|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||
|
Washing dirty linen in public not an issue now, divorce cases up
Chandigarh, February 22
Already, 115 divorce petitions under the Hindu Marriage Act have been filed in court in the first two months of this year. A total of 777 divorce cases were filed in courts last year. The cases witnessed a rise as in 2009, when 648 cases were filed. In 2010, the number of couples seeking separation swelled to 708. “Women are more assertive while seeking divorce compared to a few years back. They have no qualms in washing dirty linen in public and have become more independent, both financially and emotionally. They are coming out openly and expressing the desire for discontinuing marital life,” says advocate Anupam Gupta. As per figures, on an average, 10 such cases by women seeking divorce on the grounds of impotence are being reported monthly compared to the one or two cases once in several months a few years back. In one such case decided last month, Meena Kumari (name changed) filed a case in the district court, seeking annulment of her marriage on the grounds of impotence. Her marriage was annulled by the court under Section 12 of the Hindu Marriage Act with grant of decree of nullity as there was no marriage in the eyes of law if the ground was proved. “In this case, the opposite party chose not to contest the case. Based on the medical report of the woman, it was proved that her marriage had not been consummated owing to the impotence of the respondent and the marriage was annulled. With women being more aware of their rights, they are agitating in the court of the law,” said advocate Virinder Issar. While older couples are citing incompatibility as the main reason, younger couples are blaming it on cruelty, desertion and impotence. Moreover, the number of cases by mutual consent is 40 per cent of the total petitions. Other reasons for the rising number of divorce cases include stress, lack of communication, extra-marital affairs and failure to adjust. In another such case, a 29-year-old woman had sought divorce on charges of cruelty. However, the husband accused his wife of torturing him mentally. The couple finally parted ways in 2010.
|
|
‘We Care For You’ seems a jokey
Chandigarh, February 22 A PCR vehicle rammed into a vehicle with the Sector-31 police station at Hallo Majra last night. PCR in charge Dharampal and two other Home Guard jawans were not carrying their driver’s licences. According to the complaint of Sector-31 police station officials, they went to attend a spot at Hallo Majra when a PCR vehicle being driven by Dharampal hit their vehicle head on, damaging its fuel tank. It was further reported that Dharampal, a Home Guard jawan, was neither a trained driver, nor was he authorised to drive a PCR vehicle. “There were two others in the jeep. One was the authorised driver, but he let Dharampal drive. Dharampal probably started the jeep with his foot on the accelerator. It rammed into our vehicle, damaging the bumper and the fuel tank,” said a police station official. “We have sent a detailed report on the incident to the department. We have also highlighted the fact that none of those present had their driver’s licences with them,” said SHO Jaspal Singh. DSP (PCR) Roshan Lal stated that an inquiry had already been marked into the matter. “If they are guilty, they will not be let off,” he said. The incident of disregarding traffic rules by its own officials left the police red in the face.
67.5 pc respondents not satisfied
Chandigarh, February 22 As far as behaviour is concerned, the survey indicates that there is a sharp decline in behaviour from cordial to rude as interaction between a complainant and police personnel increases. The study further reveals that 40 per cent of the complainants have reported that police officials at the police station ignore them. Ten per cent of the complainants have reported rude behaviour of police personnel while half of the respondents have reported cordial behaviour of officials attending them. On the demand of the UT police, Prof Anil Monga, centre coordinator, and Mohit Verma, assistant professor, have conducted a study, which has been recently submitted to the police. The study has been conducted after selecting one police station each from the three Chandigarh zones and 40 cases registered at each police station between March and May, 2011. During the survey, 70 per cent of the respondents have said their complaints have been registered on the first visit to the police station, but the remaining 30 per cent have had to visit again to get their complaints registered. The survey has also revealed that 95 per cent of the complainants have never received any communication after the registration of their complaints. Regarding the behaviour of police officials during the follow-up process, the study has revealed that 32.5 per cent of the respondents have mentioned it as rude, 37.5 per cent ignoring and only 17.5 per cent cordial. “A total of 97.5 per cent of the people reported that after they called up the PCR, the behaviour of the police was cordial. This percentage declined to 77.5 in case of the behaviour of the PCR official at the scene of the crime,” he explained. “The percentage further declined to 50 in case of the behaviour of the police at police stations. The percentage went shockingly low to 37.5 in case of the behaviour of the police during the follow-up process,” he elaborated.
