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Ailing woman denied admission
Khanna, September 29 Gurcharan Singh said they were poor and unable to bear the costly expenditure of treatment at private hospitals. So, he had brought his wife to the Civil Hospital, which is about 20 km from our village. They had come here in the hope of best and cheaper treatment. Gurcharan Singh alleged that the doctors at the hospital examined his wife, who was lying in the open, and referred her to some other place. The doctors were not even ready to give her first aid, Gurcharan alleged, adding that they were not even ready to call a 108 ambulance for her wife. After more than two hours, when the condition of his wife deteriorating, he took her to some other hospital of the area with the help of a passer-by, he added. It was at 9:15 pm yesterday when people called up the SDM of Khanna, PS Sodhi, from the Civil Hospital and narrated him the entire incident. The SDM reached the hospital within minutes and investigated the matter. The SDM said he came to know that the doctors of the Civil Hospital not only denied the pregnant woman admission to the hospital but also did not give first aid to her. He found while the patient was crying with pain in the open, none of the hospital staff was attending to her. The SDM gave Rs 5,000 from his pocket to the patient for her treatment. The relatives took her to a nursing home at Khanna where she was given first aid. After that they took her to the DMC Hospital in Ludhiana. The SDM said he would call a meeting on Wednesday regarding this incident and fix responsibility of the hospital staff regarding facilities to patients. He will also make sure that the staff of the hospital is available in the hour of need. He will recommend stern action against erring doctors, he added. Only 24 hours ago, a huge quantity of expired medicines was recovered from the residential building of the Civil Hospital. SMO blames it on poor facilities
The Senior Medical Officer of Khanna, Dr NK Singla, denied all the charges levelled by the patient’s husband and relatives. The SMO said the woman’s relatives brought her to the hospital and during her examination the doctors found she was under seven-month pregnant. During this month of pregnancy, the womb is immature. The doctors could not take any risk so they referred her to some other place. He said the woman doctor was on station leave and moreover the required facilities needed for immature children were not available at the hospital. He, however, said he would investigate the matter. SDM tastes doctors’ callousness I also witnessed ill-treatment by one of the doctors of the Civil Hospital. He also misbehaved with me, but when I revealed my identity, he felt sorry for his
behaviour. — PS Sodhi, SDM of Khanna
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Child crushed under wheels of illegal auto
Ludhiana, September 29 The victim has been identified as Love. The boy’s mother and grandmother and a labourer suffered injuries in the accident. According to information, the child was visiting the market along with his mother and grandmother. They were reportedly standing at a chowk in Basti Jodhewal when a speeding illegal auto-rickshaw rammed into them and then overturned. Love died instantly while his mother and grandmother were injured and they were taken to the CMC Hospital. Both have suffered serious injures and are undergoing treatment at the hospital. The auto-rickshaw driver was thrashed by the public and later handed over to the police. Joginder, the father of the victim, who works in a factory, was inconsolable. He has demanded capital punishment for the auto-rickshaw driver. The reckless driving by the auto-rickshaw driver led to my child’s death. What was the need of speeding the vehicle? lament Joginder. |
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Recruitment for bus service scrapped
Ludhiana, September 29 The recruitment process was in its final stages with the applicants for the posts of driver having completed their training and those for posts of conductor awaiting call for their final interviews. It was the decision of Rakesh Kumar Verma, Commissioner of the Ludhiana Municipal Corporation-cum-Chairman of the Ludhiana City Bus Service Ltd (LCBSL), which led to the scrapping of this recruitment process. Not only this, it has also been decided that the present staff of 20 drivers and as many conductors, two-year contract of whom will expire the next year, will also be hired through a contractor once their contract ends. Fresh tenders have been floated in this regard. The applicants (contractors) can apply by 3 pm on October 15 and the tenders will be opened on the same day at 3:30 pm. The decision has led to resentment among the existing staff, who were expecting that they might get permanent jobs one day. “I have been working with the LCBSL ever since it started operations. All of us were giving our 100 per cent because we all knew that if we make this service profitable, the state government might give us permanent employment. But now when we know that our services will be discontinued on the expiry of our contract, I don’t get the same urge to work now,” said a driver of the LCBSL. Another staff member said while the state