As winters set in, asthmatic cases at TB hospital see a rise
Amritsar, December 8
There is a sudden increase in the number of asthmatic patients at the out patients department (OPD) of the District TB Hospital.

Amritsar, December 8
The indefinite hunger strike being observed by safai karamcharis, who were laid off by the GNDU, entered the third day today.

They were joined by their woman colleagues, who volunteered to sit on the hunger strike till the university authorities roll back the outsourcing move and reinstate them.

As many as 55 safai karamcharis associated with the university on a daily wage basis were replaced with 50 new workers engaged through an Abohar-based contractor.

Two of women members --- Jasbir Kaur and Jaan Kaur --- who have been associated with the university on a daily wage basis for several years, said they would not eat anything till the Vice Chancellor roll back the decision.

“The move is unjustified. For the past one month, we have no money to feed our children,” the affected karamcharis said.

Meanwhile, health of one worker, Baldev Singh (45), who has been observing fast for the past three days, has deteriorated.

Amritsar, December 8
The visiting delegation of Pakistan’s Sargodha Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), headed by its president Zia Amin Sheikh, and PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, led by RS Sachdeva, Co-chairman, Punjab Committee, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on mutual cooperation. The MoU was aimed at improving trade ties between two countries especially through Punjab.

Both the Chambers would facilitate the exchange of information about products and manufactures of products; and respective buyers, sellers and service providers in both the countries.

Sharing details of the MoU, Sachdeva said both the Chambers would send strategic trade delegations to the neighbouring countries.

Further, joint exhibitions for products and services in India and Pakistan would be organised in both India and Pakistan. Both the SCCI and PHD Chamber would strive to expand and develop bilateral relations and cooperation in the fields of trade, industry, investment and other economic fields between the both countries.

Naeem Anwar, Trade Counsellor, High Commission of Pakistan, New Delhi, said the execution of this MoU would help shatter the aloofness between both the countries.

“The barriers, which we never thought would be shed, are already giving way to better trade ties,” said Anwar.

He said the two governments were equally concerned about removing the trade barriers. “Already, the agreements for mutual recognition, custom cooperation, redressal of grievances and visa issues, have already been signed by both the counterparts. All these are lined up to be notified soon.”

Anwar said Pakistan would also bring down all duties to 5 per cent in a phased manner. These agreements would go a long way in enabling a conducive environment for the trade and industry of both the Punjabs on either side of the border.

Dalip Sharma, Regional Director, PHD Chamber, said, “We can reap a rich dividend through the bilateral trade ties between India and Pakistan. The trade can touch a figure of $ 10 billion from the present $ 2.7 billion within three years.”

Amritsar, December 8
There is a sudden increase in the number of asthmatic patients at the out patients department (OPD) of the District TB Hospital.

Dr Balbir Singh Dhillon, Senior Medical Officer, Jallianwala Bagh Memorial Civil Hospital, said an increase in the number of patients with respiratory problems has been noticed.

He said, “During winters, the pollutant mixed air comes down to the lower zone which is the breathing zone.”

“With the fall in temperature, the patients feel heaviness in the chest area and breathing exercise becomes very difficult. As the fog and frost increases, the smoke and dust pollute the air which causes problems for asthmatic patients,” doctors said.

The fog and frost in winters can also become problematic for cardiac patients. Doctors said a large number of viruses become active during winters, resulting in increased infections and other problems.

Dr Naresh Chawla, District TB Officer, said: “In winters the asthmatic patients are at a high risk because the immune system is somewhat low and the airways of the patients become hyper sensitive.”

Dr Chawla advised the patients to remain indoors till the fog clears.

“The patients should refrain from going on morning walks and doing any exercise in the fog. It can increase the chances of an asthmatic attack,” he added.

Doctors also advised patients to take preventive medicines and vaccinations against pneumonia and flu.

Dr Dhillon said possibility of heart attack increases many times in heart patients during winters. He said, “In winters, the heart has to overwork due to which there is a need to take extra care. Heart attack in the winter months is could be more fatal than during other seasons of the year.”

Amritsar, December 8
The 10th National Theatre Festival opened at Punjab Natshala amidst a full attendance from theatre and literary circle. The annual theatre extravaganza was inaugurated by Deputy Commissioner Rajat Aggarwal along with noted playwright and theatre personality Ajmer Singh Aulakh.