Residents ‘shoo away’ top police officials
Chandigarh, February 22 Instead of welcoming mobile police stations, the residents vented their ire by raising slogans and accusing the police of coming out with swanky publicity gimmicks while core issues remained unresolved. The drama started when Sonia, a local resident, questioned the authenticity of the police’s self-proclaimed devotion by pointing out that a ‘goon’ wanted for breaking into her house was sitting in the meeting while the police was on the lookout for him. Sonia lodged a complaint on October 28 last year that 15 local goons barged into her house and virtually demolished it. The police nabbed a few, but a majority were on the loose. According to Sonia, the prime accused was sitting there. When the IG questioned the SHO concerned, he said seven culprits in the case had already been nabbed and the role of person under question had not been established. This further irked the residents. Krishna Devi (80) asked the SSP why the police had failed even after months to punish a local youth who had thrashed her, though it had his name and residential address. As tempers rose, village ‘pradhan’ Dashmi Devi stood up and accused the police of being hand-in-glove with drug peddlers. At this, the IG and the SSP left, much to the annoyance of the residents. They rounded up the SHO and started raising slogans. At this, a pro-police group started raising slogans in support of officials of the area.
|
|
Victim does not identify main accused in court
Rajinder Nagarkoti Tribune News Service
Panchkula, February 22 The victim, who appeared in court with her newborn, told the court that the main accused, Sushil Kumar, was not the one who had raped her. She said the person who had raped her was very young and tall while the person present in the courtroom was aged and of medium height. Sources added that the victim told the court that she could still identify the rapist among a number of people, but the person who violated her was not present in the courtroom. Last year, her parents had requested the court not to summon their daughter since she had wed and her husband and in-laws were not aware of her traumatic past. They had told the court that though they wanted the accused to be punished, they did not want to disrupt her life. As the victim’s statement was crucial for the prosecution, the court had directed the victim to record her statement. Earlier, the victim and her parents had given a statement against the three accused, who were awarded 10-year imprisonment. The court had awarded 10-year imprisonment to the accused, Vikram Chaudhary, Madan Yadav and Sumit, residents of Uttar Pradesh. On the night of January 9, 2010, the accused allegedly abducted the victim from the Kalka police post and gangraped her in a car. The police spotted the car when it was crossing the Parwanoo barrier. Accompanied by a team of the Himachal Pradesh Police, the Panchkula police nabbed the accused when their car met with an accident near Dharampur. Timeline * January 9, 2010: Victim abducted and raped; police rescues victim and arrests three accused from Dharampur * April 29, 2010: Court frames gangrape and kidnap charges * July 1, 2010: Victim identifies three accused in courtroom * January 25, 2011: Fourth accused, Sushil Kumar, arrested * March 8, 2011: Court awards 10 years’ imprisonment to three accused
|
|
Woman bludgeoned, robbed
Mohali, February 22
The police believed that the maid’s husband, Raju, assisted her in the crime. Fleeing with cash and valuables, the couple locked the main gate of the house, leaving the victim bleeding profusely. Doctors attending on the victim at hospital stated that her condition was critical. Being a baptised Sikh, she used to sport headgear, which reduced the impact of the baseball bat on her head. The husband of the victim, Satinder Pal Singh, owner of Diamond Copy House, had employed the maid six months ago without police verification. Family sources revealed that the maid, who had been given employment on the reference of a person at the Sector-22 gurdwara they knew, had also been given accommodation at a factory owned by the victim’s husband at Phase VIII, Industrial Area. The preliminary investigation by the police revealed that the maid poisoned the family’s pet Labrador to death. “The pet never allowed the maid’s husband to enter the house. They eliminated the dog to gain obstruction-free entry,” pointed out Ranjit Singh, manager at Satinder’s factory. SP (City) Harpreet Singh said police parties had been sent to different places to catch hold of the assailants on the basis of the details provided by the family. The police put the mobile phones of the couple on surveillance. The incident came to light when Avtar Singh came to drop the victim’s 14-year-old daughter, a class-VIII student. “I received a call from Satinder to pick up his daughter from school and drop her home. When I reached their house, the main gate was locked. I called up his wife, but her mobile phone kept ringing and she did not respond. I climbed up the gate to enter the house and found her lying in a pool of blood. We rushed her to hospital,” Avtar said. The police found signs of forcible entry and the almirahs opened with keys, indicating that the maid was in the know of things. Though the victim was found in the bedroom, there were traces of blood in the toilet. It seemed that the victim had been dragged to the bedroom. Though the family was yet to ascertain the exact loss, it was learnt that around Rs 2 lakh was missing from the house.
