Chandigarh, September 12
The Central government report tabled in Parliament recently may have shown the Chandigarh government schools in good light, but most of the schools, especially on the city’s periphery, stand with lack of infrastructure.

Some of the government schools in the city don’t even comply with the Right To Education (RTE) Act standards for infrastructure. Under the act, schools must have basic infrastructure facilities like an all-weather building with at least one classroom for every teacher and an office for the head teacher.

A separate toilet each for girls and boys, a playground and a library for every school with sufficient reading material, electrification of the school building, ramp access for disabled students and computers are some of the basic requirements that have been recommended under the RTE Act.

However, most of the government schools in Chandigarh and on its periphery don’t even come close to providing these facilities.

GSSS, Maloya

In November 2009, the Chandigarh Administration declared one of the buildings of Government Senior Secondary School (GSSS), Maloya, having nine classrooms as unsafe. About three years later, the crumbled structure, though locked, is exposing the apathy of the administration.

Principal of GSSS, Maloya, Gurmukh Singh said: “We have sent many reminders to the UT Administration’s engineering department to start the construction work of the school building, but to no avail.”

GMS, Sector 56

Children forced to study in a shed with a cemented sheet roof at Government Middle School, Sector 56, Chandigarh. Tribune photo: Parvesh Chauhan

The Government Middle School, Sector 56, has been waiting for the past 20 years for concrete classrooms. Four of its classes are running in shed having roofs of cemented sheets. The classrooms lack proper ventilation and children were sitting in the classrooms in extreme humid condition. A JBT teacher at the school said it was extremely difficult to take classes in such conditions. The school was upgraded from primarily to middle school two years ago. However, the school still is up to Class V as there are no classrooms to start Classes VI to VIII. The school has 12 classrooms and 24 sections. Four classrooms are with a tin roof. In order to accommodate the students, classes are taken in morning and evening shifts.

School headmaster Ranjit Singh, who recently joined the school, admitted that teaching students under these circumstances was not possible. He said: “A proposal to construct 22 new classrooms has been submitted to the higher authorities and hopefully things will improve.”

Smart work ruling periphery schools

Almost all schools on the city’s periphery have two shifts — morning and afternoon. No school has the infrastructure to handle the large rush of students in a single shift.

Till last year, students of Government High School, Dadu Majra, and Government Middle School, Sector 45, Burail, used to sit in the veranda. However, all students are now able to sit in classrooms as classes are being taken in two shifts.

“It’s more of a smart work rather than providing quality education in schools on city’s periphery,” said a school principal, who says that providing quality education in such conditions is not possible. “We are forced to make adjustments classes have been divided in two shifts.”

GSSS, Sector 56

Children sit on the floor at Government Senior Secondary School, Sector 56, Chandigarh. Tribune photo: Parvesh Chauhan

Set up in 2006, Government Senior Secondary School, Sector 56, is yet to start Class X1 and X11 due to heavy rush of students, mostly from nearly colonies. Despite having 27 rooms, students of six classes are forced to sit in veranda. More rooms are being constructed to accommodate students for the past two years.

Schoolteachers say students’ strength has increased manifold in recent years, all thanks to the RTE Act, but the infrastructure is still lacking.

Principal of GSSS, Sector 45, Tajinder Kaur said that before the RTE Act, the school had strength of about 2,000 students, but today the number of students has touched 5,000. However, there has been to improvement in the infrastructure.

Government Senior Secondary School, Dhanas, also requires six additional rooms, while Government High School, Sharangpur, has only 10 classrooms against 20 sections.

Education experts say schools are required on the city’s periphery, but delays in administrative approvals and executions are keeping the dream of quality education at bay.

GHS, Hallo Majra

Government High School, Hallo Majra, being run in a temporary structure. Tribune photo: Nitin Mittal

The building of Government High School, Hallo Majra, is under construction for past one-and-a-half-year, but as told by its principal Sadhu Ram, it will take another five-six months to complete the building. About 900 students at the school are attending classes under the fabricated structure and rest of the students have been shifted to Government Senior Secondary School, Karsan.

Principals of one of the government schools said there is no coordination between the UT Education Department and the Engineer Department. They should hold regular meetings to check the progress of the construction work in government schools, he added.