With the who’s who of artistic fraternity present for the event, the festival opened with a dramatic play on the dominance of consumerism in our lives. The play, Kis Thag Ne Luteya Mera Shaher, was directed by Kewal Dhaliwal and presented by Manch Rangmanch. The play, based on the advent of consumerism, our dependence on it and its consequences, was appreciated for its dramatic portrayal of a mother-son relationship.

“The play revolves around a family, the central character of a son, who looses the grip over his reality, taken over by his greed for consumerism. Eventually, it results in his father’s death and his refusal to attend his cremation, which makes his mother go look for a son in the market and buy one if found. The underlying point is that consumerism dictates our life these days, but it still cannot buy us happiness,” says Kewal Dhaliwal.

As for the festival, it pays tributes to the legendary Saadat Hasan Manto this year, and will have plays based on his stories. “We have plays like Karmawaali, Akaash and others that are based on his short stories. We have plays that symbolize Indo–Pak peace ties and others that mention him on stage,” says Kewal Dhaliwal.

Another important part of the festival would be the technology being used on stage. “It’s the highlight of the festival. All the plays are high on technological quotient, especially some big productions like Draupadi, Aakas and Do Kaudi Da Khel. Some plays have 50 actors performing spontaneous on stage,” says Dhaliwal who is the convenor of the festival.

Amritsar, December 8
Dr Vicente Paulo C Chihale, Economic and Commercial Counsellor, Republic of Mozambique, called upon industrialists from Punjab to invest in the African nation in the field of mining, energy, infrastructure, agriculture.

Speaking during a seminar ‘Business Opportunities in Africa’, organised by PHD Chamber of Commerce at PITEX-2012, Chihale said there is a lot of scope for trade and investment in Africa in general and Mozambique in particular. “We are looking forward to develop strategic trade partnership with India,” he said.

He said, “Mining, energy, infrastructure and agriculture are the main investment opportunities in the Republic of Mozambique.”

The PHD Chamber organised the seminar as part of the continuing efforts to increase bilateral trade and investments between Africa and India.

Chihale emphasised that excellent agro ecological conditions, strong market dynamics, enabling environment for investments and most importantly the government commitment to market driven growth makes Mozambique a perfect investment destination.

“Low cost of land and exemption on equipment importation duties add to this,” he said.

Speaking on the trade and investment opportunities available in Namibia; Jakova Katuamba, Head of Trade Mission, High Commission of the Republic of Namibia, said, “Apart from business friendly environment, the Government of Namibia offers various incentives to make business proposition very attractive in the country.”

In 1996, he said, the Namibia government established the Export Processing Zone (EPZ) regime with the aim to attract investment into Namibia.

RS Sachdeva, Co-chairman Punjab Committee, PHD Chambers said, “There has been a tremendous growth in demand from African countries. Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Senegal, Nigeria, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Mozambique, Burkina Faso and Congo have emerged as new markets. ”

Sharing the robust trends in bilateral trade, Dalip Sharma, Regional Director, PHD Chamber, said while the export to Africa has grown two- fold between 2004-05 and 2009-10, the imports from Africa have grown six fold.

Amritsar, December 8
The city police arrested six persons with narcotic substances, habit-forming drugs and illicit liquor.

Those arrested have been identified as Yodha Singh of Pandori Waraich, Majitha Road, Skattar Singh of Bohar wala Mandar, Balwant Singh of Bharaiwal, Nirwail Singh of Village Kiria, Pardeep Kumar of Judge Nagar and Manjit Singh of Maqboolpura.

Skattar Singh and Balwant were nabbed with 9,000 capsules of habit-forming drugs while Yodha was arrested for possessing 400 grams of intoxicant powder. A motorcycle was impounded from Yodha.

Amritsar, December 8
A workshop on head and neck cancer surgery was organised today by Amandeep Hospital here. Cabinet Minister Anil Joshi inaugurated the two-day workshop along with Mayor Bakshi Ram Arora.

During the workshop, doctors of different specialties from the region discussed latest treatments of head and neck cancer.

Dr Avtar Singh, director of the hospital, said: “Signs and symptoms of head and neck cancers may include a lump or a sore that does not heal.”

He said, “It is expected that tobacco related cancers in males will go up from 190,244 in 2010 to 225,241 in 2020. The female cases are expected to go up from 75,289 to 93,563 for the same period.”

Dr Prahlad Duggal in his paper on head and neck surgery; North Indian Perspective, deliberated on the delayed efforts of Punjab government to collect data on the number of oral cancer patients in which use of tobacco was the main reason.