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Undertrial flees from court, nabbed
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, January 14
High drama was witnessed at the District Courts complex after a hardcore criminal escaped while he was being produced before the court here today. His freedom proved to be shortlived as he was overpowered by a naibkot, a court employee.

The incident took place here this afternoon when Kulwant Singh of Lapon village in Moga district, who is facing 14 criminals cases, fled after locking a guard in a toilet on the third floor of the District Courts building.

Kulwant Singh was among four undertrials brought from the Kapurthala jail for a hearing. Four policemen were accompanying them.

The incident took place at around 3 pm when Kulwant Singh requested the guards that he wanted to use a toilet.

When Kulwant Singh came out of the toilet, the policeman accompanying him asked him to stay outside while he entered the toilet and started smoking. Sensing an opportunity, Kulwant Singh locked the policemen inside the toilet and fled.

The policeman raised the alarm and alerted his colleagues. They gave Kulwant Singh a chase. On seeing Kulwant Singh being chased by policemen, Tarlochan Singh, a naibkot who was standing outside court number 14, overpowered the undertrial.

Kulwant Singh was handed over to the District Courts complex police post.

Kulwant Singh has a criminal record. He had formed a gang and used to rob people at gunpoint.

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Two fast-track courts set up
Rajneesh Lakhanpal

Ludhiana, January 14
Two fast-track courts have been set up in the city to ensure speedy trials in rape and dowry death cases. Two women judges will head these courts.
Sessions Judge GS Matharoo has selected the courts of Additional Sessions Judges Mandeep Kaur Pannu and Surinder Pal Kaur for this purpose.

These courts will exclusively try such cases. Other pending cases of all nature will be withdrawn from these courts and entrusted to other courts.

This was revealed by the Sessions Judge while talking to Ludhiana Tribune on the sidelines of a Lohri function organised by the District Bar Association at the District Courts complex here today.

Matharoo said around 170 such trials were pending before his court as well as in other courts of Additional Sessions Judges.

Directions were received today from the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court for setting up of excusive courts for fast-tracking cases of heinous crimes against women, he added.

“The officers concerned have been told to expedite such cases. For the purpose of expeditious disposal of such matters, judicial officers are at liberty to prepone the proceedings of the case, if long dates have already been given,” said the Sessions Judge.

All magistrates must take commitment proceedings of such cases with seriousness to ensure the completion of commitment proceedings within 10 dyas after the filing of the challan, say the directions issued by the HC.

Mathroo said he would soon convene a meeting of judicial officers, public prosecutors, policemen and representatives of the Bar so that the objective of speedy disposal of such cases could be achieved.

District Bar Association president Jagmohan Singh Warraich said they would extend full cooperation to the judiciary to ensure speedy trials.

Hailing the setting up of exclusive courts for trying cases of crime against women, former Bar Association presidents Hemant Kalai, KR Sikri, BK Goel, Parupkar Singh Ghumman and Naval Kishore Chibber; Congress legal cell convener Ashok Bhakri, chairman Dharamjit Singh Khera, former state legal cell chairman PD Sharma have assured full cooperation to the judiciary.

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Bus operators, officials lock horns over challans
Shivani Bhakoo
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, January 14
Bus operators and law-enforcing agencies have locked horns over issuance of challans for black films on windowpanes of buses.
Sore over the recent challan drive initiated by the police, bus operators claimed that under the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989, the permissible visibility of tinted glasses was 30 per cent on the front and 50 per cent on both sides.

Till the provision was amended by the Centre, buses having permissible visibility should not be challaned.

The police and the district transport department maintain that according to the recent guidelines, tinted glasses (irrespective of the percentage) are not allowed.

JS Grewal, president of the Ludhiana Minibus Owners Association, said bus operators were being "unnecessarily harassed" by the agencies. "On an average, the department is challaning around five buses every day, which is uncalled for. Most of the compoundable offences are not being compounded on the spot. These are being forwarded to the district transport officer for compounding," said Grewal.

