Jalandhar, May 23
In gross violation of norms and much to the chagrin of the residents who have often complained regarding the issue, the practice of burning garbage mounds across the district has been causing a great damage to plants and property.

While so far, the waste burning exercise had been causing great harm to trees and plants, upsetting residents, the practice cost dear to two car owners today whose cars, parked near the bus stand area, reportedly caught fire from a garbage mound in the morning.

Both cars - an i 20 and a Santro - were gutted.

While owners said they were not sure about the cause of the fire, witnesses expressed the view that the burning garbage mounds near the cars caused the fire.

An owner of a car, Neha, said, “I do not know the cause of the fire because when I was called from inside the bank, where I was working, the car was already burning.”

Reacting to the suspicion that the cars caught fire due to the burning of garbage, MC Commissioner Vinay Bublani said, “A joint commissioner will be out on the job to look into violations in this case and strict action will be taken against those found guilty.”

Residents have often complained of waste burning at the Old Baradari area, Model Town, Green Model Town, GT Road, Nakodar Road, abandoned plots, parks and other open roads and places.

While The Tribune had also brought the issue to light a few days ago, MC Commissioner Vinay Bublani had said a report on the issue was awaited.

Assistant Commssioner Ved Vyas said he had “no knowledge” of any MC official burning waste.

Interestingly, PFA activist and former wildlife warden Chander Bushan said, “I have brought the notice to the issue of the MC commissioner as well as the assistant commissioner. A day ago, I called the assistant commissioner regarding burning trees in the Baradari area. He had assured me that it would stop. Many trees in the area have been ravaged due to the constant burning of waste by MC officials. Some house doors have been blackened with soot. And even the MC’s own trees planted to render the city green, have caught fire. What’s the point in planting trees if you want to burn them?”

Jalandhar, May 23
A four-member team of experts from the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (India Office) today visited the district to take stock of the tuberculosis-control programme in the district today.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (India Office) started a pilot project in 2009 and kept expanding their programme wherein they finally adopted 60 category 2 TB patients in the district. The visit today was meant to take stock of the TB situation and success in the district.

Taking stock of the TB control programme in the district, the four team members who included International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies senior advisor Dr Kailash Raizada, India head of the federation John Anthony Rosche, state coordinator Dr RP Verma and consultant Anuradha Duggal from the federation based in Geneva, (who would be writing about the TB-control measures which she observes along with her team).

Speaking on the progress of the programme in Jalandhar, Dr Kailash Raizada, senior advisor at the IRFC said, "Every year, 20 lakh new patients fall prey to TB. The most effective way to fight it is being aware of respiratory etiquette and guidelines to prevent the infection from spreading. Making patients aware regarding this and motivating category 2 patients to stay on treatment is the main objective of the Red Cross as far as the TB programme is concerned."

While Punjab is one of the seven Indian states (others are Karnataka, UP, Orissa, Bihar, Haryana, Gujarat) in which the international Red Cross federation has initiated the TB control programme, it started it with a pilot project of 600 TB patients in 2009 and decided on expanding the programme based on the results, later. Notably, the Red Cross had chipped in for help on the TB control programme on the request of the Indian Government so that the said project was carried out in tandem with the RNTCP (Revised National TB Control Programme).

Speaking about their objectives, Dr Raizada said, "The category 2 TB involves defaulter TB patients who leave treatment before completing their initial six-month course and hence have to take an eight-month one. Our work involves making sure that these category 2 patients are kept on track and do not leave it. Because the final MDR (muti-drug resistant) TB is very deadly. While the category 1 and two TBs cost Rs 1,000 and Rs 2,000, respectively, for their courses, the MDR TB treatment costs go up to Rs 1 lakh to 2 lakh. Also, an MDR patient passes on MDR TB."

Presently, in Punjab, there are 20 Red Cross volunteers involved in the programme. While 10 are in Amritsar, as many work in Jalandhar. The four-member team today visited various areas and met the adopted category 2 TB patients, asking them about their treatment and ascertaining whether volunteers were regularly visiting their homes to motivate them, kept them informed, and provided adequate nutrition.

State project director Dr RP Verma said, "While 25 per cent of the world's TB cases are contributed by India, TB eradication is high on the government's mind and we are putting in our bit to help. The 20-25 per cent dropouts are a major challenge. But we have had an almost 90 per cent success in ensuring adherence among patients so far."

Based on the success of Punjab, the Red Cross team said the project would now be extended to Ludhiana as well.

Jalandhar, May 23
The applicants for the high security number plates (HSNPs) in the district are a harassed lot these days, as they have to stand in long queues in the open in scorching heat, waiting for their turn to get these fixed on their vehicles.

