Bathinda, October 4
Teachers working at 13 government aided schools in the district today staged a dharna near the SSD Senior Secondary School, opposite the Gole Diggi market, to register their protest against the state government for not giving them salaries for the last seven months.

The general secretary of Aided School Teachers Union and other employees, Pawan Shastri said teachers in aided schools all over Punjab were last paid their salaries in the month of March.

The state has 484 aided schools that have around 4000 teachers. In 2003, the government stopped recruitment in these schools and withdrew the pension benefits of the teachers working here.

The members of the union said that in 2003, there were around 10,000 teachers in these schools.

But as of now, there are just 4000 teachers left. More than 60 per cent posts are vacant throughout the state and no more recruitment has been made.

While the state government gives 95 per cent funds to run these schools, the management of these schools contributes the remaining five per cent. However, the school's staff has been facing the problem of salaries getting delayed.

"The schools are being paid funds on quarterly basis. So, instead of getting salaries every month, we get these after every three months. But this year, we haven't got salaries since March," said the president of the union, Najar Singh.

The teachers said when they enquired at the district treasury about the delay, they were told that their bills have been held back on government orders.

"Around ten days ago, even the deputy commissioner called up the headquarters in Chandigarh to enquire about our problem. He assured us that the salaries would soon be distributed," the union members said.

The teachers said the government has neither paid them arrears as per the recommendations of the Fifth Pay Commission nor has the master cadre rule been applied to them.

In Bathinda district, there are 13 government aided schools with around 425 teachers.

All these schools were closed today. Five schools are from the city, including the SSD Senior Secondary School, MHR Senior Secondary School, Arya Girls School, Khalsa Senior Secondary School and SSD Moti Ram Kanya Mahavidyalaya. Three such schools are at Rampura Phul, including the Dev Samaj, SSD School and Arya School, while two are at Maur Mandi include the Khalsa School and SSD School. There are other two schools in the Talwandi Sabo area.

Teachers marched in procession from Gole Diggi to Dhobi Bazar to Hospital Bazaar and back to Gole Diggi. They also jammed traffic at Sadbhavna Chowk for 10 minutes.

Bathinda, October 4
Stray animals causing death and serious accidents on the roads in the city have failed to awaken the authorities of the Municipal Corporation from their deep slumber.

Despite the menace assuming an alarming proportion, the authorities are yet to take any action in this regard even as the residents are getting seriously injured by the stray bulls and cows prowling in the localities and on the roads..

TNS spoke to some of the victims of the stray animals who blamed the Municipal Corporation, the district administration and the state government for the problem and accused them of making false promises to the people.

"Despite the death of several people in the accidents, people are continuously being forced to live in panic. Even the sight of a lethargic bull on the road causes panic among the commuters who are forced to divert their route," said Ajitpal, a resident of Model Town, whose brother was mauled by a stray bull last month on Bhagu road.

Sanjay, brother of 35-year-old Vinod Kumar, who lost his life last week in a bull fight, accused the authorities of sleeping over the issue.

Sanjay said Vinod was the eldest of the three brothers and was working as an agent at the district courts. The father of a teenaged daughter, Vinod was residing in Model Town Phase-1 and now his wife and daughter have shifted to his brother's house in Janta Nagar.

Sanjay said that Vinod along with his friend, was returning to his house on a scooter which was hit by two bulls fighting near Bhai Ghanaiya Chowk on Goniana road. Vinod died on the spot while his friend received serious injuries.

Another victim of the stray cattle menace, Rohit Paul, a resident of Power House Road, said there are more than a dozen animals including cows, bulls and dogs roaming on the streets where his house is situated.

"The animals bark, bellow, moo and growl all the time leading to panic among the residents," said Rohit. He said two elderly women walking in the wee hours were injured by a cow that was being chased by a bull a few days ago.

Jagdev Singh, a resident of Bhagu road, regretted that the authorities only make tall claims but fail to initiate any practical action in this regard.

He said the roads become dangerous even during the daytime and it becomes quite scary to come out at night. The situation gets worse in case the streetlights are not working.

