B A T H I N D A    E D I T I O N

Degree college in dire straits
Kotkapura, August 12 
Nearly 28 years after this first government degree college was started with much fanfare in Kotkapura town of Faridkot district, now not only is its building crumbling but the educational aspirations of the students are also being buried underneath.

Abohar robbery
Cops seek production warrant of criminals nabbed in Bikaner
Abohar, August 12
The police has approached the Bikaner court to grant production warrant against Sawai Singh Keshav who has been arrested along with his accomplice in connection with looting a jewellery shop in the Champavat segment.

Hooked to the number game
Abohar, August 12
A loco pilot, Raj Singh Dahiya, has developed an unending love for the number 786. Going through a report published in a newspaper in 1983, while studying in class IX, he decided to collect the Indian currency notes bearing 786 as last the three digits besides other articles.

Accidental gunfire leaves farmer injured
Abohar, August 12
A farmer, Daljit Singh, sustained serious injury at Tootwala village today when a cartridge hit him. Family members of the farmer told the police at the Civil Hospital here that he was cleaning his licensed revolver when the accident took place.

 Degree college in dire straits
28-year-old building of first govt degree college in Kotkapura declared unsafe
Balwant Garg
Tribune News Service

Kotkapura, August 12 
Nearly 28 years after this first government degree college was started with much fanfare in Kotkapura town of Faridkot district, now not only is its building crumbling but the educational aspirations of the students are also being buried underneath.

(Above) Poor condition of the lintel and plaster of the building of the Shaheed Bhagat Singh Degree College in Kotkapura raises questions over the safety of students, teachers and staff; (inset) a notice of the PWD (B&R) pasted on a wall of the college declares the building unsafe. Tribune photographs

The building of the Shaheed Bhagat Singh Degree College, set up in 1984, is literally falling apart. On February 28 this year, the PWD (B&R) declared that the college building was on its last legs. But the public notices by the PWD about the unsafe condition of the building notwithstanding, the college authorities, district administration and the PWD are yet to ponder about its repair and renovation.

“How can we expect our students to do their best in places that are literally falling apart,” asked a college teacher.

“With gaping holes, crumbling walls etched with lead paint and other serious structural problems, it is not only the students who feel scared in their classrooms, even the teachers are alarmed,” said another teacher.

Before the PWD declared this building as unsafe, the college authorities wrote many letters in the last four years for carrying out the repair work but the education department expressed its helplessness in sparing the needed funds,” said the teachers.

Faridkot Deputy Commissioner Ravi Bhagat said he also pursued the case for repair work after the matter was brought to his notice.

Severe shortage of faculty

The problems for this college are not just restricted to the building. Offering 16 subjects with 1100 students, including 748 new admissions this year, the college is facing an acute shortage of teaching faculty.

In the absence of permanent teaching faculty for many subjects, including Computer, Physical Education, Music (Vocal), Public Administration and History, the college mainly relies on guest faculty.

Even for compulsory subjects like English and Punjabi, the college does not have the sanctioned posts that were fixed years back. While the number of students is increasing every year, there are just two Punjabi subject teachers against the four sanctioned posts and two English teachers against the three sanctioned posts.

Due to the shortage of teaching faculty, the college has around 175 students to sit in one class or section. But with the crumbling building unable to accommodate so many students in one room, the quality of education being imparted could well be assessed. 

The college has also been running for years without a full-time administrator/principal. The post of the college principal has been lying vacant for many years and head teachers from other towns are given the additional charge to run this college.

 Abohar robbery
Cops seek production warrant of criminals nabbed in Bikaner
Our Correspondent

Abohar, August 12
The police has approached the Bikaner court to grant production warrant against Sawai Singh Keshav who has been arrested along with his accomplice in connection with looting a jewellery shop in the Champavat segment.

DSP Raj Kumar Jalhotra claimed that Amarveer Singh Lali of village Busowal in Kapurthala district and Sandeep Singh Sonu of village Shekhupura in Fatehabad (Haryana) had revealed during the interrogation in police custody that Sawai Singh Keshav and Shailender Singh “Sholu” were also involved in looting the luxury Innova car from real estate dealer Satish Sharma outside a bar on the city bypass here on July 19.

Now, the Bikaner police have also nabbed one Surinder Kumar alias Pathan along with Sandeep Singh Sonu. “Besides seeking the custody of Sonu on production warrant, we are going to check the credentials of his accomplice Pathan also,” the DSP said. 

 Hooked to the number game
Raj Sadosh

Raj Singh Dahiya carries Indian currency with 786 as last three digits. A Tribune photograph

Abohar, August 12
A loco pilot, Raj Singh Dahiya, has developed an unending love for the number 786. Going through a report published in a newspaper in 1983, while studying in class IX, he decided to collect the Indian currency notes bearing 786 as last the three digits besides other articles.

Till date, he has invested Rs 32,085 on collecting 786 notes of different denomination with such digits. His ration card and cell phones also bear the same digits at the end. His collection includes three rail reservation tickets, two railway passes, three platform tickets, 40 railway travel orders, 58 rail tickets made of thick card sheet, two child tickets, three bus tickets, Delhi Metro ticket, two lottery tickets, a donation receipt, one LIC premium payment voucher besides the bill of a company for which he had to wait for three months. The serial number of all these items ends with the digits “786”.

He is now busy in collecting currency notes and empty match boxes used in different countries with these numbers.

  Accidental gunfire leaves farmer injured

Abohar, August 12
A farmer, Daljit Singh, sustained serious injury at Tootwala village today when a cartridge hit him. Family members of the farmer told the police at the Civil Hospital here that he was cleaning his licensed revolver when the accident took place.