Ludhiana, February 22
In a tragic incident, a newlywed couple was crushed to death by a speeding vehicle on Lohara Bridge near the Shimlapuri area here today.

The victims have been identified as 25-year-old Amandeep and 23-year-old Jyoti. The couple had got married on February 12. Amandeep was working as an accountant.

According to the family, Amandeep visited the house of Jyoti in Mullahapur on a motorcycle here this morning. After meeting her parents, both of them went to a gurdwara on their way back.

The accident took place in the evening when they were returning to their house in Daba Colony. According to eyewitnesses, a speeding truck hit the rear of the motorcycle, making Amandeep lose control. The victims fell on the road and before they could react, the truck ran over them, crushing them on the spot.

The truck driver managed to escape from the scene. The Shimlapuri police has registered a case under Section 304- A of the IPC against the driver for reckless driving.

Ludhiana, February 22
In yet another incident of snatching, two motorcycle-borne youths snatched Rs 7 lakh from an employee of a dairy in Dashmesh Nagar near the Gill Road here today.

The incident took place this afternoon when the employee, identified as Rajesh Kumar, was returning to the dairy after withdrawing Rs 7 lakh from a local bank.

According to the statement of Rajesh Kumar to the police, he had just reached the dairy when two youths riding on a motorcycle came from behind and snatched away the bag containing the amount.

Rajesh Kumar raised the alarm and even chased the motorcycle to some distance, but the youths managed to speed off.

The victim and the dairy owner, Jagdish Kumar, informed the police about the incident.

The police has launched a massive search operation to nab the motorcycle-borne youths.

The dairy owner, meanwhile, has given a clean chit to Rajesh Kumar, saying that Rajesh could not be involved in the snatching incident as he was an old and trusted employee.

Jagdish Kumar told the police that the cash was meant to purchase raw material for the dairy and make other essential payments.

Ludhiana, February 22
In a major fillip, the police has busted a five-member gang, including alleged notorious gangster Ajay Pandit, following a shootout in the Chander Nagar area.

The other accused are Harjit Singh, Amandeep Gabba and Jatinder Kumar, all from Moga, and Simranpreet Singh of Guru Arjan Dev Nagar.

The police recovered a large number of weapons, including a country-made weapon, a rifle and cartridges, from the possession of the gang. The police also recovered two vehicles, including an SUV, from them.

Three of the accused were wanted in various criminal cases, including murder and robberies, by the Moga police. It is suspected that the gang was planning to commit a major crime.

Ajay Pandit and Simranpreet are also wanted in several criminal cases, including murderous assault and robberies. They were also running several gambling units in various parts of the city.

The police kept the shootout under wraps for the whole day and conducted raids in the city and several parts of Moga to nab the accomplices of the criminals.

ACP Swapan Sharma said on the night of February 21, the police received a tip-off that the accused were travelling in a Tata Safari and were planning to commit a major crime in the city.

Sources said sharing of information by Sub-Inspector Bitten Kumar led to the arrest of the gang.

Soon after receiving the information, the police laid a naka near the Chandar Nagar Bridge. On seeing the police, the criminals panicked and tried to escape. The police chased them. The driver of the SUV lost control and rammed into a wall. One of the criminals fired a shot at the police team and in retaliation, SI Baldev Singh fired two shots at them. On being surrounded, the criminals surrendered.

“The accused used to target petty criminals. Gamblers and illicit liquor traders were their easy target. Such crimes were never reported with the police, else the list would have been huge,” said a senior officer.

The police is probing how the Moga-based criminals got in touch with Ajay Pandit and Simran and formed a new gang.

The accused have been booked under Sections 307, 148, and 149 of the IPC. Various Sections of the Arms Act have also been slapped on the accused.

Ludhiana, February 22
A task force constituted by the Civil Surgeon, Dr Subhash Batta, today raided Mr Beans Hukkah Bar at Sarabha Nagar and challaned 25 youngsters and fined them Rs 200 each under the Tobacco Product Act for smoking “hukkah”.