transport is abolishing the contract system for hiring drivers and conductors, the LCBSL will be hiring staff through a contractor. “We wonder what made the LCBSL authorities take such a step because everyone knows that the contract system has not shown results in the transport sector,” claimed a driver. For 80 posts of driver and 80 conductors, candidates possessing degrees like master of computer applications (MCA), master of arts (MA), MPed (master of physical education), bachelor of education (BEd), bachelor of computer applications (BCA), bachelor of commerce (BCom) had applied. One such applicant, who was awaiting a “call” from the LCBSL authorities, said: “I cleared the written test as well as training and was now waiting for a call from the authorities. But, I wonder why the LCBSL authorities scrapped this recruitment. I am sure if a middleman (contractor) becomes part of the LCBSL recruitment process, the service will surely suffer,” he said. For the posts of driver, the LCBSL had received 157 applications while a total of 578 applications were received for the posts of conductor. The MC had advertised 80 posts each of driver and conductor. These drivers and conductors get a fixed monthly salary of Rs 4,000 in addition to Rs 1.5 per km and Rs 1.25 per km, respectively. Officialspeak
— Rakesh Kumar Verma, MC Commissioner-cum-chairman, LCBSL
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Screening of 'Oh My God' stalled for second day
Ludhiana, September 29 "When the movie has been released across the country, why it has been banned in Ludhiana, Patiala and some other cities of Punjab. Let the people decide which movie they want to watch," said Tarun Malhotra. Meanwhile, Hindu radical groups have demanded registration of criminal cases against actors of the film Akshay Kumar and Paresh Rawal. Certain radical groups have raised objection to the contents of the film. A delegation had met the Commissioner of Police, Ishwar Singh, on Thursday and complained that the promotional clips of the film have mocked at spiritual gurus which could hurt their sentiments of the followers. Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (ADCP) HS Sidhu watched the movie along with other members of the delegation at a multiplex. The delegations of Hindu fundamentalists was reportedly ruffled on seeing the film. Mahant Narayan Das Puri convened a meeting of members of religious groups and it was unanimously decided to oppose the screening of the film. ADCP Sidhu and ADCP-I Nilambari Jagdale held talks with the religious leaders. Puri and other members of the delegation refused to budge from their stand and demanded action against the actors and producer of the film. "Considering the sentiments of the community the screening of the film has been stalled. The religious leaders objected that the film should not be screened till the time the objectionable contents are not removed from it," said ADCP Sidhu.
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15 more diagnosed with dengue
Ludhiana, September 29 The District Epidemiologist, Dr Puneet Juneja said, "Of the 15 confirmed dengue patients, seven belong to Ludhiana, two from Ferozepur, one each from Fazilka, Hoshiarpur, Sangrur, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan." With regard to the swine flu case, Dr Dipak Bhatia, Project Programme Officer and Project Coordinator of Integrated Disease Surveillance Project, Punjab, said, "A patient named Preeti Talwar at SPS Apolo Hospital, Ludhiana, has tested positive for swine flu." He said, "We are providing prophylactic treatment to all the persons who are close to Preeti Talwar’s family." Meanwhile, the Anti-Larva Wing staff carried out fogging in the Shimla Puri, Chet Nagar and Kitchlu Nagar areas. |
I-T dept issues scrutiny notices to 400
Ludhiana, September 29 Those who have received the notices will be required to produce various details including account books, sale and purchase sheets, electricity and telephone bills, and property investment. The department will scrutinise in detail the income of the tax payees who have been served the notices. A senior official from the department commenting from the notices said all the scrutiny cases have been selected through CASS. “The cases are selected randomly through computer. The name which comes in for scrutiny cannot be changed. In case if any official finds discrepancy in the income shown by the tax payer, he can also ask his higher officials for scrutiny,” he added. Taxation Young Lawyers Association, president, Jatinder Khurana said generally income filled by the tax payee is taken as correct but some cases for scrutiny are selected randomly every year. “Those who have received the notice will now be required to produce account books, sale and purchase sheets, electricity and telephone bills, details of property investment. All the columns in the form should be filled properly and tax payer should disclose its income correctly as the department also comes to know about the income from other sources," added Khurana. Hardev Singh, a tax payee said, “There is no point in selecting the cases randomly. The department should send notices to only those tax payers who are suspected of indulging in tax-evasion, otherwise it is just harassment.”