The plates are fixed at a site in the Punjab Roadways workshop on Garha Road, where there is no shed or covered area where the applicants can wait till the time their work is done. Leave aside any seating arrangement, there is no provision of water either as the applicants await endlessly for their turn to come.

An applicant has to undergo a lot of grind to get the job done. He has to first apply for the registration number at the agency or the District Transport Office (in case it is a fancy number). The charges for the same are levied at a shop in the administrative complex in front of the ADC (D) office.

Having been given a week’s time for a two-wheeler and 15 days for a car, the applicant has to go to the workshop site, where again he has to apply for the same. Depending on the whims and fancies of the staff of the Delhi-based company Agros Impex Pvt Ltd, the applicant is either asked to wait for two to three hours or come again some other day.

While the company staff insists that the vehicle be left at the site and be picked later, most applicants coming from far-flung areas of the district driving down in the same vehicle do not find this option viable. Ranjana, a government employee based at Phillaur, said she had taken her day off and came driving her scooter all the way for 40 km, but to no avail. “I have been told to wait till the evening or come tomorrow again, for the mechanics were already occupied. It is sheer harassment. The office must formulate a system by giving some appointment and follow it.”

Another applicant Harminder Singh, running an electronics company, said waiting for hours for getting a number plate of his scooter in the sun with temperature soaring at 46 degrees celsius was really was really tough. “The office which is located in a complete jungle like area has no provision of water. Officials should at least make things convenient for the public when we are paying a fee for the same,” he said.

Rajinder, supervisor of the company, said at times it was difficult to tackle the rush, for there were 300 applicants a day. He said visitors, of course, had been demanding a shed, but our mechanics, too, are working in the open and not complaining.

DTO Dalwinder Jit Singh, said, “I had talked to the supervisor. I was told that there is provision of chairs and water. If he is lying, he will be taken to task.” About the shed, he said he had called the company officials and arranged their meeting with the GM Roadways so that they can come with a workable solution.

Charges levied

The workshop has four plate designing machines. The charges being levied by the company are Rs 100 for a two-wheeler, Rs 138 for a three wheeler, Rs 326 for a car and Rs 358 for a heavy vehicle, in addition to 13.75 per cent VAT charges. The plates bear the National Emblem, bar codes, holograms and embossed alpha numerals. They have a security inscribed snap lock, making these tamper-proof and non-replaceable even in case a vehicle gets stolen. They also have a superior grade reflective sheeting.

Kapurthala, May 23
Ten days after the barbaric attack on two families in Mothanwala and Kamalpur Bhatha villages in Sultanpur Lodhi, the Kapurthala police has arrested four persons, including a woman, who were behind the ghastly assault.

The accused had left 16 persons seriously injured, besides robbing them of their valuables on the night of May 12.

The police arrested the accused during a massive search operation carried out in jhuggis early this morning. Officials said when one party was searching temporary shelters on the RCF road, the occupants got scared and tried to run away but were nabbed.

The police searched their belongings and found a bag containing two passbooks and two ID cards belonging to the members of the victim families. Those arrested include Munim, brothers Ashiq and Raju Machik, and their mother Zareena, who the police claimed perhaps coordinated the entire exercise. The police has linked the foursome to another robbery committed at Zira on May 10.

Kapurthala SSP Inderbir Singh said they had got some leads from a memory card and a SIM card left by the assailants at Fauji Colony, a location where they had gathered after committing the crime. “The memory card had a photo of a jhuggi along the tracks owing to which we carried out such an operation,” he disclosed.

He said all four originally hail from UP, but were leading a nomadic life, putting up in shanties at various places around railway tracks in Dhariwal, Batala and now in Sultanpur going around and looking for targets. He said the accused had even named the other four accomplices, including Khusneed, his sons Lukman and Kulwinder, Ila, Aaftab and Raju of Lohian Khas in Jalandhar. The police said the 10 accused had gathered at Lohian before committing the crime. The assailants said they had used branches of trees and wooden legs of cots to attack the victims.

Mandeep Singh Gill, DSP, Sultanpur Lodhi, said, “One of the victims Maqsudan Sahni has still not been able to give his statement, as the doctors said he was not in a position to give a statement.” A complaint was lodged on behalf of his son Pawan Kumar.

Jalandhar, May 23
To educate people about the purity of milk, officials of the Verka Milk Plant have launched an awareness drive in different parts of the district.

The drive is being carried out under the guidance of Kuldeep Singh, general manager of the plant. Teams of the department have been conducting free milk testing camps at different places.

