Phagwara, October 19
The district police has claimed to have broken a nexus of drug smugglers active for a long time here by arresting three persons and recovered 1 kg of heroin, estimated to be worth Rs 5 crore in the market.

Talking to newsmen here today, Kapurthala SSP Inderbir Singh said all these persons had been under police surveillance for a long time and were nabbed on Thursday with a huge quantity of the contraband.

The SSP said Kapurthala residents, Sarabjeet Singh, alias Langa, Lovepreet Singh, alias Giddi and Surinderpal Singh, were nabbed by the police when they were carrying the contraband in their Ford Figo car (PB-67-C-3544) on the Kala Sanghian Road.

The SSP said the accused had been eluding the police for a long time. We have sufficient evidence to nail them, he claimed.

The SSP said the contraband was to be delivered in the shape of small consignments in Kapurthala district and other parts of the state. Their modus operandi was being investigated and very soon we might arrest more of their associates, he added.

Kidnapping, burglary cases solved

PHAGWARA: The Phagwara police succeeded to solve three criminal cases, including a burglary and kidnapping, and arrested six accused in the Phagwara sub-Division last night.

Superintendent of Police HPS Khakh told newsmen here this evening that two kidnappers, Harpreet Singh and Manpreet Singh, of Narur were arrested under Sections 365/323/34 of the IPC on the charges of kidnapping villager Ranjit Singh of Narur who was going to the village gurdwara and was kidnapped on the way.He was kept in the house of another villager Harjit Singh, but managed to escape under the cover of darkness.

In the second case, the police succeeded to solve a burglary and arrested two persons, identified as Manjinder Singh and Onkar Singh, of Rihana-Jattan village who allegedly burgled the house of Ranjit Kaur,whose house was broken into when she had gone to attend a religious congregation in the village on the night of September 29.

SP Khakh said the police had also recovered the stolen goods, including one gold kara,two pairs of earrings and wrist watch etc from the arrested accused who had confessed to committing the crime.

In the third incident,the police arrested two alleged drug peddlers Shiv Sharma and Harsh Sharma, both residents of Mehli Gate Phagwara, and recovered 520 gm of intoxicant powder from them.

Jalandhar, October 19
With the Navratras, every year, the festive season officially begins. The puja sessions and the doing up of houses are heralded by the Navratras.

With the mad scramble for the choicest of commodities during the festival season, the prices of commodities, especially the ones associated with the pujas, the Navratras and the vrats (fasts), have shot up.

The prices of fruits, dry fruits and other commodities associated with the Navratra fasts have shot up.

Talking to The Tribune, shopkeepers said the influence on the prices is so widespread that even the prices of cosmetics had shot up.

A shopkeeper selling at the Rainak Bazaar said, “While the prices of readymade snacks and ‘namkeens’ hasn’t gone up much, that of (seel) millet cakes and the like has substantially increased in the past month.”

Shopkeepers selling Navratra fast commodities in the Central Town area said the prices all commodities associated with a fast - from the standard red stole that idols are bedecked with, to dry fruits and cosmetics etc.- had gone up. And as the season advances, there would only be a rise in prices.

In almost all these commodities, the prices have risen in the past one to two weeks only.

The price of seel (millet cakes) has gone up to Rs 100 per kg to Rs 80 per kg and those of red stoles offered to idols has gone up to Rs 40 from Rs 35 in the past few weeks.

While coconut was earlier priced at Rs 16, it now costs Rs 25. The cocnut gari (only the meaty white part of the coconut), however, now costs Rs 22, while it was earlier priced at Rs 10.

There has been a dramatic rise in the prices of dry fruits.

Almonds earlier cost Rs 150 to 200 and now cost Rs 350 per kg. Cashew nuts have grown costlier by about Rs 200 in the festival season from Rs 350 to Rs 550 per kg. Raisins cost Rs 400 per kg, while they were earlier priced at Rs 250 to 350 per kg.

Foxnuts (makhana) cost Rs 220 per kg, while they were earlier priced at Rs 150 per kg and dry dates cost Rs 150 per kg now from the earlier price of Rs 100 per kg.

The prices of pulses, while already eating into the pockets of the common man, have further increased during the Navratras.

Chana dal prices have gone up to Rs 75 per kg from Rs 55 per kg a couple of weeks ago.

Manh kid al has gone up to Rs 70 per kg from Rs 50 per kg, mungi dal to Rs 80 per kg from Rs 55 per kg, chole (white) kid dal prices have gone up to Rs 80 to 90 per kg from Rs 60 to 65 per kg.

The prices of wheat have also gone up to Rs 190 per 10 kg from Rs 170.

The prices of fruits have also seen a minimal increase.

Bananas cost Rs 40, while they were earlier priced at Rs 30 per kg. Apples cost Rs 50 per kg from the earlier price of Rs 50 per kg.

Pomegranate prices have gone up to Rs 110 per kg from Rs 100 per kg.

Kiwi prices have seen an increase of Rs 25 per fruit (piece) from Rs 20 per piece.