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New CBDT guidelines to blame for PAN card delay
Ludhiana, September 29 Identity and address proof are mandatory for getting a PAN card, and in case one does not have these, any Gazetted official or councillor is authorised to issue the certificate for the same. According to the new proforma, the official/councillor who issue the certificate is required to submit a photocopy of his identity proof and mobile number. "I was waiting for my PAN card and when I checked the website I came to know that some formalities have been left out by me. Since the new instructions were applicable from August 1, I missed them and now I will be filling the form once again. Thank God I do not have to submit the fee again," said Harish Singla, a city resident. Jatinder Khurana, a tax professional said, "Many people are unaware of the new instructions issued by the CBDT due to which their PAN cards are being delayed. To avoid inconvenience, people should submit the mobile number and a photocopy of the ID proof of the person who is issuing them the certificate."
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Won't allow door-to-door garbage collection by A2Z: Valmiki Samaj
Ludhiana, September 29 Ever since the A2Z company started its operations in the city, the Valmiki Samaj Bachao Andolan members have been opposing it. It was due to their protests last year that the state government had announced that A2Z will not be involved in door to door collection of garbage and private garbage collectors will continue doing it. But a few months back, the state government issued orders to the Ludhiana Municipal Corporation officials, directing them to start door to door garbage collection in the city. Interestingly, the door to door collection clause is not even present in the contract the A2Z has with Ludhiana MC. When the door to door collection of garbage started in the city early this month, hundreds of private garbage collectors blocked the Bharat Nagar Chowk on September 5 in protest. “This clause is not even present in the contract which A2Z is having with the Ludhiana MC, but still the state government has now ordered that the company should carry out door-to-door collection of garbage. This clearly shows that the promise made by CM Parkash Singh Badalin a meeting held on October 31 before the Vidhan Sabha elections was false. We will not let A2Z carry out door-to-door collection of garbage from anywhere in the state,” warned Surinder Kalyan, chairman of the Valmiki Samaj Bachao Aandolan.
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Traffic SHO challans his driver for jumping traffic lights
Ludhiana, September 29 The incident took place at Bhai Bala Chowk here this evening when the SHO asked the driver, identified as head constable Rajinder Singh, to take the vehicle that was parked near Park Plaza hotel. The driver then jumped the traffic light. Beant then challaned him for jumping traffic light. “First, we have to keep our house in order only then we can take action against others," said SHO Beant Juneja. When asked whether action will be taken against the drivers who violate the traffic rules with impunity, he said traffic violation would not be tolerated at any cost. “We have orders from the Commissioner of Police to pay zero tolerance against traffic violators,” said Beant Juneja.
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25-yr-old commits suicide
Ludhiana, September 29 The incident came to light when her husband Suresh arrived at the house and was shocked
to see his wife hanging from a ceiling fan. He raised an alarm and informed the police. After recording Suresh's statement, the police initiated proceedings
under Section 174 of the CrPC.