"The law stipulates that the offence which is not compounded on the spot is a violation and the challan has to be sent to the trail court to punish the offender and not to the DTO. We are facing a lot of problems and are asked to come again to the DTO's office. The offender has to be punished by the court and not by any particular office/official," said Grewal, adding that a letter in this regard had been submitted to the Commissioner of Police.

A police official associated with the challan drive said on condition of anonymity that bus operators were unnecessarily raising a hue and cry. "Those who are at fault are asked to pay penalty. According to the latest guidelines, windowpanes should not have any coating or black film. The operators' claim that the buses were sold with coating by companies is wrong. They should not have any problem to get their windowpanes cleared, especially after the brutal rape incident in Delhi that sent shock waves throughout the country," said the official.

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Meet deadline or face the music, food business owners told
Anupam Bhagria
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, January 14
Though the Health Department has fixed February 4 as the deadline for the implementation of the Food Safety and Standard Act, 2006, under which each food business owner has to get himself/herself registered or procure a licence, only 5,800 owners have so got it done. Thousands are yet to apply for the registration.

The District Health Officer, Ludhiana, Dr Jasbir Singh, said, "We have got a good response from hotel, bakery, ice cream and sweets shop owners. Kiryana merchants, fruit traders and rehri owners are not cooperating much."

He said 10 days ago, he held a meeting with presidents of different rehri owners and apprised them of the Act. He requested them to take empty forms from him and get themselves registered within 48 hours. None of them turned up.

He said he would wait till February 4 and initiate action after that. Owners of food business who would come after the deadline for a licence or a registration number would be fined Rs 100 per day.

He said, "If the owners miss the deadline, they will have to face the music. We will start conducting raids after February 4 and anyone found without a licence or a registration number will be fined on the spot, which will vary from Rs 25,000 to Rs 5 lakh."

Earlier, the department had set August 4, 2012, as the deadline, but later it was extended till February 4.

Licence criterion

Food business owners with an annual turnover less than ~12 lakh will be registered while those having a turnover of more than ~12 lakh will have to get a licence under this Act.

Public announcements

Fed up with the dilly-dallying attitude of food business owners, the department made public announcements in different markets and areas of the city regarding the February 4 deadline. These announcements, too, seem to have fallen on deaf ears.

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PAU students boycott classes
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, January 14
About 500 PAU students boycotted their classes today against the proposed merger of classes of BSc (fourth year) and BSc (sixth year) from the second semester. The students protested from 9 am to 4 pm against the authorities. They met their respective deans and submitted a memorandum against this move.

President of the Punjab Agricultural University Students Association Parminder Gujar said it was very difficult to study with students of some other batch.

"It has been decided to merge the classes from the second semester, which is uncalled for. With new batches or new students, they can do such experiements, but not with us. We will continue with our indefinite strike till they withdraw the decision. The authorities have been asking girl students to attend classes, but we are all united and will not succumb to any pressure," said Parminder.

The students submitted a memorandum to the Dean, College of Agriculture, and the Registrar against the decision of the merger. The students did not attend any class today.

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Close shave for 2 as vehicles overturn
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, January 14
Two drivers, including the driver of a vehicle belonging to the municipal corporation, were injured after the MC vehicle and a truck overturned while trying to prevent a head-on collision at the Dairy Complex near Hambran Road here today.

The incident took place when the vehicles suddenly came in front of each other. In order to evade a collision, both drivers took a sharp turn following which the vehicles hit the divider and overturned. Both drivers had a providential escape. They were rushed to a hospital, where they are undergoing treatment.

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3 youths thrash bus driver, conductor 
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, January 14
A road rage incident turned ugly at Cheema Chowk after the driver and conductor of a bus belonging to Orbit Bus Service, owned by the Chief Minister and his family, were allegedly thrashed by three drunk youths travelling by a sports utility vehicle (SUV).

According to bus driver Gurmeet Singh, the trio thrashed him and his colleague and snatched Rs 20,000 from them.

Interestingly, the trio fled with Rs 20,000, leaving behind their SUV worth Rs 10 lakh. The SUV has been impounded by the police. An eyewitness said the bus and the SUV met with an accident at Cheema Chowk this evening.