Indifferent to verification
Police officials said the incident highlighted the indifference on the part of employers to get police verification of their tenants and servants done. In case of a crime, it was difficult to track down criminals, they said. The Mohali police was now planning to start a servant verification drive.
|
|
PGI’s new OT closed for repairs
Chandigarh, February 22 The swanky brand new building of the ATC, functioning partially for the last about nine months, has been reportedly giving continuously problems due to structural faults. Last year, the false sealing had fallen off near the minor operation theatre. This year, flooring and water leakage problems forced the closure of the OT. Even the wall near the stairs had clear signs of seepage. Confirming the closure of the trauma OT of the ATC, the spokesperson of the PGI, Manju Wadwalkar said it was closed last month for repair work and had been temporarily shifted to the old OT (room 22). She said the new OT of the ATC would be functional from March 1. Between 8 and 12 cases were being operated per day
in the old OT. However, the new OT was technically more advanced in terms of light system and had facility of onscreen surgery, not available in the old OT. Sources said the PGI authorities had pointed out the shoddy construction work at the ATC to officials of the central public works department
earlier too. The building had been constructed at a cost of over Rs 30 crore. The PGI’s engineering department had pointed out the flaws at Level III, where the OT complex was located. “The flooring of the store is lower than that of the OT, which leads to water collection in the store as there is no drainage there. The edges of flooring in the OT are also not sealed and there is no exhaust in any autoclaving area, including the main autoclave area, the septic OT and minor OTs,” said officials. Doctors at the ATC said though a majority of the repair work had been done, the rest would be completed within a few days. In the new OT complex, there were five major OTs (for general, trauma, neuro and plastic surgery), but only the trauma OT had became operational
last year.
|
Police to videograph lodging of FIR
Panchkula, February 21 Legal experts said when the victim can turn hostile after recording their statements under Section 164 of the CrPc and the parties settle compromise outside the courtrooms, then such recordings would not do enough for the police. Sameer Sethi, an advocate, said these recordings would be helpful for the police to show that the complainant was not under any kind of pressure while lodging an FIR with the police and it will help the police in ‘image building’ only. Enquiries revealed that in many of the cases in the recent past, the complainants and victims had either changed their earlier statements or settled for a compromise with the accused party. The cases include a government college student's murder, Panchkula gangrape case and rape allegations levelled by the maid of Panchkula KC theatre owner against him. Besides, there were incidents as well where people had cooked up false story to settle score with their rivals. Attempt to murder case against Ludhiana based doctor, Sumit Sofat, case against the BKU leader Guni Prakash and a separate case against Pinjore shopkeeper, Raj Kishore, for levelling false allegations against four persons, figures in the list of such cases. A senior police official maintained that people always criticise cops for inaction. In majority of the cases, people turned hostile. The police is regularly facing such problems. To record the statements, every police station has been provided with a video camera, he added. He further said that it would also help the police to take action against the complainants who will lodge false case. In such cases, the police can initiate action under Section 182 of the CrPC.
Cases where victims turned hostile and false complaints were lodged
July 2011: The BKU leader, Guni Prakash, had lodged a false complaint against his rivals under attempt to murder. But later, the police found that complaint was false and Guni Prakash was booked. May 2011: A priest was acquitted from the rape charges as the complainant changed her statement on three occasions. July 2009: A Ludhiana based doctor, Sumit Sofat, had lodged false case against Ramesh Pashan. Later, the police registered case against the doctor. April 2009: 14-year-old died in a flat in Sector 20, Panchkula. Initially, parents alleged that she was murdered but later they withdrew their complaint. March 2009: Panchkula KC theatre owner’s maid alleged that the owner raped her but later, she denied the same. September 2008: A minor alleged gangrape by her friends but later changed her stance in the court resulting in the acquittal of two accused. September 2008: A BA-final-year student was claimed to be murdered outside Government College in Panchkula. Later, his father changed his stand and the accused were acquitted.