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Embroiders shut shops to protest against goons
Ludhiana, September 29 The victim, identified as Mohd Rashid Khan, sustained serious injuries after he was allegedly attacked by Raman, Vicky and two other unidentified assailants at Sunet yesterday. Rashid Khan said he was attacked as he refused to pay them extortion “hafta”. When he refused them, they attacked him with sharp edged weapons. Rashid was rushed to hospital where his condition was stated to be serious. — TNS
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Chhapar Mela continues to draw crowds
Mandi Ahmedgarh, September 29 Office-bearers and activists of various political parties, who are organising conferences tomorrow, remained busy in giving the final touches to paraphernalia at their respective sites. However, senior citizens and devotees spent more time at the shrine paying obeisance to the Guga. On the other hand, owners of fun rides, including merry-go-rounds, swings, etc, did brisk business on the second day. Whereas, commuters from Lohatbaddi and Raekot had to take alternative routes, as all roads leading to the Chhappar Mela were jampacked with vehicles of supporters of various political leaders. The situation could have been more complicated had the administration not streamlined the traffic by regulating parking of vehicles at earmarked places. — OC
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PU Zonal Youth Festival concludes
Ludhiana: A four-day Panjab University Zonal Youth and Heritage Festival Zone A, Ludhiana, organised at AS College Khanna concluded here. The last day of the festival included heritage and music items. The music items included women traditional and ritualistic songs, suhag, ghoris, long heik, dholak, ghara songs, sithnies, kavishri, kali, folk dances, folk instruments and folk orchestra. The off stage items of the heritage including embroidery, phulkari or bagh embroidery, dasuti or cross stitch, pakhi, designing, crochet work, knitting, mehandi designing and application. The chief guest for the morning session was Shamsher Singh Dullon former president of the PPCC. In the evening session, MP Ravneet Singh Bittu was the chief guest and renowned singer Labh Janjua was the guest of honour. In traditional song, AS College Khanna stood first, SCD Government College, Ludhiana, second and GNN College, Doraha, third. In individual prizes of traditional song Tanu Verma of AS College, Khanna, came first, Priya of Government College Karamsar Rara Sahib bagged the second spot while Kamalpreet of GNN College, Doraha, came third. In Kavishri AS College Khanna stood first, GGN Khalsa College, Ludhiana, stood second while SCD Government College, Ludhiana, came third. In individual prizes, Sukhwinder Singh AS College bagged first position, Ramzan Ali of SCD Government College, Ludhiana, stood second and Daljit Singh AS College, Khanna, stood third. In Kali GGN Khalsa College, Ludhiana, stood first, Arya College, Ludhiana, stood second and AS College Khanna stood third. — TNS
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Businessman gets1-year RI in cheque-bounce case
Ludhiana, September 29 Convicting the accused, Harvinder Pal, a partner of M/s Poonam Enterprises, Janakpuri, the judge also ordered him to pay a compensation of Rs 8,000. The orders were pronounced by the court while deciding the complaint filed by Seth Industrial Corporation, Industrial Estate, Ludhiana. It was submitted by the complainant that they were manufacturers of cycle and spare parts and the accused had purchased cycle and spare parts in 2002. Later on, in order to discharge the legally enforceable liability, the accused issued him a cheque of Rs 1,25,930. When he presented the cheque in a bank for clearance, the same was returned back by the banker of the accused with the remarks, insufficient funds. Despite sending a legal notice calling upon him to make the payments, the accused failed. But the court found no force in his version and found him guilty. In another cheque bounce case filed by Seth Industrial Corporation, the accused was also sentenced to undergo an imprisonment for one year.
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Bittu sent to judicial custody
Ludhiana, September 29 He was facing accusations of helping extremists, conniving with them in order to disturb the peace and harmony of the state. Additional public prosecutor Monika Gupta has submitted before the court that the police was still investigating the case, so the accused be sent to judicial custody. Agreeing with the prosecution, the accused was sent to jail. — TNS 
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Table
Tennis Meet