The task force included District Health Officer Kulwinder Singh, Dr Jasbeer Singh, district epidemiologist, and Food Safety Officer Manoj Khosla, besides an ASI of the narcotics cell of the police department. Dr Kulwinder Singh said: “We challaned 23 boys and two girls who were smoking ‘hukkah’ in the no-tobacco zone at Mr Beans Hukkah Bar. An ASI of the narcotics cell took samples of flavoured tobacco products and sent them for analysis. Action will be taken after we get the reports.”

The “hukkah” bar has been raided earlier too by the task force. Food Safety Office Manoj Khosla said: “We will send our report to the state headquarters for further action. The District Health Officer will hold a meeting with the Deputy Commissioner and the Commissioner of Police in this regard.”

Ludhiana, February 22
The Ludhiana Municipal Corporation (MC) might seal the Ludhiana Bus Stand in the next couple of days due to the non-payment of house tax worth around Rs 1.67 crore. The tax is to be paid by a private company managing the bus stand and has been due for the last three years. An MC team today visited the bus stand and warned company officials to pay the pending amount, failing which the bus stand would be sealed.

It is learnt that around 10 days ago, the company officials had met MC Commissioner Malwinder Singh Jaggi and raised the issue with him. Jaggi had told them to pay the amount within a week.

The bus stand is being managed under private-public partnership and a private company is maintaining it. The bus stand authorities and the private company have signed a contract for nine years.

The Municipal Corporation had sent several notices to the company as well as the Punjab Roadways regarding the issue. But for the last three years, the MC did not get the house tax.

Hartej Singh, superintendent, house tax, said they had visited the bus stand today and had warned the company to make the payment immediately. “We met the General Manager of Punjab Roadways and he has asked the company to make the payment at the earliest,” he said.

Jaggi said: “If the company fails to make the payment, we will definitely seal the premises in a day or two. We have already given them enough time to clear the dues.”

Ludhiana, February 22
The lone Delhi-Ludhiana flight, which was operating continuously since February 8, seems to have stuck a rough patch as the flight has been cancelled for two consecutive days- on Monday and today. Air India officials say that the weather played the spoilsport.

The Ludhiana (Sahnewal) Airport is sans DVOR device, which helps in better visibility and helps the aircraft to land in low visibility conditions as well. So in the absence of this device, the Delhi-Ludhiana Air India flight has always taken a hit due to visibility issues.

Due to this problem, sometimes the flights have to land at either Amritsar or Chandigarh and sometimes even at Pathankot airports.

After a long dry spell, the Ludhiana Airport was receiving regular flights since February 8. Even the number of passengers availing of this facility had increased, but cancellation of flight on Monday as well as today, has come as a blow for the Air India authorities, who were expecting good days ahead.

Amrik Singh, manager of Air India at the Ludhiana Airport, informed that the flights on Monday and today had to be cancelled because of low visibility. “The visibility was below 5 km(which is required for an aircraft to land) throughout the day. It was only at around 4 30 pm that we got 5-km visibility, but by that time, it was already too late. We hope that in the coming days, we will not have such visibility issues, and the flight will operate as usual,” claimed Amrik Singh.

The flights from the Ludhiana Airport had started in April 2010, but since then, due to some technical issues, the flight had remained in doldrums. Moreover, due to uncertainty in flight operations, not many people were availing of this facility.

Ludhiana, February 22
There is a general practice in hospitals and clinics that when a patient starts showing signs of recovery or begins to feel restless, the same intravenous fluid (IVF) needle is injected again after a break of a few hours. But it is not the right thing to do as the patient can become susceptible to infection due to the needle coming in contact with air.

This was revealed by Deputy Drug Controller (retd), Government of India, Kapil Bhargav, who was in the city today on behalf of the Mahila Samaj Sewa and Vikas Samiti, an NGO, to make people aware on the safe aspects of storage and effective distribution of IVF.

He said: “IV fluid should be a one-time dose and the practice of using the same needle/drip after a few hours is wrong. It may lead to infection.”

He further said doctors and paramedical staff should ensure proper hygiene of the IV fluid. “Drug stores in hospitals should go in for regular pest control, which they usually do not,” he said.