The collision led to a heated argument between both groups. The argument turned ugly and the three youths allegedly broke the windscreen of the bus and thrashed the driver and the conductor.

Sources said it was a simple case of road rage. The bus driver was unnecessarily trying to show it as a snatching case. 

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Jandali road in bad shape
Mahesh Sharma

Mandi Ahmedgarh, January 14
Smooth mortaring on Jandali road, only link between the local town with over twenty villages and localities, is still a distant dream.
Despite assurance by legislator Amargarh Iqbal Singh Jhoondan to get it reconstructed by the Public Works Department nothing concrete has been done to get the pits filled. Many commuters have started taking alternative longer routes at the cost of extra fuel and time.

Admitting that condition of the road had remained pitiable despite repairs repeatedly, municipal council chief Ravinder Puri, said the civic body had already initiated the process for solving water disposal problem before getting the road reconstructed either by the PWD or the local body department.

"Though our representative in state government, MLA Iqbal Singh Jhoondan, has assured us that the road will be constructed by the PWD soon, we wish to control the water disposal problem that has been the root cause behind reoccurring damage of the road,” said Puri.

The residents led by Vikas Tondon, president, City Congress, Jaswinder Singh Sond, chairman, BC Cell of the district congress, and Narinder Azad, a social activists, alleged that the successive governments had failed to maintain the Jandali road.

Shreeyans Industries, Green Valley Senior Secondary School and a number of other industrial units, religious organisations and educational institutes were the worst affected as they have to adopt an alternate route.

Mini-buses and tempos plying between local town and surrounding twenty villages, including Jandali Kalan, Jandali Khurad, Kup Kalan Kup Jhurad, Rohira, Jhaner, Kanganwal, Baurhai Kalan , Baurhai Khurad and Dhaler have spend extra money on repair and maintenance besides fuel as they can not violate routes prescribed on their permits.

However, dilapidated condition of the road had proven boon for snatchers and owners of the automobile workshops. While slowing down of vehicles due to potholes facilitates snatchers and looters, their sudden breakdown helps mechanics earn extra income for obvious reason.

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Fire destroys ATM booth
Jaswant Shetra

Jagraon, January 14
A massive fire broke out at an ATM booth of Axis Bank at historical Rani Jhansi Chowk in Jagraon last night. A tailor's shop situated on the first floor of the same building also got partially destroyed due to the fire.

The fire incident took place at around 10 pm last night.

As soon as the news of fire broke out, a large number of residents gathered on the spot and started dousing the fire with buckets of water. It took around two hours for the residents to douse the fire.

Soon after the incident, a police team from Jagraon police station also reached the spot and informed the fire brigade stations at Ludhiana, Hambran and Moga. However, the fire brigade teams from Ludhiana arrived 2 hours after the incident when the fire had already been doused by the local residents and a massive damage had already been caused to the building.

Sparking in the high tension power cables passing alongside the ATM booth is believed to be the reason behind the fire.

Jagraon SHO Mohamed Jamil said the police has been investigating the cause behind the fire. “It seems that the fire broke out due to the sparking in the power cables. The exact cause will be known only after the thorough investigation," said the SHO.

 

Residents’ demand

  • Residents of Jargaon are demanding a fire brigade station
  • Jagraon MLA SR Kaler, who also visited the spot after the incident, had earlier promised that a fire brigade station would be set up but no initiative has been taken so far
  • After the fire incident, Kaler has again promised that he will take up the matter with the state government

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Month on, shed at grain market yet to be repaired
Our Correspondent

Khanna, January 14
A shed constructed for crops and farmers at the grain market in Khanna, also known as Asia's biggest grain market, which collapsed last month, is yet to be repaired.
The shed collapsed when a truck accidentally crashed into it. It is in the same position and any official of the market committee is not ready to take up the matter.

Kamaljit Singh, a commission agent at the grain market, said: “The shed collapsed in the month of December, when a truck accidentally crashed into it. A major tragedy averted as some labourers were sleeping under the shed when it collapsed.”