Ludhiana, September 29 In the team championship in the boys’ U-14 category, Alpine International School proved too good for Sri Guru Harkrishan Senior Secondary School, Amritsar, whom they overpowered 3-1, while Ryan International School, Ludhiana, beat Gobindgarh Public School, Gobindgarh, 3-1 to secure third position. Cambridge International School, Jalandhar, blanked DAV Public School, Amritsar, 3-0 to lift the title in the boys’ under-16 section. Delhi Public School, Jalandhar, outplayed Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan Sachan Lal Public School, Amritsar, 3-1 to content with the third place. In the boys’ U-19 category, Innocent Hearts School, Jalandhar, pipped DAV International School, Amritsar, 3-2 to romp home as champions and Apeejay School, Jalandhar, outclassed MGN School, Jalandhar, 3-1 to secure third position. Similarly, in the girls’ section (U-14), Sri Guru Harkrishan Public School, Amritsar, edged out Green Land Senior Secondary School, Chandigarh road branch, Ludhiana, 3-0 to lift the winner’s trophy, while in the match for hard line cup, DAV International School, Amritsar, beat Cambridge International School, Jalandhar, 3-0. In the girls’ U-16 final, DAV International School, Amritsar, managed to scrape past DAV Public School, Ludhiana, 3-2 and CIS School, Jalandhar, trounced Green Land School, Jalandhar bypass branch, Ludhiana, 3-0 to finish at the third place. DAV Public School, Amritsar, beat Dayanand Model School, Jalandhar, 3-2 to come out as champions in the girls’ U-19 category. Results: Boys’ U-14: Parivansh of DAV Public School, Ludhiana, bt Aayush of Alpine 11-9, 13-11 and 12-10. Girls’ U-14: Navsirat of Sri Guru Harkrishan Public School, Amritsar, bt Kashish of DAV Public School, Amritsar, 7-11, 5-11, 11-5, 11-6 and 12-10. Boys’ U-16: Roopampreet of CIS School, Jalandhar, bt Harnoor of DCM Presidency, Ludhiana, 11-8, 12-10 and 11-9. Girls’ U-16: Amol of DAV Public School, Ludhiana, bt Rubanni of CIS, Jalandhar, 11-3, 11-9 and 11-8. Boys’ U-19: Sahibjot Singh of Sri Guru Amar Das School, Jalandhar, bt Vaibhav of DAV International School, Amritsar, 11-9, 6-11, 11-7, 10-12 and 13-11. Girls’ U-19: Shipra of DAV Public School, Amritsar, bt Neha of Dayanand Model School, Jalandhar, 11-9, 13-11 and 11-7.
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Nav Bharti, Khalsa school register wins
Ludhiana, September 29 In the boys’ category, Nav Bharti Public School trounced SD Senior Secondary School, Malout, 74-44 and later its team in the junior section overwhelmed Blossom School, Jagraon, 57-12. Khalsa Senior Secondary School, Ludhiana, in the girls’ category, too, began their campaign on a sound note with a thumping 62-26 win over Government Model Senior Secondary School, PAU, Ludhiana. In other matches in the boys’ category, Spring Dale School, Amritsar, faced a little resistance before coming out triumphant against Government Senior Secondary School, Giddherbaha, 72-55 and AS Senior Secondary School, Khanna, 49-23; Harkrishan Public School, Khanna, got the better of Blossom School, Jagraon, 40-24. In the girls’ section, besides Khalsa Senior Secondary School, Ludhiana, Government Senior Secondary School, the Mall, Amritsar, and Government Senior Secondary School, Gurdaspur, wrapped up their respective matches. GSSS, Amritsar, outnumbered Government Senior Secondary School, Kapurthala, 29-9, while GSSS, Gurdaspur, prevailed over Apee Jay School, Jalandhar, 38-31. Ishwar Singh, Police Commissioner, Ludhiana, inaugurated the league in which twelve teams in the boys’ section, while eight in the girls’ section are vying for the top honours. The league is being organised by the Punjab Basketball Association (PBA) under the aegis of Basketball Federation of India. The matches are played on the league and super league basis. According to PBA general secretary Teja Singh Dhaliwal, winners in both sections will pocket a cash prize of Rs 75,000, while the teams finishing as runners-up will be richer by Rs 40,000. The squads securing the third position will receive cash prize of Rs 30,000 each. The first two teams in each group will play in the National Schools Basketball League to be held in Delhi later this year, said Dhaliwal.
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MF Farooqui enters q’finals
Ludhiana, September 29 Exhibiting an excellent footwork and movability, Farooqui wrapped up the encounter with ease (8-3) to join Vikas Chopra and Sameer Dogra in the last eight stages, who, too, got the better of their respective opponents.
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We have planned that in the future, we will be outsourcing the entire operations of the city bus service. It’s not as profitable as it should have been so one day or the other, we had to take this step. Even though we outsource this service, the monitoring and supervision will be done by us. So this decision of hiring drivers and conductors through a contractor is part of that long-term plan. Right now we just have 30 buses, but as the fleet increases to 200, there will be several management issues. We have only one manager for the LCBSL at the moment and it won’t be possible for him to manage the entire operations. If the Ludhiana Metro can come through Public Private Partnership (PPP), then why can’t the LCBSL?