Sandeep Yadav, coordinator of the NGO, said: “Our NGO is involved in spreading awareness on several health issues, including issues concerning women and child welfare. We will spread awareness in 4,500 departments of 350 medical colleges in 466 districts of India. For imparting training to the paramedical staff and doctors, a team of doctors and experts is preparing a training module.”

Bhargava added: “It is essential to follow the recent guidelines of the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) for a greater degree of consensus among various groups involved in its effective administration.”

Ludhiana, February 22
The Indo-Pak expo will be held in the city from February 23-26. R.S. Sachdeva, co-chairman of PHD Chamber, Punjab, sid while addressing the press conference. He said this was the first time that this type of an expo will be held in Ludhiana.

"Such expos have been held by the Chamber in Chandigarh and Amritsar. Traders from across the border will also be participating in the expo. Nearly hundred stalls will be put by traders of both the countries. We are expecting a footfall of 50,000 visitors," said Sachdeva.

Traders will be exhibiting product line from home interiors, textiles, electronics, handicraft and garments during the four day expo.

Ludhiana, February 22
The Knitwear Club has written a letter to the Finance Minister regarding their wishlist for the coming Union Budget.

Vinod K. Thapar, president of the club, said levy of excise duty on branded goods of small-scale industry had put a question mark on its survival which was already fighting against increased raw-material costs, labour shortage, infrastructural problems etc.

Further he said the industry was already reeling through crisis due to increased input cost, labour shortage (the industry was dependent on migrant labour and had to pay good salaries to attract them), strict norms of various government departments with no corresponding increase in price of finished goods. In such a situation, the industry will not be able to bear the huge burden of excise duty. If the units will shut down, then it will lead to huge unemployment and further hundred of ancillary units will also shutdown.

The matter has further worsened with the allowance of duty free import of readymade garments/hosiery products from Bangladesh. The government's recent move to grant duty free access of 48 apparel items from sensitive list to allow Bangladesh garment sector had baffled the hosiery and the textile industry.

Factors such as 0 per cent custom duty on machinery and labour cost, infrastructure, bank interest, power cost, and production costs were cheaper in Bangladesh so there was no level-playing field between India and Bangladesh.

Ludhiana, February 22
More and more youngsters in the city have started working while studying. While many students consider it "okay", for their parents to shell out thousands for their studies or enjoy the time in colleges, some of the students are turning this trend on its head to sweat it out early in their career.

Some of them are taking up work to get better and hand-on exposure of the "real-world" before taking a plunge into their professional career and business. Sandeep is working as a part-time marketing executive for a private company along with his studies. "I had heard many people say that the real learning is "learning on the job". But no higher studies and qualification, hampers your career at the latter stage of your career. So I wanted the best of both worlds and save time as well," he says. The benefit is that he is getting the exposure, he says.

Many youngsters want to fund their education on their own, and consider it their own responsibility. Harmeet Singh pursuing business administration works at a school during the day time. "We always harp about copying the Western culture, that we are gung-ho about aping their dance, style and fashion, but we are copying the things that matter," he says.

In Australia, the US and most of the Western country, children even as young as 15 years work in restaurants and other places, not because they need to earn, but just to learn to be on their own early and parents themselves encourage this trend, he says. "Most of the successful entrepreneurs have had an early exposure to the practical world. The early exposure gives you the knack of enterprise, which stands you in good stead in your career and profession," echoes another student.

Doraha, February 22
Director of Punjabi movies, Gurbir Singh Grewal, who is in the town to direct his forthcoming movie “Saadi Wakhari Hai Shaan”, finds a few promoters of Punjabi language and culture in Punjab.

“Punjabis are least bothered to work for the promotion of their mother tongue. There is simply no urge in them to work for the improvement of the culture that is fading away. Punjabi culture is being used as a commodity to gain name, fame and money. True art is not a commodity. It should be lived and experienced from within. The love for our soil should resound in our words, action and deeds,” said Gurbir Singh Grewal.

“I shifted from Mumbai to Punjab with a specific aim in my life. Back in Mumbai, it used to hurt me a lot when I heard about the Punjabi youths ruining their careers. The deterioration is to such an extent that our boys have even dragged their parents into debt for achieving their cheap objectives. They are getting addicted to drugs and engaging in anti-social activities,” he said.