Chandigarh, September 12
Skipping classes and hanging out with friends won’t be fun anymore as your parents might be keeping a track of your activities. Thanks to an elaborate system involving the global positioning system (GPS) developed by students of the University Institute of Engineering and Technology (UIET) which will make it possible for parents to monitor the exact location of their children.

The system has been developed by a three-member team of Chetan Singla, Rishabh Sardana and Anurag Kanungo.

Chetan said the system would enable parents to check the location of their child. “We have developed a server that will keep the location record of all the mobile numbers registered with us and parents will have to go on our web portal and simply put the mobile number to know the location of their child,” he said.

Before assigning to the services, an application would have to be downloaded on the particular mobile which would connect it to the server.

“The child should have a GPS-based mobile with android and internet facility. The parents will require a computer or a mobile phone with the internet facility,” said Anurag, another member of the team.

The system will be locked by a password which will be with the parents. By this, the child cannot turn off the tracking process. “Even if the child switches off the mobile phone, the last location will be sent to the parents and as soon the mobile is switched on, they will come to know the past location also,” said the team members.

They said the parents could also get their own web portal and a server to track the location of anyone they want.

Another member of the team Rishabh said: “The advantage of this system is that it will give the exact location of the mobile phone with the child. Even if the child moves out of the city, the map of his or her location will be automatically downloaded to track the exact location.”

Panchkula, September 12
Newborn babies and doctors had a narrow escape at the General Hospital, Sector 6, Panchkula, when the newly constructed false ceiling collapsed in the wee hours today. The room used as a nursery was renovated four days ago exposing the quality of material used.

“It was around four in the morning when we were sleeping outside the room and we suddenly heard a thud. Initially, we thought that some explosion has taken place, as the sound was very loud. Suddenly, two lady doctors rushed out of the room calling for help saying that the ceiling had given way,” said Vijay Brar, a resident of Sector 4.

The authorities have spent crores of rupees on the renovation. Two doctors were inside the room for some work when the incident took place. Fortunately, no infant was inside the room at that time.

Fear gripped the hospital staff and patients after the incident. “We were not able to sleep after a part of the false ceiling gave way, as we feared that it could happen again. Even our children could not sleep,” said Bharat Singh, an attendant of a patient.

VK Bansal, civil surgeon of the hospital, said, “It is just a small room. The media is unnecessarily making a hipe of the issue. A part of the false ceiling gave way and we have written to the higher authorities to repair the same at the earliest. And they have assured us that the ceiling will be repaired soon,” said Bansal.

Panchkula, September 12
The Panchkula Police has recovered a mobile phone containing porn songs and movies from retired army personnel Nand Kishore, who was arrested last week after he attempted to rape three school girls. The medical report of one schoolgirl had confirmed that she was raped repeatedly.

Narender Singh, SHO of Sector 20 police station, said that the accused had only stored porn songs and movies in the cell phone. He added that Nand Kishore had exclusively kept the phone for watching porn material. The police did not find any photograph of Nand Kishore’s family on the phone, he added.

It was last Thursday when the police arrested Nand Kishore, a resident of Sector 19, Abhaypur village, after he tried to rape three schoolgirls of classes II, and IV of a local government school under the pretext of giving them chocolates.

During the police remand, the accused admitted that he had molested 13 other children, including two boys. But till now the police has not conducted any medical examination of the 13 children, which have already been identified by the police.

SHO Narender Singh said, “How can we forcefully conduct the medical examination of the children? We can’t get them from their houses without the approval of the parents.”

“When the accused has admitted that he sexually assaulted 13 schoolchildren including two boys, then why is the police shielding him?” said Vinod Nishad (name changed), a neighbour, living in the area. Now the accused will be produced in the court on September 13.

Recently, the accused had shown his keenness to marry a girl studying in Class VIII in the area and had also approached her parents, who were shocked at his proposal.

Chandigarh, September 12
After the announcement of 10 per cent hike in collector rates by the UT Administration, the collector rate of a shop-cum-office (SCO) in Sector 17 remained the highest in the city. The UT Administration has decided to raise the collector rate of an SCO in Sector 17 from Rs 4,36,800 per square yards to Rs 4,80,480 per square yards.