Lakhbir Singh Kalamajra, former chairman, market committee, Khanna, said: “It is an example of non-functioning of the market committee at Khanna.”

He said, “It is the primary duty of the market committee that if any accident takes place it will swing into action so that the market can resume immediately.”

Lakhbir revealed that sheds in the market were used to park private vehicles. The truck in question was a private vehicle that was parked illegally under the shed and market committee, Khanna, is not initiating any action against the erring vehicle drivers.

Chranjit Singh, secretary, market committee, Khanna, said: “We are processing the case and it will take about another one month to construct the shed after receiving all the concerned formalities from mandi board.” He said, “The estimated loss of the damaged shed is Rs 2 lakh and they are taking the matter with the erring party who is responsible for the damage.”

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DC marks inquiry
Shivani Bhakoo
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, January 14
Deputy Commissioner Rahul Tiwari has marked an inquiry into the incident that took place at the office of District Transport Officer (DTO) recently in which a helper allegedly hired by a female clerk fell unconscious and burnt his leg while igniting a brazier. The inquiry will be conducted by Additional Deputy Commissioner (General) Neeru Katyal.

Talking to The Tribune, Rahul Tiwari said it was an unfortunate incident. He said: “I was on leave when the incident took place. I came to know about it later. I have asked Neeru Katyal to look into the matter and submit me the report”.

On being asked that government employees hire private persons to do much of their work at the DTO office, the Deputy Commissioner said he would only be able to comment on the issue once the inquiry report was submitted to him.

On January 11, Rajiv Billa, a helper 'hired' by a female clerk, had received burn injuries while igniting a brazier in a room at the basement of the DTO office where he was working for her.

As there was no ventilation in the room, Billa fell unconscious. His leg got stuck in the brazier and got burnt. Because of the pain, he regained consciousness and screamed. One of the passers-by rescued him and he was rushed to a private hospital.

Meanwhile, the issue of private persons hired by government employees at the DTO office here seems to have become a routine practice. If certain employees are to be believed, at least 5-6 private persons are hired by each clerk in the department. The racket goes unchecked as the authorities prefer to look the other way.

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MC turns a blind eye to residents’ safety
Puneet Pal Singh Gill
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, January 14
Even though Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal has launched "Mission Ludhiana" for the overall development of the city, it seems that the Ludhiana Municipal Corporation (MC) has turned a blind eye to the safety of residents, as the city roads are fast turning into death traps.

Several ditches and potholes are a common sight here. In some parts of the city, garbage bins and iron bins can be seen lying in the middle or along the dividers, posing a danger to the lives of residents.

Recently, a small portion of the road caved in on the Old GT Road near Salem Tabri police station. But after passing of several days, the MC has failed to repair the road. Even Deputy Mayor RD Sharma’s ward is located on the other side of the road, still MC officials have not paid any heed to it.

The spot where the portion of the road caved in is near to the Old Sabzi Mandi, which is thronged by a large number of people everyday. If the MC delayed the repair of this road, it could lead to any tragedy.

The roads from where the MC had uprooted trees have still not been repaired despite the fact that the matter was highlighted twice by The Tribune. In the absence of repair of these roads, it seems that the MC is waiting for a tragedy to happen.

MC Commissioner Rakesh Kumar Verma said all these spots would be repaired on a priority basis. “I will ask my staff to get the portion of the caved in road repaired soon,” the MC Commissioner added. 

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Chemist shop vandalised

Ludhiana, January 14
Angered by a firing incident, residents of Vishwakarma Colony in Moti Nagar vandalised a chemist shop here today evening.

The incident took place at 9 pm when Saurav (20), a resident of Vishwkarma Colony, entered into a petty argument with two youths of Mundian village. In a fit of rage, a youth, identified as Dharminder, pulled out his pistol and fired a shot in the ground to threaten Saurav.

Saurav managed to escape and narrated the incident to the residents of the colony. Soon, the residents gathered at the spot where the firing incident took place and vandalised a shop belonging to Rajesh Kumar.