|
|
Overloaded auto-rickshaws a peril on roads
Zirakpur, February 22
Despite the penalising by the traffic police, the drivers of the auto-rickshaws continue overloading their vehicles and violate the rules. According to the information, in 2011, the traffic had penalised 555 drivers for overloaded auto-rickshaws and in 2010, they penalised 451 drivers. The commuters complained that to make more money, many auto-rickshaws carry as many as 7 to 10 persons at a stretch. These drivers do not consider the rule and regulation, they rued. A visit to the area revealed that overloaded auto-rickshaws were a common sight in Zirakpur. Despite the ruling that the drivers should not accommodate more than three persons at a time, they were carrying more than 8 to 10 persons. They do not even follow the traffic rules and stop the autos-rickshaws anywhere on the highway. District transport officer, Sukhvinder Kumar, said that they had issued challans to overloaded auto-rickshaws. “In the coming days, we will conduct a special drive to check and issue challans to the defaulters not only for overloading but also to those who run auto-rickshaws without permit or any other documents, he added. He said it was also a duty of the traffic police to penalise the overloaded autorickshaws. A traffic official said that the cops were challaning the violators regularly.
|
|
8 bus drivers penalised
Mohali, February 22 He said that they had penalised the drivers for overloading the buses, a few of them were plying buses without permit and they had no documents. — TNS
|
|
PSEB to install CCTV cameras
Mohali, February 22 When asked whether the CCTV cameras would also be installed in the government schools too, Dhillon said this would be done only in the case of those government institutions from where many complaints of copying during examinations had been received. However, all the private schools under the board would be required to install the system. Adopting the CBSE pattern, Dr Dhillon said the PBSE would also interchange the examination centres to check the menace of copying. The students of one of the schools could now be required to appear in an examination on the premises of another school. However, such centre changes would be carried out only within a distance of 2 km to 3 km. He said that the schools had also been asked to provide the board with a list of observers to be appointed for the examinations. The person recommending the name of an observer would be responsible for the integrity of the appointee. As a move to declare the results well in time, the board had decided that the marking of the practical examinations and that of the elective subjects would be done at the school level and the grading in this regard will be forwarded to the board in a week time, added Dhillon. The board chairman said that it had also been decided that the examinations in the case of the subjects that required grading would be conducted at the end of the examination schedule. Efforts would be made to implement the steps from this year, but Dhillon was not sure whether it would be possible so soon. However, the decision would definitely be implemented from the next year exams.
|
|
Over 50 LPG cylinders stolen from govt schools
Mohali, February 22 At least 50 cooking gas cylinders have been reportedly stolen from the government schools over the past months. The thefts had been more frequent in the Kurali area. The DEO (Primary), Narinder Singh, said every government school had an LPG connection with two cylinders. There were no watchmen posted in the schools and the thieves broke locks open and decamped with the cylinders. Some schools also reported that rice and wheat for the midday meal scheme were also stolen, Narinder added.
|
|
Canadian physiologist of Indian origin felicitated
Chandigarh, February 22
Besides physiology and cardiovascular developments, Dhalla is deeply associated with the rich cultural heritage of Punjab in general and Sikhs in particular. The Sikh Heritiage and Cultural Foundation felicitated him here today. Incidentally, Dhalla is one of the founder members of the foundation whose first project of restoration of the Maharaja Ranjit Singh Memorial at the Ropar Fort is nearing completion. In fact, when Museum of Human Rights, one of the best in the world opens up in Winninpeg soon, credit for the 546-kg bronze statue of Mahatma Gandhi in it would go to Naranjan Singh Dhalla. "My interest in cardiovascular diseases stems from the fact that it still remains the single largest killer in the world. Unfortunately, not much has been done the world over in cardiovascular diseases education," he says maintaining that the institute he heads has the best brains and hands in this specialised field. Dhalla, who frequents medical institutions and universities all over the world, has 42 books on cardiovascular diseases to his credit besides supervising training of 150-odd M Scs and Ph Ds. "I have never done a research paper in association with any of my students," he claims maintaining that the laboratories he works and conducts his research have more than 20 scientists working all the time. When he left the shores of India in 1961, he wanted to be a pharmacologist. After studying at University of Pennysylvania and then at Pittsburgh, he worked as an assistant professor at St Louis before deciding in 1968 to make Canada his permanent home. Besides pharmacology and physiology, cardiovascular science is an area for which he always nurtured a passion. "Though I may not be brilliant in academics, but I feel I am truly blessed," he says.
|
|
GMADA has failed to check illegal colonies
Mohali, February 21 Owing to the failure of the regulatory branch of GMADA to check unauthorised colonies, illegal structures have come up in Balongi. With politicians allegedly patronising violators, these structures under the high-tension lines are not being removed. Last year a scrap dealer’s godown in Balongi’s Azad Colony area was reduced to ashes when a 66 KV high-tension wire fell on it. A nine-year-old boy from Khanpur village suffered serious injuries when a power cable passing over his house fell on him. In another incident, two children were seriously injured when they came in contact with a high-tension wire passing over a house in Saini Vihar in Baltana. A 20-year-old labourer was electrocuted on the Zirakpur-Patiala highway. All these casualties have been reported in the past two years.
