

In its reply, the institute said AICTE/DPG/06 (02)/2009 issued public notice to all regional offices directing the Technical Education Societies that if any candidate does not join the course and the vacant seat does not fill, in that event, the institute is not liable to pay any fee to the candidate. Hence the institute is not liable to pay the amount claimed by the complainant, the institute added.

After going through the documents and arguments provided by both the parties, the forum observed, "As far as non filling of seat for MCA is concerned, it was for the opposite party to prove on the file that out of sanctioned seat, the seat of the complainant was not filled and it remained vacant throughout the session. Only then, the opposite party could raise the objections regarding non-refund of the fee."

Jalandhar, December 10
Providing relief to Colonel Baldev Singh Khinda (retd), Kapurthala Judicial Magistrate Ist Class AS Shergill sentenced his Khinda’s brother Jagbir Singh and his uncle’s daughter-in-law Gurmeet Kaur for three-year rigorous imprisonment under Section 467 and 120-B of the IPC.

Jagbir and Gurmeet Kaur were convicted for preparing fake document in the form of ‘ikrarnama’ for occupy Baldev’s land.

Soon after the order, both the convicts were released on bail. They may appeal in the higher court within stipulated time.

Earlier arguing on the question of sentence, complainant Col Baldev Singh Khinda’s advocate Sunil Chhabra prayed for exemplary punishment, whereas the convicts’ advocate JJS Arora prayed for leniency.

The court said the accused had entered into conspiracy to forge and fabricate an agreement dated 25.3.1978.

According to complainant’s case, his father Gurmukh Singh was owner of 13.6 marla of plot bearing khasra number 4846, located on Peer Choudhary road, Kapurthala. After his father’s death, the complaint Col Khinda and his brother Jagbir Singh were entitled to their share.

Gurmukh Singh permitted Gurmeet Kaur’s father-in-law Thakur Singh to reside in the said property being a caretaker with a condition to possess the same during his life time. After Thakur Singh’s death, Gurmeet Kaur kept on illegally possessing the same property.

Jalandhar, December 10
The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum, Jalandhar, has directed Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) to transfer a power connection for tubewell, in the name of Kuldip Singh, from Lohian Khas sub-division in Jalandhar to Majitha II sub-division in Amritsar zone on the condition that Kuldip Singh would fulfill all requirements of PSPCL as per rules and regulations and would also deposit the requisite fee.

Kuldip Singh currently resides at Diamond Avenue in Amritsar.

In his complaint filed against PSPCL, Kuldip Singh said, "The electricity connection, meant for agricultural purposes, was earlier in his father Kartar Singh's name. After his death, the same was got transferred in my name."

The complainant said he bought some land in Gallowali village in Amritsar and intended to shift to Amritsar.

He sold his share of land, but retained his electricity connection for tubewell. He applied for change of name which was allowed by the opposite parties on furnishing the requisite formalities. Following which, he applied for shifting the connection in question from Lohian Khas sub-division to Majitha-II sub-division at Amritsar on July 2009.

But he did not get permission from chief engineer (Commercial), Patiala, owing to some discrepancies.

The case of the complainant was again rejected by Chief Engineer (Commercial) vide his memo No.31777 dated 07.07.2010. However, no specific reason was disclosed in the same.

The complainant applied under RTI Act asked the reason for the rejection of his case and it was informed that the requisite documents were not provided by the complainant.

After going through the documents presented by both parties, the forum directed PSPCL to shift the tubewell connection.

Jalandhar, December 10
Both his sons are doing good in movies. He just sang with Amitabh Bachchan and plans to perform for Dilip Kumar shortly - on the legendary actor’s special request for his 89th birthday. Hans Raj Hans is a happy man.

Like most, the choices (except politics) he has made in life, his wit is also inherently Sufi, and he uses it charmingly.

The residents of J-town just had a little teaser of a glimpse of it as the ‘Raj gayak’ specially came here to release a special (Osho’s 80th birthday) issue of Osho World here.

As he had a nice little chat with the city press, what stood out was the extent to which he is disillusioned with his loved city.

The singer recently shifted base to Mumbai. As the conversation slowly drifted to politics, he said, “That is one thing that I’d rather not talk about today. Yes, that is what made me move away from here. It pains me but I am happy there. I love my city and my village, but some compulsions made me shift.”

Whether it was politics or acting, he used special adjectives for himself calling himself bekhabar, (without a clue about the world) sanyasi (saint) and the like.

Talking about Osho, he said, “He is also one of those men. They are not like the usual crowd. These are special people who don’t lie and always stay true to their roots. They are lost in their words and don’t pay heed to the usual customs and traditions.”

His associations with Osho go back to a long time. “I have performed at the communes in Pune and Delhi for his birthday. I have woken up disturbed during nights, turning to Osho for solace, to put me back to sleep. His recordings work for me like a mother’s lullabies work for babies. So when I was asked to release the 80th birth anniversary special I grabbed the opportunity. I also wanted to visit my city once.”

Another interesting co-incidence for Hans this year would be that while he just released the magazine issue for Osho’s birthday on December 11, the birthday of Dilip Kumar, too, falls on the same date.

Hans also thinks he is privileged to have released an album in which them, along with Amitabh Bacchan and other singers renders shloks from the Hanuman Chalisa.

When asked what were his own plans on acting, he said, “Over aged people might happily occupy centre stage in ambitious acting projects, I am presently content with music and my sons’ success. It’s their time now.”

Even as he had expressed ambitious plans for his dera in Nakodar earlier this year, with his shift to Mumbai, the plans look fickle at least for the moment.

For now, he is happy, basking in the success of a glorious year.

Jalandhar, December 10
City family counselling centres have been receiving maximum number of complaints relating to extramarital affairs. Interestingly, earlier it was just women, who used to complain about their husbands' extramarital affairs, now even the men have come up with similar complaints against their wives.

The city has two pre-litigation counselling institutions and both try to seek compromise between disputed couples.

Red Cross Family Counseling Centre, run by the organisation 'Aashi' at Red Cross Bhawan receives 300 complaints on an average in a year.

Other complaints which pour in at these centres are husbands' drug addiction, sexual harassment, domestic violence, behavioural issues and scuffle over minor issues.

Parminder Berri and Shakun Obeoi, counsellors at Aashi, claimed that out of 300 complaints received in a year, they are able to make 65 per cent of couples reach a compromise.

They claimed that dowry related complaints have decreased while complaints regarding extramarital affairs (of both husbands and wives) are on witnessing upward trend. "Approximately more than 50 per cent complaints are related to extramarital affairs," a counsellor said.

Of these complaints regarding extramarital affairs, 60 per cent are filed by women while 40 per cent are by men, said counsellor Chanchal Malhotra.

"In those cases, where we could not broke a compromise, we refer the complaint to the police station concerned or to the court," a counselor Suman Sareen said.

Dharampal, a counselor of another family counseling centre, located inside the Police Division No. 2, said, this centre received 166 complaints from October 2010 till date and compromise was reached in 154 cases.

The counsellor claimed that majority of the complaints are related to extramarital affairs.