Dharminder and his aide manage to flee from the spot. Till the time of filing of this report, the police had reached the spot and started the investigation. — TNS

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Leader held for manhandling lawyer
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, January 14
The president of the Mahatma Rawan Youth Federation was booked by the city police for allegedly manhandling and snatching valuables from an advocate. Registration of a case against Ravi Balli led to a protest outside the Division No. 4 police station.

Shiv Soni, president of the Rashtriya Chetna Manch, who led the protest, blamed the police for succumbing under political pressure.

The incident took place on January 11, when Ravi Balli, along with his supporters, was staging a protest against the sale of plastic strings at Shri Ram Kites near Bhuriwala Gurdwara in Haibowal.

Ravi had a heated argument with Gurinderpal Singh Kahlon, who was purchasing kites on Lohri.

Kahlon has stated in his complaint that Ravi and his supporters hurled abuses, manhandled him and snatched Rs 10,000 from him.

On the other hand, Ravi alleged that Kahlon had hurled casteist remarks at him. While blaming the police for inaction, Shiv Soni said had the police implemented the ban in letter and in spirit, such an incident could have been avoided.

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Bank cashier commits suicide
Our Correspondent

Phillaur, January 14
A bank cashier, Hardeep Singh, yesterday committed suicide by hanging himself from the ceiling at his residence.

Mental stress was said to be the cause of suicide, the police said. The police has sent the body of the deceased to a local civil hospital for post-mortem examination. 

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pau notes
2-day workshop begins

A two-day state level workshop on “Training Planning” for the year 2013-14, began on Monday at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU). In addition to the participation of senior extension specialists and heads of the various departments of the PAU, representatives of the State Departments of Agriculture and Horticulture, and Associate Directors/ Deputy Directors of the Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) from across Punjab are also attending the workshop.

The programme is being facilitated and coordinated by the Directorate of Extension Education of the PAU.In the opening address, Dr Baldev Singh Dhillon, Vice-Chancellor, PAU, emphasised on strengthening the transfer of technology mechanism through the introduction of new methods, adoption of improved farm technologies, and the farmer-scientist interface. He said, “For sustainable agriculture, research in different areas of extension is vital. Each KVK should act as a “Model Farm” wherein the farmers can gain maximum knowledge on various farm related issues.

” Dr Dhillon underlined the need for laying special focus on profit-oriented farm enterprises.Dr MS Gill, Director of Extension Education, while welcoming the dignitaries and the participants, said: “The need-based trainings are vital for the farming community in order to reduce costs of production and increase farm productivity.”

 “Besides, holding advance off-campus trainings, technical support to the stakeholders on various aspects of agriculture, and efficient message service to the farmers as a part of the PAU Doots concept are some of the key concerned areas of the university,” he said. During the workshop, the scientists of various departments of PAU and KVKs will be giving the presentations on annual training programmes.

PAU employees on strike

PAU employees hold a protest outside Thapar Hall in Ludhiana.
PAU employees hold a protest outside Thapar Hall in Ludhiana. tribune photo: himanshu mahajan

The strike of employees at the PAU entered 54th day today. The employees lambasted the state government for making false promises and said that during the golen jubilee celebrations, the employees were assured by Finance Minister Parminder Singh Dhindsa that a grant of Rs 10 crores will be released soon but even after more than a month the grant had not been released by the Punjab government.



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from colleges
Lecture-cum-workshop on traffic rules

SDP College for Women today organised an extension lecture-cum-workshop on “Traffic Rules and Signals”. Sukhdev Singh from Traffic Education Cell, Department of Traffic Training, was the resource person on the ocassion. All employees of the college and students attended the lecture.

Jasbir Kaur Makkar, principal; Dr Parkash Verma, Parveen Lata accorded a welcome to the keynote speaker. Dr Parkash Verma, in charge, co-academics, introduced the key note speaker to the staff and students. Dr Verma, while welcoming the resource person, said there was much increase in number of road accidents due to negligence of traffic rules. Sukhdev Singh threw light on factors like use of drugs and liquor, mobile phones, ear phones while driving, overtaking, jumping traffic lights, crossing speed limits and driving on the wrong side. He said accidents could be avoided if we observe traffic rules in spirit like wearing helmets, seat belts, indicators, observing speed limits and obeying manual, driving and electrical signals. Jasbir Kaur Makkar also spoke on the occasion.

