The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Chandigarh Stories

NEIGHBOURHOOD

House Tax Dues
Ambala MC richer by Rs 70 lakh
Attar Singh
Tribune News Service

Ambala, January 13
The Ambala Municipal Corporation has launched a special drive to recover house tax arrears during which huge recoveries have been made. The drive has helped the corporation to generate the much-needed revenue to continue its development works.

The corporation has recovered Rs 70 lakh up to December 31, 2011, from house tax defaulters while the total arrears have been pegged at Rs 1.62 crore.

Sources in the corporation said there were house tax arrears worth Rs 45 lakh in the big defaulters category, including private schools, in Ambala Cantt. In the second category were some Trusts whose arrears were to the tune of Rs 19 lakh and in the third category were religious places whose arrears were about Rs 16 lakh.

A senior official in the Municipal Corporation said notices had already been served on the defaulters several times. He said the recovery of house tax arrears had been pending for many years. Many people have come forward to deposit their dues following the launch of the drive.

The amount was being spent on the ongoing development works and he hoped that the pending arrears would also be cleared in the coming few months.

The corporation, which has around 270 employees, has a monthly salary bill of Rs 35 lakh, the sources added.

No 21-day bar on LPG refill booking: IOC
Our Correspondent

Ambala, January 13
A domestic LPG consumer of Indian Oil Corporation can book the refill even before 21 days of the last delivery. It was informed by the appellate authority of the IOC (Delhi and Haryana) in reference to an appeal filed by a former chief fire officer of Ambala TL Verma under the RTI.

Verma had filed an appeal with the appellate authority of the IOC Amresh Kapoor, seeking the information whether the corporation had instructed its LPG distributors to exercise 21-day restriction on refill booking.

He had complained in the appeal that the LPG distributors of Ambala booked refill after 21 days of the last delivery.

It is to be mentioned that there are six LPG distributors of the IOC in Ambala City and Ambala Cantonment and most of them book the refill after 21 days of the last delivery which is causing great inconvenience to the consumer in this cold season.

Rs 33.70 lakh, drugs seized

Fatehgarh Sahib January 13
The district police today seized unaccounted Rs 33.70 lakh from three different places during checking of vehicles. The money was handed over to the income tax department as the persons carrying could not produce satisfactory documents. Besides, the police has also recovered 10 kg poppy husk and 5 gm smack. — OC

COURTS

HC issues notice to Panchkula school on land use
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 13
A Division Bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Surya, today served a notice of motion for February 10 to the Panchkula-based Ajay Memorial Public School, HUDA and other respondents.

The notice came on a review application filed by Vijay Pal Singh and other residents of Sector 7. They were seeking a review of a judgment dated December 16 last.

Their counsel argued that the management of Ajay Memorial Public School could not be permitted to run even a primary school at the site allotted to it for running a nursery school.

In the judgment, the High Court had earlier asserted: “The question as to whether the respondent society is to be permitted to run a school up to the fifth standard or not, would depend upon the terms and conditions laid down in the Haryana School Education Rules, 2003, as amended from time to time, and it may not be expedient for us to express any views in relation thereto.

“The Nursery School, if upgraded up to the fifth standard, whether would cause serious inconvenience or prejudice to the residents of the locality due to substantial increase in the strength of the children or it may require additional construction at the site, etc., are several factors which shall have to be kept in view by the competent authority before taking any final decision in this regard in accordance with the policy and the rules on the subject. The plot size, however, shall remain the same without affecting the remaining area of the adjoining park.”

In their review application, the petitioners’ counsel, HC Arora, submitted while issuing the directions on December 16 last, the Division Bench did not consider a judgment given by another Division Bench headed by Justice MM Kumar on February 24, 2009, wherein it was held that a High or Higher Secondary School cannot be run on a piece of land allotted by HUDA for running a nursery school, and vice versa.

consumer courts
Aspiring doctor’s dream turns sour
HCMI Education told to pay Rs 50,000, litigation costs and refund fee
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 13
A resident’s dream of becoming a doctor turned sour when the Commission on Higher Education, the Philippines, changed the eligibility criteria resulting in the abolition of an MBBS programme. Irked over the loss of precious years, Narinder Kumar, a resident of Sector 19, filed a complaint against Sector 32-based HCMI Education (Healthcare Management International) (opposite party no. 1) and Emilio Aguinaldo College (College of Medicine) (opposite party no. 2) with the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum-I for the redress of his grievances.

The district forum, comprising president PD Goel and members Rajinder Singh Gill and Madanjit Kaur Sahota, directed the respondents to pay Rs 50,000 as compensation besides refunding the registration and tuition fee totalling $ 12,000 deposited by the complainant. The forum also directed the opposite parties to pay Rs 25,000 as costs of litigation.

Narinder had submitted that the opposite parties had offered an MBBS course after assessing his educational qualification and he had deposited Rs 5,000 with the opposite party no. 1 towards the processing fees. He was issued a letter, according to which, he was required to submit the original certificates, along with $ 12,000 (tuition fee, foreign student fee and registration fee). He said he joined the course in Manila and while he was appearing for the last examination of the 2nd semester (biochemistry), the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), the Republic of Philippines, circulated a resolution among the students, in which it was stated that the opposite parties had offered the MBBS programme in spite of the absence of the CHED memorandum order prescribing curriculum of such programmes. He raised the protest with the opposite parties, which assured him of doing the needful, but they did nothing in the matter, he alleged.