Gurbir Singh Grewal, who earlier directed a Punjabi movie “Mannat”, expressed, “I want to change the psyche of the modern day youth. The energy which should be channelised for constructive purposes is now being misused. My aim is to make movies which are entirely youth oriented. I want to change the mindset of youngsters,” he added.

“We should not be making or directing movies to please anyone rather our aim should be higher. If we regard ourselves to be the saviours of our boli and our virasat, we have to look for meaningful objectives,” he stated.

Ludhiana, February 22
“Any language can only prosper if people born with it do not turn their back on it, but it is unfortunate that Punjabis are turning their back on their mother tongue,” said Gurbhajan Singh Gill, president of the Punjabi Sahit Akademi, on International Mother-Language Day yesterday.

“Mother tongue is nurtured by love, as it nurtures the initial thoughts and imagination of an individual. But sadly, pulled by the constraints of profession and business, people are giving up their mother tongue. To counter this unhealthy trend, people who are well-placed in society like doctors, engineers, good professions and business need to promote Punjabi as their mother tongue for it to survive and thrive,” he said.

His thoughts found an echo in sentiments of many people in the city who were concerned about the indifference and embarrassment the new generation felt while speaking their mother-tongue and expressing themselves freely. Hardev Singh, an MBA student, said it was good to learn as many languages as possible. “I also like Urdu language for the beauty of its words. The deepest thoughts of your mind can best be expressed in Punjabi,” he said. Jasneet Kaur, a BCA student, said the youth needs to wake up to the need for preserving Punjabi.

“I think the government needs to promote Punjabi seriously, even on roads, the information is first in English and then in Punjabi,” said Manpreet Singh, a BA student. “If we do not respect and speak in Punjabi, who will respect us in the future,” he questions. “Mother tongue nurses the closest feelings and sentiments in the subconscious mind, even if we learn more languages. Not caring about your mother, you are indirectly harming your own self, in the same way, by not caring back to your mother-tongue, you are harming the community,” said Charanjit Singh, a resident.

Jagraon, February 22
The postgraduate department of History of Khalsa College for Women, Sidhwan Khurd near Jagraon, organised a UGC-sponsored national level seminar on the topic of ‘Women in Colonial Punjab: Social, Economic and Political Perspectives” in the college auditorium today.

About 60 delegates from various universities and colleges from different parts of India participated in the seminar. As many as 35 research papers were presented during the seminar. The plight of women during the colonial rule was discussed during the seminar. The condition of women as a subaltern and various other related issues were the chief concern of the seminar.

Earlier, the seminar started with the inaugural address by Dr. Gurdeep Sharma, principal G.G.D.S.D College, Hariana, near Hoshiarpur. Prof. Jaspal Kaur from Punjabi University, Patiala, was present as the keynote speaker during the seminar. Dr. Balwinderjit Kaur Bhatia, head, department of Punjab historical studies at Punjabi University, Patiala, Dr. Neena, principal, Gobindgarh Public College, Alour, near Khanna and Dr. Baljit Kaur, principal, GHG Harparkash College of Education, Sidhwan Khurd, also read papers during the occasion.

The seminar was divided in two technical sessions. The chairperson of the first technical session was Prof. Sunita Pathania from Kurukshetra University while the resource persons during this session were Dr. Mohd. Idris and Dr. Parneet Hayer. The second technical session was chaired by Dr. Sukhmani Bal Riar, associate professor, Department of History Punjab University, Chandigarh. In this session the delegates from different colleges presented their research papers. The valedictory address was given by Prof SS Sohal, chairperson, history department, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar.

Doraha,February 22
Students of final years of MBA in marketing, finance and human resource of the Doraha Institute of Management and Technology have been placed in companies like Bajaj Finserv, Happy Forging Pvt. Ltd & India Mart, during a campus drive organised on its campus.

Dr Nishi Bala, head of department of management welcomed Dilip, Harsh Aggarwal, Nitin, JB Singh and Dinesh from the concerned multinational companies. The students were selected for the various locations at impressive salary packages on the basis of G.K. test, group discussion followed by an interview on HR and technical questions. The recruiters elaborated on the future strategies of their companies and their goals.