Many accidents have taken place on roads where garbage is dumped or waste vegetables are thrown. The number of stray animals has increased manifold around the vegetable markets near the Rose Garden Chowk, Bibi Wala Chowk, behind the Government Rajindra College and near Bhai Ghanaiya Chowk.

Pushpesh Kumar of Pujawala Mohalla said despite the claims of remedial measures being initiated, nothing has been done at the ground level.

Numerous stray animals can be spotted in localities like Parasram Nagar, Partap Nagar, Ajit Road, Power House Road, 100 feet road, Barnala road and other areas, posing a threat to the commuters and pedestrians.

The residents said the corporation does not have enough squads to catch the stray bulls and cows.

Interestingly, stray cattle were also seen roaming around the residence of the Bathinda (Urban) MLA and Chief Parliamentary Secretary Sarup Chand Singla in the city.

Bathinda, October 4
The Talwandi Sabo zone bagged the first place in under-19 category of the volleyball event for girls on the second day of the district sports meet today. Sangat zone bagged the second place. In the under-14 category of the same event, Bhagta zone stood first and while Bathinda II secured the second place.

In the volleyball under-19 semi-final in the category for boys, played between Goniana and Sangat, Goniana was declared the winner. In the second match between Mandi Kalan and Talwandi Sabo, Mandi Kalan was declared the winner. In the under-14 category for boys of the same event, Goniana stood first followed by Bhagta at the second place.

In the under-19 girls' hockey, Sangat stood first and Bathinda II came second. In the under-17 category of the same event, Mandi Kalan stood first and Sangat came second. Similarly, in the under-17 category for boys, Bhucho stood first and Bathinda I came 
second.

In the under-14 girls' category, Sangat stood first while Mandi Kalan secured the second place.

In the netball event, in the under-19 girls' category, Bathinda I secured the first place and Bathinda II came second. In the under-14 category for girls, Bathinda I stood first while Bathinda II finished second.

In the under-19 throwball event for boys, Bathinda II stood first and Talwandi Sabo came second. In the under-19 category for girls, Bathinda II stood first and Goniana Mandi stood second.

In the under-19 category for girls in the dodgeball event, Bhagta stood first and Goniana stood second. In the under-19 category for boys, Bhucho stood first and Sangat came second.

In the tug-of-war event, Maur Mandi and Bhagta zone teams secured the first and second places in both the girls and boys categories.

In the under-19 category for boys in badminton, Bathinda I secured the first place while Talwandi Sabo came second.

In the under-19 category for girls in kabaddi, Sangat and Talwandi Sabo clashed in the semi-finals wherein Talwandi Sabo won.

Similarly, Bhucho and Mandi Kalan played a match wherein Mandi Kalan secured the first place. In the under-17 category for girls, Maur Mandi and Bathinda II clashed in which Bathinda II was declared the winner. In the match between Talwandi Sabo and Maur Mandi, Maur Mandi was declared the winner of the contest.

Bathinda, October 4
The Shaheed Udham Singh Women's College of Engineering and Technology, Tangori, won the inter-college lawn tennis championship held at the Punjab Technical University Giani Zail Singh (PTUGZS) campus.

In the first semi-final, DAVIET, Jalandhar, played against CIET, Rajpura, and came out victorious. In the second semi-final, PTUGZS Campus, Bathinda, played against Beant College of Engineering and Technology (BCET), Gurdaspur, and won the match.

In the girls section, the team from the SUSWCET, Tangori, stood first. PTUGZS Campus, Bathinda, came second and the Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET), Bhaddal, Ropar, secured the third place.

On the concluding day today, director of the PTUGZS campus Dr Jasbir Singh Hundal was the chief guest. While speaking on the occasion, he emphasized upon the role of sports in the grooming and development of students.

President, sports, of the PTUGZS campus, Prof Bhupinder Pal Singh Dhot proposed the vote of thanks. Registrar GS Bath was the guest of honour. A total of 16 teams participated in the tournament.