|
|
Officials face residents’ ire
Deepankar Sharda Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, February 22
The police officials, including high-ups like IG PK Shrivastava and SSP Naunihal Singh, tried to reach out to the people asking them to trust the UT police and cooperate with it and they were actually left in a tight spot over people’s allegations of indifference, rudeness and inefficiency on the part of the police and its alleged involvement with the drug mafia. The van which went to colony number 5 and Dadu Majra today got numerous residents flocking to it, apparently to find out if these vans will be managed by the same officials as those posted at the thanas. “I had lost a scooter around 3 months ago and had visited the police station regularly for almost a month but was always shooed away. When this van will be managed by the same officials then what difference will it make? We don’t mind travelling to police stations but yes it’s the attitude of the police wallas which needs change,” said a resident at colony number 5 who refused to divulge his name. “Instead of introducing new projects worth lakhs shouldn’t the UT police devote all its efforts to nab criminals? Will getting a complaint vehicle at my doorstep make me feel secure?” questioned a woman at Dadu Majra. Meanwhile, allegations flew high that the police officials of the thanas concerned had got their ‘supporters’ from other sectors to sit in public interface with high-ups to cover the existent disinterest among the residents. The colony residents also claimed that the cases being taken up had already been settled in thanas and were being taken just to gain publicity. Meanwhile, the project in charge, DSP Ashish Kapoor, claimed that ridicule could not sum up the response to the vans. “Though two persons criticised us, many even showed faith and came up with their complaints many of which were even settled and disposed of. This ire is the key reason why we needed this project. We can’t do anything about allegations but the fact is that these vans will change the facet of this city giving the people an easy opportunity to speak up. Is a single day enough to pass any judgment on a project?” he asked. Day I progress * Colony number 5: 4 missing complaints: 15 tenant verification: 2 character verification * Dadu Majra: Complaints disposed of 5: verifications: 6 How do these police stations function
The mobile police stations will function for five days a week, i.e. from Monday to Friday, from 9 am to 5 pm in winter and 10 am to 6 pm in summer. Saturday will be earmarked as a maintenance day for vehicle/records. The stations will be in close contact with the RWA, senior citizens and the panchayats. The mobile police stations will also undertake inquiries into complaints, verification of servants, tenants, PGs, passports, arms licences, etc. These will also lodge DDRs for non-cognisable offences and missing reports. Out of these reports any thing cognisable will be converted into FIRs in the police stations concerned.
|
|
Heart-attack deaths on the rise
Anuja Jaiswal Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, February 22 These disturbing revelations have been made from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the WHO and the Indian Heart Foundation, which have put India on a high alert to control cardiovascular diseases. By 2020, India will have the largest cardiovascular disease burden in the world, according to the WHO report. Dr KK Talwar, renowned cardiologist and former Director of the PGI, said the roller-coaster lifestyle, coupled with our inability to deal with stress, was leading to this dangerous trend. Though women have heart attack at older ages than men, they are more likely to die from the attack within a few weeks due to the age. When it comes to heart diseases, the thirties, it seems, are the new fifties. Dr HK Bali, heart specialist at the Fortis hospital, Mohali, said if the typical heart patient until five years back was in his mid-fifties, this no longer holds true. Now, the man with blockages in his heart is most probably in the 39-42 age group and with another health complication such as diabetes or hypertension. “In India, 80 per cent of the patients visit a doctor when they have already had a heart attack. In the West, only 20 per cent have had a previous history of heart attack when they consult a cardiologist,” said the cardiac surgeon. A heart attack is worst when it takes place between 1 am and 5 am. Researchers say the gravity of a heart attack and the subsequent left-ventricular function is significantly different based on the time of the attack. A study in humans, published online in the reputed journal, “Circulation Research”, says: “The greatest amount of injury to a heart occurs when individuals have a heart attack between 1 am and 5 am”. Agreeing with the study, Dr Bali, said: “There are different phases of sleep. Early morning sleep is called rapid-eye-movement sleep during which people dream. The body is asleep but the mind is awake. The autonomous nervous system is stimulated which releases hormones such as adrenaline, noradrenaline and cortisol. These hormones increase the activity of the heart which beats and works harder. But, the hormones constrict the blood supply to the heart.” Dr Rohit Manoj, Additional Professor, department of cardiology, PGI, said: “Also, one main reason why a heart attack is worst at night is because people wait till morning to go and get an ECG done. Initially, they rubbish it by thinking it’s indigestion and take some antacids.” In his presentation in 2009, Dr Manoj has mentioned that 12 per cent or 16 per cent of the Asian-Indians have premature CAD compared to 2 per cent or 5 per cent in the west and 3 or 4 times higher mortality in young Asian-Indian. An analysis of 1,003 patients of CAD revealed that, 4 per cent below 40 years of age and 20.6 per cent in the age group from 40 to 49 due to a sedentary lifestyle.