The UT Administration had hiked the collector rates - the minimum rate at which the property is registered - in the city by 10 per cent.

Besides the SCO in Sector 17, the collector rates of SCOs on Madhya Marg, Sector 34, 22 and Sector 34-35 dividing road has been fixed at Rs 343,200 per square yards. Last year, the collector rates of SCOs in these areas were Rs 312,000 per square yards.

Whereas in booths, the collector rates in Sector 17, 19, 22, 34 and 34 are the highest. The UT Administration has increased the collector rate of booths in these sectors from Rs 2,80,800 per square yards to Rs 3,08,880 per square yards.

After these sectors, the collector rates of the booths in Sectors like 7, 8, 9, 16, 18, 20, 21 and 26 are Rs 2,47,104 per square yards, which was Rs 2,24,640 per square yards last year.

Whereas in the residential sectors, the collectors rates of independent housing board flats, industrial flats and other independent residential properties are Rs 54,912 per square yards, which were Rs 49,920 per square yard last year.

A senior official of the UT Administration said that the collector rates were decided by a four-member committee of senior officials and these rates would be become effective from September 15.

Chandigarh September 12
A heavy eucalyptus tree which fell over the main gate of Government High school, Kajheri in April this year, was hanging loose till Tuesday afternoon. After this correspondent spoke to the higher authorities in the education department, it was removed later that evening.

Unfortunately, the school had been corresponding with the officials of the horticulture as well as education department for the last five months, stating that the fallen tree was a threat to the security of schoolchildren and it could result in some mishap some day. The response of the horticulture department was very casual.

Sunita, school principal, said that the fallen tree was a threat to the safety of the children as it could get completely uprooted anytime and injure them. She further said that as many as 56 trees needed pruning and cutting.

Upkar Singh, DPI (schools), said action would be taken soon to remove the fallen tree and later on Tuesday evening the tree was removed. The school principal confirmed the same.

Chandigarh, September 12
After receiving a number of complaints regarding ATM frauds, senior police officials have formed a special investigating team (SIT) to probe the cases. The SIT is headed by DSP Satbir Singh and comprises of two inspectors and a sub inspector.

Over 12 city residents, all having their bank accounts with the State Bank of India(SBI), have become the victims of ATM cloning, as large amount of money was siphoned off from their accounts without their knowledge. Three of the victims are employees of Panjab University who have their salary accounts with the SBI.

As per the complaints, the money has been siphoned off from different ATMs in Mumbai as well as in Jammu.

The SBI has also lodged a complaint at the public window, which has been transferred to the SIT for investigation. As per the complaint, a number of clients had used their SBI ATM cards to pay for fuel at petrol pumps.

In its complaint, the SBI has submitted details of four clients who have been the victim of ATM cloning. — TNS

Chandigarh, September 12
In a well-planned city like Chandigarh, infants are not safe even after their death. The UT Administration and Municipal Corporation have failed to earmark a place as a burial ground for infants in the city.

Yesterday’s incident of missing body of a five-month-old baby girl, which was later found partially burnt in a forest area near cremation ground, has raised the issue of having a safe and secure burial ground for infants.

In the absence of a specific place, Municipal Corporation is using the forest area behind the cremation ground in Sector 25 for the purpose. As it is a forest area, wild animals, stray dogs and even ‘tantriks’ can easily enter the burial ground and dug up the graves.

Vicky, uncle of the deceased girl, said there should be a boundary wall surrounding the burial ground. The authorities concerned should deploy security guard at the ground.

SS bidda, chief engineer of Municipal Corporation, said the issue of acquiring land for burial ground was raised on number of occasions in the coordination meeting between the officials of the MC and the UT Administration. He added that only the UT Administration can issue orders for acquiring land and that the MC is only an executing body.

Whereas UT’s Home Secretary Anil Kumar said request regarding a burial ground for infants was never put before him. He assured that the Administration would soon take up this matter on priority basis.

At present, wild growths cover the ground, which makes it difficult to enter the area. The boundary wall is also broken from many places.

Chandigarh, September 12
The 24-year-old, whose eyes were severely damaged in an acid attack on him, continues to battle for revival of his vision at PGIMER.