Amanpreet Singh, training and placement officer enlightened that some of the largest companies from manufacturing and automobile, banking and other financial sector, beverages and leisure resort hotel, FMCG and telecom companies were in the pipeline to visit the institute for more placements in supply chain management, procurement, marketing, operations etc. — OC

Ludhiana, February 22
The much-hyped towing away drive that turned out a major fund generating activity for the police department boomeranged after a 78-year-old man, Sant Singh, cried foul, alleging that the traffic police was harassing residents of the city just to please their bosses.

The incident took place this afternoon when his car was towed away. “I admit that one tyre of my car was beyond the yellow line. On seeing the recovery vehicle, I rushed to the spot and told them that I am an old man and did not notice my mistake. But they were adamant and took my car to the Police Lines," he said, adding that he got the car released from there.

He said he would bring the matter to the notice of the ACP (Traffic).

“I appreciate the towing away drive, but the police should be a little flexible. In order to please their bosses, the policemen do not realise that they are harassing residents,” he said.

Justifying the towing of Sant Singh's car, a traffic police constable said the car was parked in front of the gate of a house. They also had photographs as evidence.

Jagraon, February 22
The market constructed at Old Grain Market by the Municipal Council, Jagraon, some years ago has become a safe heaven for drug addicts, gamblers and other anti-social elements. On Tuesday, the police arrested 4 persons while gambling in this market, once again the incident brought to the fore the carelessness of the local municipal council in keeping anti-social elements away from the area.

As the local municipal council has failed to sell the shops of the market so far, the vacant shops of the market have become a favourite place for the gamblers and drug addicts. One can witness several idle people playing cards and gambling in the shops of the market throughout the day. The shopkeepers of the market complain that many drug-addicts also indulge in brawls here.

The shopkeepers and traders of the Old Grain Market say that though they have informed the local municipal council officials about the anti-social activities going on in the vacant shops of the market several times, but no action has been taken so far.

In the absence of proper check by the municipal council authorities, some of the traders of Old Grain Market have started using the shops in the market as godowns. Moreover, the husband of a local municipal councilor considered close to MC president Baldev Krishan Dhir has stored a huge stock of inter-locking tiles manufactured in his brick factory in one of the shops of this market without any permission from the municipal council.

The market was constructed by the local municipal council at for crores of rupees some years ago. There are 25 shops in the market but non of the shops has been soled so far. Though the municipal council had declared two auction dates in March 2011 to sell out the shops but both times the auction was cancelled due to certain reasons.

Congress leader and former president of local the municipal council, Davinder Kathuria, has blamed bizarre functioning of the local municipal council behind the delay in the auction of the shops of the market. “The sale of the shops in this market might have earned revenue for the municipal council and this money could be used for carrying out various development works in the town, which have been hit due to lack of funds. But the council has failed to sell these shops in for the reasons better known to municipal council authorities”, said Kathuria while criticising the lethargic attitude the local municipal council.

MC president Baldev Krishan Dhir, said that the auction of the market had been delayed because of elections. “We had planned to hold the auction last year but we could not do so as there was model code of conduct was in place first due to the SGPC elections and then the Assembly elections.”

However, he added that the council would be holding the auction of the market in a couple of months. Terming the allegations of misuse of the shops of the market by certain people as completely baseless, Dhir said that these false allegations were levelled by his political opponents to tarnish his image.

Jagraon, February 22
Internationally acclaimed sculptor and author Avtarjit Dhanjal visited Shri Ram College Dalla, near Jagraon, today and interacted with the students of the college. Sharing his views with the students, Dhanjal motivated them to work hard to realise their dreams.

“It is important for everyone to dream, as life is nothing without dreams. Only a person who dreams, and then works hard to realise his dream, can achieve something in life. Hard work and focus are the key to success and one can achieve anything if he or she is focused and determined to achieve their goal,” said Dhanjal.

Dhanjal was in Dalla village, which happens to be his native village, on a personal visit today. He also visited Shri Ram College situated in the village to share his views with the students. He also appreciated the college management for opening a college in the rural area and stressed that there was need of opening more educational institutes in villages to provide best education to the rural students.