|
|
Rail underpass to be delayed
Chandigarh, February 22 Earlier, the project was scheduled to kick off in a month or two following its approval by the Ministry of Railways, Government of India, and the UT Administration. “Now, the project will be delayed further for at least six months as the redesigning of the project is underway according to the suggestions by the Railways,” said a senior official of the UT Administration on the condition of anonymity. Under the project, two approach roads have been planned by the administration for which an estimated amount of Rs 9.22 crore has already been approved. The rest of the work of the underpass would be taken up by the railway authorities at a cost of about Rs 6 crore. All the drawings of the project have been prepared and sent to the Railways for its consent. Now, the railway authorities have suggested the UT administration to construct a separate way for pedestrians and cyclists, to which the administration has given its nod. “It’s a welcome suggestion and the administration is ready to act according to the modifications in the drawings suggested by the railway authorities,” said the official. On being asked whether or not the project cost would increase with the construction of separate approaches for pedestrians/cyclists, the official said it would be ascertained only after the finalisation of the redesigned drawings that the administration has sent to the Railways.
|
|
Date for empanelling doctors extended
Chandigarh, February 22 The panel will provide services to the employees from May 1, 2012, to April 30, 2013. Doctors from Chandigarh, Mohali and Panchkula can send their applications to the Senior Regional Director, Health and Family Welfare, Chandigarh. — TNS
|
|
Abhijeet to enthral audience
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, February 22 Besides, there will be a live performance by Aditi Paul along with a fashion show where the contestants of Ms and Mr Rose Chandigarh will walk the ramp at Leisure Valley. The 40th Rose Festival, which is likely to be attended by lakhs of visitors from the tricity region, will be inaugurated by Adviser to the Administrator KK Sharma at the Zakir Rose Garden in Sector 16. While over 400 varieties of roses in the Rose Garden will be at display, a number of cultural programmes and competitions in flower arrangement, rose prince and princess, brass and pipe band, fancy floral hat, on-the-spot painting, rose quiz, folk dance, photography, antakshri, and kite flying will also provide an opportunity to visitors to participate in the three-day mega event.
|
|
24 illegal cabins razed in Sec 20
Chandigarh, February 22
After reaching the spot around 10 am, the team, under the supervision of UT Assistant Estate Officer Rahul Gupta, also gave time to the businessmen to remove their illegal constructions on their own. “About a dozen of them agreed to our directions and demolished their shops on their own. This way they also managed to save their items,” said Gupta. As the rest were found reluctant, we had to raze their constructions with a JCB. Around 55 cabins were erected illegally in the market. The shopkeepers were also served notices by the department around six months ago. “Earlier in the first week of this month, we had convinced around 30 shopkeepers to remove their structures on their own,” said Gupta. “The ‘strategy’ worked as around 60 per cent of the encroachers demolished their structures on their own. This saved us our manpower and more importantly ‘clashes’,” said Rahul Gupta, the UT Estate Officer.
|
|
Tibetans to skip Losar celebrations
Chandigarh, February 22 This year all the Tibetans all over the world have decided to abstain from the celebrations on account of inhuman treatment of their brethren in Tibet, said Gelek. Arvind Thakur, chairman of the Global Human Rights Council, said he, along with his team, would provide free legal aid to the Tibetans living in the city.
|
|
Notices served on violators Chandigarh, February 22 Most of these constructions have come up in villages like Hallo Majra, Kaimbwala, Behlana, Dariya and Dhanas. Notably, a policy decision on replacing the existing wires with the Aerial Bunch Conductor was taken around six months ago but the action on it is
yet to be initiated. “We are concerned about people’s lives. The work to replace the wires with the insulated ones would be started soon,” said
MP Singh. However, he added, the lines crossing over the residential areas or other places would not be replaced as it was their (the residents) fault if they had constructed their house under the power lines. Meanwhile, the administration has served notices on all these residents. The UT Estate Office has also been apprised of the situation as a copy of each notice is being sent to it to take action against the violators. Ram Mukand and Danish from Dhanas village said they had complained to the authorities concerned to change the power lines, which have been crossing over their houses and are very close to the building. “But nobody bothers about the danger under we are living,” said Ram Mukund.