While the blood vessels inside the cornea of his eyes have been ruptured due to the acid, doctors continue to make efforts for saving Amit’s eyes.

As the acid had undermined the effect of medicines, a minor surgery was performed yesterday to remove acid traces from Amit’s eyes. Another surgery is scheduled for today, which will be the final major effort to save the eyes, according to doctors.

His employer, owner of the mobile repair shop in Sector 22, who brought Amit to the hospital four days ago, said both of his eyes were completely swollen and became discoloured by the time he reached the hospital.

“The doctors had declared that there are very less chances of saving Amit’s eyes. Yet, they are making efforts to revive his vision,” said Amit Kumar, Amit’s employer.

The only breadwinner in the family, Amit (the victim) has been bearing the expenses of his younger brother?s (10) education as well as the household needs following his father’s death.

Chandigarh, September 12
Information on movable and immovable assets of Union Council of Ministers available on Prime Minister’s official website reveals the current market value of PM Manmohan Singh’s kothi in Sector 11 as Rs 4.74 crore.

Last year, the value of the kothi No 727 in Sector 11 was Rs 90 lakh.

According to the data available on the official website, in 1987 the building, comprising only the ground floor, was purchased at a cost of Rs 8.62 lakh. In 1997-98, first floor was constructed at a cost of Rs 8.45 lakh.

Similarly, Union HRD Minister Kapil Sibal has one-third share on a kothi in Sector 5. The Sibbal’s share, as per the website, amounts to Rs 72 lakh which was Rs 64.76 lakh earlier.

Union Minister and local MP Pawan Kumar Bansal has half share in a kothi in Sector 28.

The worth of his share in the kothi is Rs 5 crore, according to the website.

Chandigarh, September 12
Workers on the evening shift at the Sanjiv Agro Solvent Plant, were in for a sudden shock on Tuesday midnight. When they went off to sleep at a cottage, merely 50 meters away from the factory, little did they know that they would be considering themselves lucky for having escaped death, in the next few hours.

Three of the workers at the factory, who were at the nearby cottage, woke up to the loud noise of the boiler blast at around 12.30 am on Wednesday.

According to the three eyewitnesses, a subsequent explosion took place at the location of the petrol tank at the factory, following the boiler blast. “While we moved out of the room, hearing the noise of the blast, another explosion took place. We later realised that the blast got intensified following an oil spill in the petrol tank which set ablaze the whole factory,” said another worker.

Perplexed, Bittu, Udan and Ramesh, kept struggling to inform the senior officials from the company, which owns the factory, and the fire brigade. “We tried nearly all the phone numbers of the officers which were available with us. Only one of them answered the phone, however, he consumed more than one hour to reach. Even the fire brigades reached about 45 minutes after we called up the fire station,” said one of the workers accompanying the victims here at PGIMER.

While more than 50 fire brigades reached the spot, it took the rescue team more than one hour to control the fire. The rescue operation started at around 2.30 am. The workers were immediately rushed to the hospitals. By 4 pm, nearly all the rescued workers were sent to hospitals. 

Chandigarh, September 12
Hindustani classical instrumentalist Pt Ronu Majumdar gave a spellbound performance on a flute at the Post Graduate Government College for Girls, Sector 42, here today. He started his performance with “raga puria”, and played it for over 45 minutes. He also presented “madhya laya” in “rupak” and “vilambit" and "dhrut laya” in “teen taal”.

On a popular demand of the audience, he played a composition on “phadi”, touching hearts of everyone present in the hall. During his performance, he alternately used all his flutes, from the smallest to the longest one.

Responding to a question asked by a young fan in the crowd, he said it was not wrong to like the western music, but a person should not forget the classical music that was so “wonderful, diverse, deep and soulful”.

Chandigarh, September 12
Rainfall has remained below normal this month in the city so far. Only 33.6mm of rainfall has been recorded in the city from September 1 till today.

Catchments near the Chandigarh Airport have, however, received over 55mm of rainfall. At present, the overall rainfall deficiency in Chandigarh stands at 22 per cent approximately.