Even prices of cosmetics have been affected. A lipstick that cost Rs 90 a few weeks ago now costs Rs 150 and nail paint prices have also risen.

Trade pundits predict that while this is only the beginning, during the continuing festival season the prices of many other commodities are also all set to see a dramatic rise.

Chandigarh, October 19
The Punjab State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has told the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) to pay Rs 80,500 with 9 per cent interest from the date of complaint till the date of the actual payment to Gurbans Kaur, a resident of Jalandhar, whose household appliances were burnt due to loose cables under repair in the vicinity of the area she stayed.

Filing a complaint before the district forum on December 1, 2006, Gurbans Kaur had submitted that due to the carelessness of the electricity department workers, high-voltage from the cables under repair in her neighbourhood came in contact with the supply line to her home. Her house caught fire and her television, music system, sofa set and certain other household items were burnt. Services of the fire department were utilised for dousing the fire.

The matter was widely reported in newspapers, television channels and also recorded by the fire department. Officials of the electricity department, too, accepted the fire. However, they argued that there was no provision for compensation. The District Forum of Jalandhar decided the case in favour of Gurbans and allowed her the compensation.

The electricity department argued with the commission that the complaint was false and frivolous. In fact, it was submitted to the commission that the District Forum had no jurisdiction in deciding the matter. The commission noted that there was no denying the fact that the fire had occurred and household items were destroyed. It was also reported that fire had occurred due to the breakage of wires and that the electricity department workers were engaged in the repair exercise.

Upholding the order of the district forum, the commission has ordered that the overall payment of Rs 80,500, along with the interest, be reworked in the context of the PSEB deposit of Rs 25,000 as the time of filing the appeal before the commission.

Jalandhar, October 19
The kanungo who was nabbed for taking a bribe of Rs 15,000 by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau from his office located in the Tehsil complex was today sent to judicial custody by a local court.

The accused, Jarnail Singh, was produced before the court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), Harneet Kaur, this morning and was remanded to judicial custody for 14 days, said Rupinder Singh, SSP (VB), Jalandhar.

The kanungo was caught red handed while taking the bribe of Rs 15,000 from Baljit Singh, a city resident, who is running a small-scale unit in Ludhiana.

Baljit Singh, in a complaint to the VB, had alleged that Jarnail Singh had been demanding bribe for conducting the demarcation of a chunk of land that the complainant had purchased adjacent to Surya Enclave for a long time, the SSP said.

Jalandhar, October 19
Five NGOs and 27 blood donors were awarded at a state-level function here on Thursday.

The Jalandhar-based organisations, hounoured for their blood donation activities on the occasion, were PAHAL, Jalandhar (1,109 units), Sant Nirankari Mandal, branch Jalandhar (381 units), National Institute of Technology, Jalandhar (218 units), Rotary Club, Jalandhar (200 units) and Lally Infosys, Jalandhar (200 units).

These individuals and organisations were among the 500 NGOs and individuals across the state, honoured with the State Award for commendable work and contribution towards the cause of voluntrary blood donation.

The awarded individuals and organisations received awards on the basis of the categories - volunteer organisations, clubs etc who arranged more than 200 units of blood for a period from September 1, 2011, to August 31, 2012; male and female blood donors who donated blood more than 40 times and 25 times, respectively, during the said period.

There were also awards to inspire male and female blood donors who donated blood at least three times and two times, respectively, during the said period.

These awards were given by Health Minister Madan Mohan Mittal, and Raji P. Shrivastava, IAS, Secretary Health-cum-Director, Punjab State Blood Transfusion Council, in a state-level event held on National Voluntary Blood Donation Day, 2012 at Roop Nagar.

Notably, the aforesaid units of all these organisations were for a period of one year (September 1, 2011 to August 31, 2012).

More blood needed

While all the said organisations have been doing a commendable service in the field of voluntary blood donation (VBD), if experts are to be believed, there is still a lot of work to be done as the blood unit requirement in the district is much more that the units presently collected.

While the total (collective) units from these five organisations for the year were 2,108 units, sources said the total need of the district is way more.

Prof Lakhbir Singh from the NGO Pahal said, “Camps by the said organisations constitute about 40 per cent of the district’s blood units. Still more blood needs to be arranged per month as the VBD requirement is much more. While the Civil Hospital needs about 10,000 blood units on an average in the year, a large chunk of blood donation is being fulfilled by replacement blood donation. At the most, about 3,500 to 4,000 units (1,500 to 2,000 from other organisations) are being contributed by various VBD organisations, while the rest is being done through replacement blood donation even as NACO guildelines say VBD should be 100 per cent.”

Blood Transfusion Officer, Civil Hospital, Gagandeep Singh, however, disagrees, “There are at least 15 to 16 orgniations working on voluntary blood donation in the district. An average of 800 to 900 units are needed in the Civil Hospital per month and an average of 8,000 to 9,000 units per year. About 6,000 of the units come through VBD, while the rest is being fulfilled through the replacement donations. At least 65 to 70 per cent need is fulfilled by voluntary blood donation. However, the months of May, June and July are problem months, as due to exams and the lack of blood donation camps by educational institutions in those days, we often fall short of blood in those days.”