|
|
This February coldest in recent years
Chandigarh, February 22
In 2009, the day and night temperatures during February were recorded at 29.6 degrees Celsius and 7.8 degrees Celsius, respectively, while these were 30.4 degrees Celsius and 6 degrees Celsius in 2010. Similarly, in 2011, the maximum and minimum temperatures were recorded at 27.4 degrees Celsius and 6.4 degrees Celsius. This year the minimum and maximum temperatures were recorded at 4.8 degrees Celsius and 27.3 degrees Celsius respectively. The occurrence of western disturbances over the cyclonic area was cited as the main reason for this weather change. This year the weather disturbances had occurred five to six times in January causing rain or heavy snowfall in the higher reaches of neighbouring Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. Surinder Pal, Met Director, Chandigarh, said temperatures would fall in the next two to three days. The clouds could appear on February 25 which might cause light rain or thundershowers further reducing the day and night temperatures. Meanwhile, the maximum temperature on Wednesday was recorded at 27.2 degrees Celsius, three degrees above normal, while the minimum temperature was recorded at 14 degrees Celsius, 5 notches above normal. The maximum relative humidity was recorded at 67 per cent while the minimum was recorded at 36 per cent. The weather office has predicted mainly clear sky with mist or haze occurring during the morning and evening hours. There would be an appreciable fall in the night temperatures. There would be no major change in the day temperatures as the maximum temperature on Thursday would hover around 27 degrees Celsius while the minimum temperature would be around 11 degrees Celsius.
|
|
|
UT Admn notifies 4 per cent luxury tax
Chandigarh, February 22 “All the local hoteliers, owners of restaurants, marriage palaces, and banquet halls have been asked to get their luxury tax registration numbers for the payment of tax,” said Dubey. With the implementation of the tax, the rates of hotel rooms as well as organising functions in banquet halls or marriage palaces have already risen. “With a range of taxes, like VAT (12.5 per cent), service tax (3.05 per cent), and luxury tax (4 per cent), one can easily guess the taxation scenario here. How can we be tourist-friendly with such a high tax structure,” said Ashok Bansal, general secretary of Hotel Association of Chandigarh. Notably, owners of several restaurants have been charging 10-12 per cent service charge in addition to these taxes. The tax had been levied on the pattern of Punjab following its approval by the central government.
|
|
|
Police registers case after 9 months
Mohali, February 22 Rajinder’s body was eaten by stray dogs and an inquest proceeding was initiated. However, the matter was disclosed after the postmortem report in which it was found that the deceased was killed after an unidentified vehicle hit him.
|
|
Human rights seminar concludes
Chandigarh, February 22 The resource person for the first session was Dr Swaranjeet Kaur, associate professor, Centre of Human Rights and Duties, Panjab University. The sub-theme of the session was ‘Capacity Building among Women Workforce’. She elucidated the need to understand human rights and said that the journey towards human rights started by maintaining the dignity and respect of women. She said that capacity building should be a collaborative exercise within organisations and appealed to the delegates to help women in the unorganised sector in whatever ways they can - be it our research projects, social platforms, or institutional collaborations. The second technical session was headed by Dr Arvind Kumar Jha, associate professor, RBS College of Education, Rewari. He elaborated upon the various aspects of Human rights associated with the youth. “By participating in a meaningful way, we can make this world a better place to live. People should help themselves by taking charge of their lives,” he said. He also emphasised on the need for health and food security after dwelling on the current state of health care in India. The resource person for the afternoon session was Kunwar Vijay Partap Singh, DIG, Cyberbcrime, Punjab, who deliberated upon the sub-theme ‘Human rights and Indian Perspective’. He explained the current state of Human rights implementation in India and suggested ways of improving
|
|
NSUI memorandum to PU VC
Club concert MoU signed Accounts service body election New procedure to cure sinus Help desk on SSP campus Medical camp Insurance body elections
|
Special ‘Avsar’ for Students
Chandigarh, February 22 The university has planned to organise a massive campus placement drive for students from various streams. The proposed dates for the drive are March 13-14, and would be held at the University Institute of Applied Management Sciences (UIAMS) and University Institute of Engineering and Technology (UIET). The website ‘Avsar’ has up-to-date information on the proceedings and development of the placement drive. PU Vice Chancellor RC Sobti said that the drive, on the one hand, would help students to get themselves registered, and on the other, assist them in preparing for interviews. “The companies that are willing to participate in the drive can also register themselves through this web portal,” he said. To help the students prepare for tests and interviews, the university has organised a one-day interactive workshop where the HR heads of some leading organisations will be invited to guide the students.