Rainfall recorded in 2010, 2011 September was higher as compared to this year. In 2011, it was close to 198.8 mm (in between September 1 to 12). In the corresponding period of 2010, the rainfall was recorded at 134mm approximately.

Local meteorological department said more rain is likely in the coming days but heavy rainfall, like the one witnessed in August, is not expected.

Regional MET officer Surinder Pal said monsoon is now at its fag end. While more rain is expected in next three to four days, yet the rainfall this month is predicted to stay below normal.

He said that Chandigarh would not witness rainfall deficiency like that of Punjab and Haryana. The good rainfall in August had managed to bring down the overall deficiency figure here.

On Wednesday the city received 16 mm rain. This month, the city received rains only on three days so far. Overall rainfall recorded in Chandigarh from June 1 to September 12 is 599.4 mm against normal of 762 mm.

Chandigarh, September 12
Shopkeepers of Azad Rehri Pheri Association, Mauli Jagran, today staged a protest against the Congress Party in Maloya for cancelling day market project.

During the protest, the shopkeepers stated that the Congress without even considering the pros and cons of the day market project rejected it. This clearly shows that the party does not have any soft corner for the residents of colonies and villages.

The shopkeepers also said the Congress members speak of development of weaker sections but they did not hesitate to cancel the day market project, which was beneficial for the weaker sections. They alleged that the Congress believes in destruction of weaker section rather than its development.

In last house meeting, the day market project was cancelled on a plea that no parking space was available near the market which is leading to parking problem. Congress councillor raised objections that when the booth allotment was with the Estate office how the Corporation was constructing booths in Mauli Jagran without having any allotment policy for it.

The issue was taken up in the recent general house meeting by the Congress councillor Subhash Chawla who demanded that the construction work of 136 temporary sheds in Mauli Jagran should be cancelled as no policy has been chalked out for its allotment nor there was any facility of parking near the market and it will create parking problem in future.

Objecting to it, BJP councillors alleged that the Congress is taking up the issue on the instructions of Madhu Bansal, wife of MP Pawan Kumar Bansal, and the pleas which are given to cancel its construction are baseless. 

Students cheer a performance during Prakriti Utsav celebrations at the MCMDAV College in Sector 36, Chandigarh, on Wednesday. Tribune photo: Parvesh Chauhan

Around 150 saplings of medicinal plants and herbs were planted on the campus of MCMDAV College, Sector 36, as a part of Prakriti Utsav celebrations here today. The annual environment fest was organised by the environment committee of the college with an aim to sensitise the students about the contemporary environmental concerns. To mark the international decade of biodiversity, a hydrophytic ecosystem pond was also commissioned on the college campus. A lecture enlightening the students on various environmental issues was delivered by Samarth Madan, an environment engineer with a USA-based corporation. Madan also organised a concert along with the college students. The musical notes lent a new high to the spirit of the event and captivated the hearts of all present.

Power workers stage dharna

The employees of the electricity department under the banner of UT Powermen Union staged a dharna at Sector 34 on Wednesday. The employees protested against the proposal of the Chandigarh Administration to corporatise the electricity department as well as against the outsourcing and scrapping of the contract system. They also demanded the removal of pay anomalies.

Protest rally

Demanding the rehabilitation of tenant entrepreneurs in the upcoming Industrial Area Phase III, Chandigarh Industrial Area Tenants Association (CIATA) took out a car and scooter rally on Wednesday. The rally started from the Industrial Area Phase II and ended at the District Commissioner’s office in Sector 17 where the association members submitted a memorandum. They also demanded the announcement of an industrial policy in the memorandum.

Panchkula scan
Free skincare camp

Mohali scan
Educational visit

The students of Ryan International School, Sector 66, went for an educational visit to the Forest Complex, Mohali. The children were given information about sanctuaries and preservation of wildlife. The children were encouraged to protect the environment by planting more trees and saving wildlife.

First-aid training

Shemrock Senior Secondary School, Sector 69, organised its annual campaign to promote the importance of first aid training. A team of doctors apprised the students of methods to administer first aid to an injured person at the time of emergency in order to prevent any more injuries. The doctors also explained techniques to address snake bite, honeybee bite or irritation in eyes due to any foreign particle. — TNS


A doctor apprises students of first-aid methods at Shemrock Senior Secondary School in Sector 69, Mohali, on Wednesday. A Tribune photograph

Chandigarh, September 12
The Municipal Corporation has decided to speed up the renovation work of the primary school at the PGI, Sector 12, that is lying in shambles for more than a decade. This assurance was given by MC Commissioner VP Singh during his visit to the school to look into the basic civic amenities and infrastructure of the school today.