Jalandhar, October 19
Keeping in view the festival season, the Fire Department is all set to handle any emergency in case of a major fire in and around the city.

The Assistant Divisional Fire Officer (ADFO), Kashmir Singh, claimed that the department was fully equipped with a staff strength of 55 employees, 14 vehicles, including fire tenders, fire extinguishing chemicals, like foam and other gasses. He claimed that the men and machinery had been kept on an alert.

The ADFO revealed that 25 to 30 fire incidents (on an average basis) are reported on Dashera and Diwali every year. A majority of them are reported from congested markets of the city.

"A survey has been conducted on the markets on the directions of the Mayor, following which teams of the Fire Brigade have been constituted. Besides a mobile team, others will remain stationed at their earmarked areas in and around the city," Kashmir Singh claimed.

Though officials of the Fire Brigade claim to have made elaborated arrangements for tackling fires, a rehearsal conducted by them in certain congested markets, however, narrated another story. During the rehearsal, officials of the department had a tough time taking fire engines in the congested markets as the shopkeepers had encroached upon the streets and roads leaving hardly any space for the fire tenders to move.

The parking of vehicles in a haphazard manner by shopkeepers and customers on the roads was another major reason for difficulty in taking fire tenders in the markets, including Alipul Mohalla, Guru Bazar, Bartan Bazar, Chowk Sudan, Attari Bazar and Panj Peeri. "Rehris" and other roadside vendors were found adding to the congestion by firemen.

At some places, shopkeepers were found extending their counters to display crackers and other fireworks in violation of the norms.

The district administration, however, has earmarked areas in the Burton Park and some other places for the sale of crackers.

Jalandhar, October 19
An awareness programme-cum-workshop on the National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technology (NMEICT) was organised at the Dr BR Ambedkar National Institute of Technology (NIT) for the faculty of arts, science, commerce, medical and law here today.

The workshop was inaugurated by Dr R.K. Sarin, Director, NIT, Jalandhar. Prof M. Kannan (IIT-Bombay), Prof Pradeep Kaul (NMEICT), Prof Pradeep Verma (NMEICT) and Prof Uma Kanjilal (IGNOU) presented their views on the NMEICT and made teachers aware of the objectives of the NMEICT.

The workshop highlighted issues like the development of knowledge modules having the right content to take care of the aspirations and to address to the personalised needs of the learners.

Issues like research in the field of pedagogy for development of efficient learning modules for disparate groups of learners, standardisation and quality assurance of contents to make them world class; building connectivity and knowledge network among and within institutions of higher learning in the country with a view of achieving critical mass of researchers in any given field; availability of e-knowledge contents, free of cost to Indians; spreading digital literacy for teacher empowerment, etc, were also addressed.

Dr Arvind K. Agnihotri, chief coordinator of the project, Dr Jagdeep Singh, Additional Director, Higher Education, Punjab, and Dr Rohit Mehra, coordinator of the workshop, spoke on the occasion.

The workshop was attended by around 300 teachers from various education institutions of Punjab. The main highlight of the workshop was the live demo of Aakash 2 (Android-based tablet PC), which will be available for students in all the institutes of the country at a nominal cost of Rs 2,267 per tablet.

Jalandhar, October 19
Former Pakistan Supreme Court judge Mohammed Khalil-ur-Rehman Ramdey has predicted that the bilateral relations between India and Pakistan are set to brighten up as people of the two countries are anxious to meet each other as winds of change are blowing.

“If having fought for centuries, European countries are able to bury the hatchet and form a kind of union then what prevents us. Brothers and sisters have differences. But this does not mean that they will continue to fight with each other. Time has come for the two countries to realise that the era of fighting is almost over. Now, swords don’t decide matters, but cooperation does. At least, we can form some trade zone or economic union. Bilateral trade is already there,” observed Justice Ramdey.

Justice Ramdey was part of Pakistan Supreme Court, whose dismissal was effected by the then Pakistan regime, led by Gen Pervez Musharraf, after presidential candidate Justice Wajiahudin had filed a petition against Musharraf in 2007. He was put under house arrest for over four months alongwith other Pakistani judges.

Accompanied by his friend and senior IAS officer Harjit Inder Singh Grewal, Justice Ramdey was in Jalandhar in connection with the inauguration of an auditorium at Doaba Arya Senior Secondary School in Nawanshahr in memory of his late father Justice Mohammed Siddique. Ramdey orinigally hails from Kariam village in Nawanshahar and his father had studied in Doaba Arya Senior Secondary School.

Talking to The Tribune about Indo-Pak relations and potential to improve the bilateral ties, Justice Ramdey observed that both countries should leave scepticism about each other aside. “The element of distrust needs to be eliminated. It is good that both the countries have taken initiatives for improvement of relations and the situation. Outstanding issues needs to be resolved. There is no issue which could not be resolved with dialogue. All we need to do is to have a strong will and to intensify the ongoing confidence building measures (CBMs). I don’t see any problem as people of the two countries are already united at heart. SAARC has already contributing towards improvement."