As a consequence he couldn’t complete the MBBS programme. Moreover, he was asked to join BSc (Biology), which was not part of the contract between him and the opposite parties, he alleged.

The counsel for the opposite party no. 1 averred that the original certificates and fee deposited by the complainant was handed over to the opposite party no. 2 for formalising the admission to the MBBS course. It was pleaded that the said resolution was issued by the Government of Philippines, which changed the eligibility criteria resulting into the abolition of the MBBS programme, over which neither the opposite party no.1 nor anybody else had any control.

The complainant was assured of not losing unit earned on account of 1st and the 2nd semester of the MBBS programme, as the same were to be adjusted in the BSc programme.

Therefore, the question of refunding the amount, which had been paid by the complainant and in compensation for which the complainant had also availed the services, could not have arisen.

The opposite party no 2 failed to present itself and was proceeded ex-parte. The forum observed that the opposite parties couldn’t escape/wriggle out from their responsibility/ liability. The callous/insensitive attitude of the opposite parties, not only had played a cruel joke on the aspiring career of the complainant, but also misled him regarding the genuineness of the said programme of MBBS degree, especially when they assured him to get a valid degree, subsequently on competition of the course.

Consumer court penalises builder for delaying possession of plot
Tribune News Service

Mohali, January 13
The Mohali Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum has come to the rescue of a flat owner at Ivory Towers in Sector 70 who was forced to pay extra money to get the sale deed of his flat registered as the promoter of the flat, Industrial Cables, failed to provide the relevant documents on time. While directing the promoter to refund an amount of Rs 1,10,500 the forum comprising BS Mehandiratta, president, Dr SS Dhaliwal and HK Ghuman, both members, held the promoter responsible for deficiency in service.

The complainant, Anand Purak Singh, in his plea before the forum stated that he had purchased a flat from the promoter in Ivory Towers Complex on April 22, 2000, for Rs 11,50,000. As per the allotment letter and agreement of sale, the builder was under obligation to execute the sale deed of the flat in favour of the complainant within 30 days of the date of offer of possession. Immediately, after getting possession, the complainant requested the promoter on a number of occasions to get conveyance deed of the flat executed and registered in his favour. The promoter did not help the flat owner on the pretext that there was some outstanding issue pending between it and PUDA for which the complainant was in no way responsible.

The complainant further alleged that the amount of registration fee in the year 2001 for the flat in question was Rs 70,000. But the promoter issued a notice to the purchasers for execution of the conveyance deeds only on March 26, 2009, after a delay of eight years. By the time, the rate of stamp duty increased to 8 per cent and the cost of flat as per collector rates was enhanced to Rs 22.56 lakh. The conveyance deed was ultimately executed by the complainant on March 11, 2010, after paying Rs 1,80,500 as stamp duty at the prevailing rates. In this way, the complainant had to pay an extra amount of Rs 1,10,500 solely due to delay in executing the conveyance deed on the part of the promoter.

Despite his request and legal notice on October 28, 2011, the promoter did not reimbursed to him the said amount of Rs 1,10,500.

After listening to the arguments of both the parties, the forum observed that the allottee had suffered because of the lapse on part of the builder. Thus, the complainant had to pay excess stamp duty and registration charges of Rs 1,10,500 to the government. For the reasons recorded above, the builder has been directed to refund to the complainant an amount of Rs 1,10,500 with interest thereon, at a rate of 9 per cent per annum with effect from March 11, 2010.

Plea for booth allotment
Lok Adalat tells screening panel chairman to file reply
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 13
The Permanent Lok Adalat (Public Utility Services) today asked the chairman of the screening committee to file reply on February 3, on an application filed by a resident of Sector 40, Baljit Singh, who is a victim of 1984 riots.

The petitioner has stated in the application that he had applied to the Estate Officer, Chandigarh, for the allotment of a built-up booth in the Sector 40 rehri market.

The screening committee had declined his application for booth and later he filed an appeal before the Chief Administrator. Acting on his appeal, the Chief Administrator had sent back the case to the Estate Officer, asking him to reconsider the claim. Thereafter, the Assistant Estate Officer recommended that his case should be placed before the screening committee for consideration, the petitioner added.

He has further stated that his case has been pending before the screening committee since 2009. He had sought directions to the officer concerned to settle his application as early as possible.

CRIME

Press owner arrested
Tribune News Service

Panchkula, January 13
The police has arrested the owner of a printing press for printing the logo of a renowned electrical appliances company illegally.

The suspect has been identified as Madan Gopal of Plot no. 170 in Industrial Area Phase-1.

The police said it received a complaint from Babloo Rai, an investigation officer of Parakletos Intelligence Company, Chandigarh, that Madan Gopal, the owner of the Blue Bird Card printing press, had been printing the CG logo of the Crompton Greaves company in his press without any authorisation from the company.

A case has been registered under Sections 63 and 65 of the Copy Right Act of 1957 and 420 of the IPC against the owner of the Blue Bird Card printing press.

Judge’s car hit by truck, driver booked
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 13
Additional District and Sessions Judge (ADJ) of Ludhiana Deepti Gupta met with an accident when her Esteem car was hit by a truck at the Kali Bari light point in Sector 31 here this evening. The police has registered a case of rash and negligent driving against the truck driver who has been identified as Pal Singh.

The mishap occurred when the ADJ was coming to her Panchkula residence to celebrate Lohri. The Judge’s driver, Dharamveer Singh, was driving the car when the accident occurred.

Luckily, no one was injured in the mishap while the car was badly damaged.

A case has been registered at the Sector 31 police station.

SPORTS