|
|||||
|
Teachers’ strike paralyses work in colleges
Chandigarh, February 22 The staff is agitating because even after several promises, the UT Administration had failed to implement the revised pay-scales for the non-teaching staff. They held a rally at the DAV College today and submitted a memorandum to Shivraj V Patil, Administrator of Chandigarh, after being stopped at the college gates to proceed to the Raj Bhavan. Speaking at the rally Prof Ghanshyam Dev, convener of the Joint Action Committee of Aided College Teachers and Non-teaching Employees Union of Chandigarh said, “It is a matter of extreme distress that the non-teaching employees working in the government aided colleges in Chandigarh are still awaiting the release of their revised pay-scales with effect from January 1, 2006. “The treatment being meted out to the non-teaching employees of the colleges is most disappointing and biased. They are perhaps the only employees in Punjab and Chandigarh who are yet to get the benefit of revised pay-scales,” said Professor Dev. Dr Jagwant Singh, the president of PCCTU said, “We have knocked on all the doors of the government but have only received assurances so far. The revision of pay-scales has been denied despite several orders regarding parity with counterparts working in Government colleges of UT. He further said that the case was referred to the MHRD and after a lot of effort, the government of India approved the implementation of revised pay scales (Fifth Pay Commission) from January 1, 2006. The approval was given in October 2011. But nothing has happened so far.
|
|||||
|
PUTA protests at Gandhi Bhawan
Chandigarh, February 22 The speakers blamed the authorities for creating an environment in which arbitrary and ad hoc decisions were taken. The university has more than 175 principal investigators who are working on different research projects; these projects, sponsored by different research agencies, bring the university funds to the tune of Rs 40 crore. The teachers resented the delay in processing of the bills, clearance of research schedules, permission for field travel etc. Dr Mohammed Khalid, secretary, PUTA, said that the untrained daily-wage staff, which often find it difficult to handle the job, is given the sensitive task of maintaining accounts . “The inefficiency of daily-wage staff is further compounded in the wake of the long list of objections slapped by the audit branch of the university. Consequently, the medical bills submitted for reimbursement languish in the accounts branch for months together. The bills submitted for clearance are sent back time and again with objections which at times are very frivolous and flimsy,” Khalid said. Prof Akshaya Kumar, president, PUTA, hit hard at the indifferent attitude of the administration towards the legitimate demands of the faculty involved in research. While pointing out the inefficiency of the accounts and audit branch due to shortage of trained manpower, he held the authorities responsible for the mess that the university had fallen into. He said the university administrative machinery had been allowed to degenerate beyond immediate recovery. “While the number of the departments has increased substantially, there is no corresponding increase in the intake of trained non-teaching staff,” he said.
|
|||||
|
200 delegates participate in biotech seminar
Chandigarh, February 22 Dr RS Khandpur, Director General, Puspha Gujral Science City, Kapurthala, elaborated on the future perspectives of biotechnology in our country vis-à-vis the lack of commercialism in our attitude. On the occasion, an e-Abstract Resource Book containing detailed proceedings of the seminar was also released. Mani Bedi, principal and patron of the seminar, said that India held only a small share of the global biotech market, but had all the capabilities to become a dominant player. Dr Neelam Gulati Sharma, additional director, Punjab State Council for Science and Technology, discussed the need to ignite scientific temper among women to help them excel.
|
|||||
|
|||||
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
With marital bliss becoming a rarity in today’s fast-paced life, the total number of divorce cases filed in the UT district courts in the last three years alone has touched 2,133.
It had now been decided that the board would install the cameras after hiring from the market. However, the school authorities concerned would have to get the videography of the examinations done on their own.
A pioneer in cardiovascular education and training, Dhalla is not only the executive director of the International Academy of Cardiovascular Sciences -- one of the top three in the world -- but is also the distinguished professor of physiology and director of cardiovascular developments in the University of Manitoba.
An analysis of the data provided by the meteorological department reveals that the minimum and maximum temperatures remained two or three degrees Celsius lower compared to the temperatures recoded during the past three years. 
Lecture on healthy diet