In a press note issued here, Singh said adulterated milk was being supplied in the city and vicinity on a large scale. He said the aim to organise such camps was to make people aware about the supply of adulterated and synthetic milk by some unscrupulous milk suppliers who had been playing with human lives.

“Officials of the plant organised such a camp in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Colony, today where samples of milk being used by the residents were examined and found to be containing lesser SNF. The milk was also found unfit for consumption by children and elderly people,” said Munish Mahajan, in charge, marketing.

He said similar camps would also be organised shortly. 

Jalandhar, May 23
It was a surprise for the audience when the star cast of Punjabi movie, ‘Jatts in Golmaal’, Arya Babbar, came adjacent to the screen and started dancing on a song of the movie at a mall this morning.

Audience enjoyed the comedy while watching the premier show of the movie.

The producers of the movie and other dignitaries were also present at the premier.

The movie is a story of protagonist who wants to fly to Canada at any cost. The events that followed would not only leave audience in the peel of laughter, but will force them to think about the problem of illegal immigration that has taken deep roots in the Punjabi society.

Mika, Sukhwinder Singh, Roshan Prince, Sunidhi Chauhan, Rajbir hillon and others have sung the songs of the movie. Besides, Arya Babbar, Sameksha Singh, Binoo Dhillon, Gurpreet Ghuggi, BN Sharma, Karamjit Anmol, Sardar Sohi and Harpreet Johal have enacted in the movie.

Jalandhar, May 23
International Bio-Diversity Day was celebrated at Pushpa Gujral Science City yesterday.

A seminar and competitions for the students was organised on the occasion.

Addressing a gathering of students, Dr Neelama Jerath, executive director, Punjab State Souncil for Science and Technology, Chandigarh, said, "India is one of the top 12 mega biodiversity countries and has four of 35 biodiversity hot spots areas in western ghats, Himalayas, Sundarlands and Nicobar Islands. The country is estimated to have 49,000 plant species and 81,000 animal species representing 12.5 per cent of the world's flora and 6.6 per cent of its fauna."

Dr Jerath said that Punjab had a very small area under forest cover, just about 6 per cent of the total geographical area. The major forest areas in the state are Shivalik Forests (especially in Ropar, Gurdaspur and Hoshiapur), Bir Forests (in Patiala) and Mand forests (in Amritsar and Kapurthala), he said.

Dr IS Dua, ex-chairman, Department of Botany, Panjab University, Chandigarh, who was also present, said the condition of our global environment had become a matter of grave concern to the world community in the recent years.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr RS Khandpur, director, General Science City, said the ongoing trend of setting the wheat/paddy straw on fire after harvesting the crops not only causes air pollution, but also affects adversely the fertility of the soil posing health hazards majorly eliminating rare and native species of animals and plants from their foot holds. It was the call of the day to save and protect rare species in the fields of Punjab as the unprecedented usage of chemicals fertilisers and insecticide were the reasons behind the destruction of our rare species. 

Jalandhar, May 23
Government Senior Secondary School, Moro achieved 100 per cent results in XII exams. As many as 76 per cent students of the school passed with a first division. As many as 24 per cent of these students got 70 per cent to 80 per cent marks. Baljit Kaur, Pooja Ghai and Rajvir Kaur got 358, 357 and 344 marks, respectively. In the English subject, 56 per cent students got first division and the rest got second division.

Quiz contest

BD Arya Girls Collegiate School Jalandhar Cantonment organised a quiz competition for commerce and science students during the cultural week. Questions related to mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, commerce, and general knowledge were asked. Among the A, B, C and D teams of science streams, the C team was the winner. From the Airtel, the Dokomo, the BSNL, the Reliance and the Vodafone teams of commerce stream, the Dokomo team was the winner. Principal Dr Sarita Verma gave away the prizes.

Table-tennis association

Bowry Memorial Educational and Medical Trust took the initiative to register 16 table tennis players of Innocent Hearts School in the District Table Tennis Association. The registration was fee was paid by the trust. These players are allowed to go to the stadium whenever they want to practice. Secretary of the trust Dr Anup Bowry promised that students from other sports would also be registered soon. Principal of the school congratulated the students.

Poem recitation contest

On the instructions of the state government, a house wise contest under “Quality improvement in English language and development” was held at Government Senior Secondary School, Model Town. Sonia (8th standard) won the first position, Sonia (7th standard) won the second position, Komal (8th standard) won the third position.

Salad-making contest

An inter-house salad making competition was held at St Soldier Divine Public School Kapurthala Road in which students made vegetable salads, fruit salads, fruit shakes, cocktails with the use of apple, mango, banana, grapes, watermelon, tomato, cucumber. Sonakshi and Parul of Shivaji House won the first prize.

Kabaddi cup