Sharing his experiences with the students, Dhanjal motivated the students to work hard and never give up if they wanted to rise in life. Giving his own example, Dhanjal said that it was his hard work and determination which helped him achieve his goal despite several odds.

The college management also honoured Dhanjal during his visit. College principal Balwant Singh Sandhu thanked Avtarjit Dhanjal for sparing his valuable time and sharing his views with the students of the college.

Ludhiana, February 22
A seminar on "Indian Handlooms" was organised at Malwa Central College of Education today. The seminar was sponsored by textile committee, Ministry Of Textiles.

SS Mohan and Rajiv Kumar from the Ministry Of Textiles made the students aware about the history of handloom through a presentation.

Talking on the history of handlooms in India, Kumar said India was famous even in ancient times as an exporter of textiles to most parts of the civilised world; few actual fabrics of the early dyed or printed cottons had survived.

A presentation on Phulkari was also made by the recourse persons. An elocution contest was also organised based on the theme and the winners were also given prizes. Judges for the event were Tripta and Dr Navneet Kaur.

Khanna, February 22
Gulzar Group of Institutes, khanna, today announced "Robomania 2012" , a first of its kind show on robotics to be held on February 24, 25. The tech fest is a host to a series of workshops, expert talk and robotic events.

Elaborating on the concept, Gurcharan Singh, chairman, Gulzar Group of Institutes, stated that "Robomania 2012" would tap in potential from young generation, which was the motive behind the event. “ Robotic industry does have a huge potential in the years to come”, stated Singh.

The chairman said besides the exhibition, series of events, including 14 robotic events, 16 workshops will be organised, which will be addressed by experts in their respective field. — OC

Ludhiana, February 22
As the wheat crop is at the earhead stage, the aphids may cause damage to the crop, cautioned the experts of the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) here today.

The Head, Department of Entomology, Dr Balwinder Singh, explained that aphids were soft bodied, green to blackish-green louse-like insects. These are found in small colonies on leaves and earheads, he said, adding that the aphid develops colonies on leaves, leaf sheath, flag leaf and in the spikelets of the earheads. Both nymphs and adults suck the sap from the leaves and maturing grains.

Singh elaborated that due to heavy feeding by aphids, the grains did not develop and remained shrivelled. The aphids also excrete honeydew on which black sooty mould develops that hinders photosynthetic activity of the leaves. He added that the high population of aphids at the earhead stage can cause substantial losses in the yield.

Ludhiana, February 22
The thieves did not spare the house physically challanged couple in Issa Nagri near the Civil Hospital. The matter came to light here this morning when Prem Maseeh and Kamlesh Maseeh told the police that the thieves struck at their house and decamped with LCD, gold jewellery, cooking gas cylinder and Rs 8,000 cash.

The couple, who work in different hospitals, was on night duty. They came to know about the theft when they reached the house and were shocked to find the house ransacked.

The police has registered a case against the unidentified person for committing a theft and started the investigation.

3-year-old crushed to death
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, February 22
A three year-old-boy was crushed to death by an over-speeding tractor trolley in Daba area here today.

The victim, identified as Navin Singh, was playing with his friends outside his house this morning when the incident took place.

According to Ram Singh, father of the victim, the over-speeding tractor trolley lost control and crushed his child.

The driver of the vehicle managed to escape from the spot.

Police has registered a case against the unidentified tractor trolley driver and started investigation.

Ludhiana, February 22
The three-day annual Sardar Jawala Singh Memorial Athletics Meet of Baba Jaswant Singh Dental College, Hospital and Research Institute, began today with a large number of students, interns, faculty and staff members displaying their skills in various indoor and outdoor games.

The institute chairman, Baba Jaswant Singh, said: “On the playground, one learns cooperation, team work, sense of duty, discipline and determination to win.”

On the opening day, the non-teaching staff proved too good for BDS (III) students whom they beat in the tug of war. In carrom (girls), Ridhi defeated Shweta. In carrom (girls doubles), Amandeep Kaur and Ridhi got the better of first-year students Bikram and Rupinder while in chess (girls), Jaspreet Kaur outplayed Ekjot.