Ramp show

The Northern India Institute of Fashion Technology (NIIFT) today organised a “Ramp Show” at its campus under the supervision of Mahesh Khanna, centre-in charge, NIIFT/ GM, District Industries Centre, Ludhiana, and Assistant Professor Rajwinder Kaur. The show was organised as a formal presentation by the fashion designing students to showcase their design collection. The show was started with the formal introduction of NIIFT by Mahesh Khanna that the centre is affiliated with Punjab Technical University, Jalandhar, and four-year degree courses will be offered to the students as BSc in fashion designing and fashion design in knits. The show provided an opportunity to the students of NIIFT to celebrate the event with the eminent personalities of the garment industry. There were as many as 25 collections, including evening wear, men’s wear, knit wear and kid's wear ranging from casuals to formals. The highlight of the show was beautiful dresses and evening gowns designed and prepared by budding designers of NIIFT, under the guidance of their faculty members. 

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Ludhiana  scan
Woollens distributed

An NGO- Hope - organised a drive in which blankets, warm clothes, shirts, pants, ladies suits, woollen caps were distributed amongst the poor people who live on footpaths and have no shelter to protect them from cold. The drive started at 12:00 am and carried on till 3.00 am. During the process, the NGO teams travelled to various parts of Ludhiana like Bharat Nagar Chowk, Jagraon Bridge, Focal Point, Field Ganj and Clock Tower. President Gurjot Singh Gaba said, “In today's world, every person considers himself / herself busy. Due to this, every person is now self obsessed. Nobody has time to help others.”

Medical camp held

A multi-specialty camp was organised by Mohandai Oswal Hospital in association with Malwa Industries, Machiwara. As many as 300 people availed the benefits of the camp. Free consultation and advice was given by consultants and as many as 50 patients were referred in Mohandai Oswal Hospital for further treatment.

Shobha yatra

Shri Ayappa Temple today organised a shobha yatra at Jamalpur. The main attraction of the shobha yatra was as many as 108 children and women clad in Kerelaite dresses were carrying well decorated thalies for prayer. Large number of people participated in the event.

Lohri celebrated

The festival of Lohri was celebrated today at the Mata Ganga Khalsa College for Girls, Kotan. The college principal, staff and students celebrated the festival by holding a bonfire at the college premises. Principal Dr Jatinder Kaur presented gifts to class IV employees on this occasion.

Pakistani flag burnt

Members of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha burn the Pakistani flag at Ghantaghar Chowk.
Members of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha burn the Pakistani flag at Ghantaghar Chowk.  A TRIBUNE PHOTOGRAPH

 

Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha today burnt the flag of Pakistan at Ghantaghar Chowk. The president of the state unit of Morcha, Rajesh Hani, BJP District president Parveen Bansal and Jiwan Gupta were present on the occasion. The agitating morcha leaders said that Pakistan was testing the patience of India; it was high-time now that India should react and give a befitting reply to Pakistan. The morcha members said that it was a brutal act by Pakistan to kill Indian soldiers on the Line of Control.

Ration distributed

The 21st monthly ration distribution by Thandi Chaan was held today at Guru Arjun Dev Nagar. The function was attended by Bharat Bhushan Ashu, Rakesh Pandey, Dimple Rana and Parminder Mehta. Leena Taparia, under whose guidance the event was organised, gave a brief history of the organisation and provided information on how the organisation was serving for the noble cause.

Monthly meet

The monthly meeting of Punjabi Sahit Academy was held today. The meeting was attended by Pritam Pandher, Jaswant Singh Aman and Dr Gulzar Pandher. The members expressed their views that one must be aware about the human rights and should not allow anyone to violate those. The members presented ghazals, stories and their literary works on this occasion.