During the visit, the team of corporation officials found that there was no proper arrangement made for drinking water in the school. Due to a shortage of class rooms, moreover, the students of various classes had to share rooms on the premises. In the absence of any play ground or play equipment, there were no sports activities for the children too.

The team also found that there were no separate rooms for the principal and the staff of the school. The team was shocked to find that the staff and 250 students of the school had to share a single toilet on the premises. Putting a question mark on the security of the students, the school did not have an independent gate.

Area councillor Saurab Joshi, who accompanied the team, requested the Commissioner to convert the school into a smart school by providing adequate facilities. The local residents presented a memorandum to the Commissioner demanding the re-carpeting of roads, widening of road gullies and beautification and maintenance of parks in the adjoining residential area.

The Commissioner assured the school authorities and the parents that the civic body would commence the renovation work of the school building at the earliest.

Chandigarh, September 12
The Chandigarh Administration has refrained from allowing any ‘backdoor entry’ in the fresh advertisement issued for the recruitment of junior basic teachers (JBT) yesterday evening.

It has only allowed candidates who have passed the central teachers eligibility test (CTET) to apply for a total of 654 JBT posts. These teachers will be recruited under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) society on contractual basis. The last date to apply for these posts is October 3.

In the last advertisement issued for the recruitment in March this year, the administration had also allowed candidates who had passed the Haryana and Punjab eligibility tests to apply for these posts. The Punjab and Haryana High Court found the provision in violation of the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) norms after over 50 CTET candidates filed a joined petition against the advertisement in April this year. The court, in July this year, ordered the administration to withdraw the advertisement and call for fresh applications for these posts.

Of the 654 posts, 322 fall under the general category, 166 under other backward classes, and 85 under scheduled castes category. 50 per cent weightage in the selection criterion has been given to the CTET score of the candidate, 20 per cent to the academic qualifications, another 20 per cent to the professional qualification and the remaining 10 per cent to any higher qualification along with working experience.

Director Public Instruction (Schools) Upkar Singh said the recruitments would help in the easing of shortage of teachers. The process of the recruitment of 226 trained graduate teachers (TGT) had already started.

According to the fresh advertisement, only online applications are being accepted from the candidates. The list of all the applicants will be displayed along with their fee confirmation on October 9 followed by the display of a provisional merit list. The original documents will be checked on October 30 and November 1 at the Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 10. The application besides all other updates and notices can be submitted or checked at Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan’s website www.ssachd.nic.in.

Chandigarh, September 12
In the ongoing Panjab University Senate elections, the Chatrath camp got another setback when their candidate Jasvir Kaur Chahal of the Government College of Yoga Education and Health lost from the technical college teacher’s constituency today.

While candidates who contested elections for the three seats of principals of technical colleges were elected unopposed, elections for the three seats reserved for the technical college teachers were held on September 10.

Of the three seats, one seat was reserved for a teacher of professional and technical colleges of Chandigarh, one seat for a teacher from colleges in Punjab, and the third was an open seat on which a teacher from either Chandigarh or Punjab could be elected.

Already sitting Senator Tarlok Bandhu of Malwa Central College of Education for Women, Ludhiana, was reelected from the seat reserved for Punjab. From the seat reserved for the city colleges, Goyal camp's Lilu Ram of the Government College of Education, Sector 20, emerged as the winner after defeating his rival Jasvir Kaur Chahal. The open seat went to Vipul Kumar Narang of the Kenway College of Education, Abohar.

Earlier, GK Chatrath camp had received a setback after losing five seats out of a total of six seats of faculties during the first phase of Senate elections. While, GK Chatrath managed to win the election from the faculty of laws, his entire team lost to the Ashok Goyal camp.

Under the technical college principal constituency, KK Dhiman, SS Sangha and NR Sharma had already emerged as winners with no nomination filed against them.