Former IAS officer dead

Gurbachan Singh, a retired IAS officer , died on January 11. He had served as a Deputy Commissioner at Ferozepur and Faridkot districts in Punjab and had contributed for the development of Ludhiana during his service at various positions in the state government. He is survived by his son RS Sandhu, IAS (retd), Financial Commissioner, Punjab.

Lawyers celebrate Lohri

Maheshinder Singh Grewal, advisor to chief minister, Punjab, today announced a grant of Rs 2 lakh to the District Bar Assocaition. He assured full co-operation to the legal fraternity, while addressing the city lawyers in a function orgainsed to celebrate Lohri, today at district court complex. Grewal, who is holding a cabinet minister rank, said he would prevail upon the Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal to come here and resolve all pending issues relating to lawyers.

Grewal had been an active practicing lawyer and had served the DBA as its president several times. Earlier, he was accorded warm welcome by the DBA president Jagmohan Singh Warraich; vice-president Ashok Sharma; finance secretary Gurjinder Singh Sahni on his arrival.

The Sessions Judge GS Matharoo on behalf of all judicial officers congratulated the members of Bar. He sought full co-operation from them in maintaining good relations between the Bench and Bar. All the Judges also attended the function. Harish Rai Dhanda, ex-chairman of Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana, also congratulated lawyers for hosting the Lohri function.

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Vehicle thief arrested
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, January 14
The city police nabbed a vehicle lifter and recovered a stolen mini-truck and two motorcycles from his possession.
The accused, identified as Arjun Kumar of Mundian Khurd village, was nabbed from Sunder Nagar Chowk following a tip-off here last night.

On spotting the police, Arjun tried to flee, but his vehicle was intercepted. During the search, the police found a stolen motorcycle kept in the backside of the pickup.

The accused confessed that he used to steal unattended motorcycles by loading them in his pickup.

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BSF, Jarkhar XI script win in hockey
Anil Datt
Our Sports Reporter

Ludhiana, January 14
Hockey matches in the men's section were held today during the 27th Annual Sports Festival being organised by the Mata Sahib Kaur Sports Club at Jarkhar village. The formal inauguration is slated for tomorrow.

In the first match of the day, BSF, Jalandhar, scored a convincing win over Moga (4-1). All goals were scored in the second half.

After the first barren session, BSF men shot into lead in the 43rd minute when Ranjit Singh sounded the board off an angular pass given by Gurjit Singh.

They increased the lead two minutes later through Gurjit Singh who scored an excellent field goal to make it 2-0.

Down by two goals, Moga players pressed hard to reduce the margin and made concerted efforts to beat the BSF defence. These tactics yielded results in the 61st minute as Gursahib Singh managed to sneak into rival's territory and also found the custodian on wrong foot (1-2).

Stung at this, BSF went all-out to enhance the lead. After wasting a couple of scoring chances, they succeeded in the 65th minute when Raj Singh found the target to read the score board 3-1.

Three minutes later, BSF pumped in another goal when Gurjit scored his second goal that sealed Moga XI's fate 4-1.

The second match was played between Jarkhar XI and Haryana XI, in which the former came out triumphant in an identical fashion (4-1) after leading 3-0 at the half time.

The winners gained lead in the 25th minute of the encounter through a field goal scored by Gursatinder Singh. They added two goals more in quick succession (33rd and 35th minutes) to consolidate the lead (3-0).

Midway through the second half, Haryana XI managed to reduce the margin as Narinder Singh scored an opportunistic goal (1-3). Kiranjit Singh of Jarkhar XI struck in the 62nd minute to enable his side to romp home to a victory.

In the third match, Panjab University, Chandigarh, proved too good for Punjab State Power Corporation Limited XI as they won comfortably (5-1).

Navjot Singh scored four goals, including a hat-trick (4th, 12th, 22nd and 24th minutes), while Prashant Sharma scored in the 59th minute to complete the rout. For the losing side, Ravinder Singh was the lone scorer.

Harpreet Singh Shivalik, a Youth Akali Dal leader, was the chief guest today who was introduced to the participating teams.

Jagroop Singh Jarkhar, a spokesperson for the Mata Sahib Kaur Sports Club, said Punjab Cabinet Minister Sharanjit Singh Dhillon would formally declare the festival open tomorrow. Darshan Singh Shivalik, MLA, will be the guest of honour on this occasion.

A procession will carry the games' torch to the venue from Guru Nanak Stadium, Ludhiana, that will halt for sometime at the historical Gurdwara Manji Sahib at Alamgir. Players of the national and international level, besides popular Punjabi singer Inderjit Nikku, famous comedian, Jaswinder Bhalla, Sukhwinder Singh Harpal Singh and international basketball player, Talwinderjit Singh Sahi, would carry the torch on its way to Jarkhar, said Jagroop Singh.

“The main attractions of the opening ceremony to be held under floodlights will be gatka, laser show and performance by Punjabi star singers, Happy Jassowal, Harjeet Harman and Hardeep Bhambra," added Jarkhar.

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Replace defective AC, orders consumer forum
Our Legal Correspondent

Ludhiana, January 14
The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum has ordered Carriers Air Conditioning & Refrigeration, Gurgaon, and Professionals Marketing Group, Novelty Plaza, Bhai Wala Chowk, Ludhiana, to replace the defective air-conditioner of a consumer.

The forum also directed them to pay Rs 8,000 compensation to the aggrieved consumer for deficient services.

RL Ahuja, president of the forum, and its members Priti Malhotra and Rajesh Kumar, passed the orders while deciding a complaint filed by Pawan Kumar Nirola of Malerkotla.

The complainant stated that he had purchased an air-conditioner of Carriers Air Conditioning on February 23, 2007. In the first week of April 2008, the complainant switched on the AC, but found that it was not in a working condition. He lodged a complaint with the service centre, but didn’t get any response. Thereafter, a technician visited his house, but could not set the things right. Complaints were lodged time and again but all in vain.

The opposite party refuted the allegations and claimed that the complaint was filed with a mala fide intention. It was stated that the complaint for the non working of the AC was raised in July 2008 after the lapse of the warranty period, which was up to February 2008. Even then, his representatives visited Malerkotla and found that the PCB of the AC was badly damaged due to heavy power supply and it needed to be replaced. The same was replaced free of cost and only labour charges were taken from the complainant. Whenever any complaint was received, it was redressed.

After appreciating the evidence of the parties, the forum observed that there was a deficiency in the service and passed the order to replace the defective AC.

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PPC Club emerge victorious
Our Sports Reporter

Ludhiana, January 14
PPC Club, Ludhiana, drubbed Lovely Professional University (LPU) Club (11-2) to clinch the title in the 8th Senior Ludhiana District Open Baseball Championship for men. The championship was held at the Guru Nanak Khalsa College for Women here yesterday.

In the match played to decide the third position, RS Model Senior Secondary School, Model Town, got the better of Ludhiana Club (6-3).

Earlier, Ludhiana Club beat BCM Senior Secondary School, Focal Point, (6-3); RS Model Senior Secondary School defeated Guru Nanak International Public School, Model Town, (8-2); LPU Club outplayed Ludhiana Club (8-4) and PPC Club defeated RS Model Senior Secondary School (9-2).

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Sports fest at Dulay from Jan 27
Our Sports Reporter

Ludhiana, January 14
Competitions in athletics events in the sub-junior as well as senior sections, besides 5-km walk for senior citizens, would be the main features of the annual sports festival to be organised at Mirgind Stadium of Dulay near here from January 27 to 29. Releasing the festival poster at Dulay, Teja Singh Dhaliwal, honorary secretary, Punjab Basketball Association, said apart from this, cross-country race for men and women, along with Ludhiana District Handball Championship (junior boys and girls) and bullock cart races, would be conducted during the three-day festival.

It will be organised by the village Panchayat, Dulay, in association with the Dashmesh Cultural and Welfare Society in the memory of Jathedar Santokh Singh Mirgind. Sarpanch Surjit Singh and sports promoter NRI Hardev Singh (Italy) and office-bearers of the organising society were present on the occasion.

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