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Hygiene goes for a toss
Panchkula, August 19
President of the Residents’ Welfare Association, MDC, Davinder Mahajan was shocked to see the food being prepared in unhygienic conditions. The toilet is used by girl students. When a Tribune team visited the spot, the staff immediately dumped the chairs and tables on the toilet seat. Large utensils which are used to cook food were seen in the toilet. Utensils were also being washed near the toilet seat. The meal is prepared in a room connected with the toilet, but the utensils are washed in the toilet. Also, a bag containing rice was stored in the toilet. Usha Gupta, in charge of the school, said: “The room where we cook meals is next to the toilet. So it is convenient to draw water from there and wash utensils. We will soon find other place to wash utensils.” Recently, it was reported that a toilet was being used to prepared mid-day meal at Government Primary School, Sector 19, Panchkula. In what has come as a rude shock, the headmaster of Government High School who has to prepared the report of the mid-day meal prepared in Government Primary School, Sector 19, Panchkula, said he had been burdened with the work of preparing the report. “I already have so much of work and responsibility. And now I have to submit the report to Panchkula DC,” he lamented.
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Collision between cars claims cyclist’s life
Chandigarh, August 19
The injured were rushed to the PGI and are stated to be critical. The vehicles were being driven at a high speed. The impact of the collision was so intense that the bonnets of both the cars were completely damaged. The speedometer of the Swift was found to be stationed between 80 and 100 km per hour mark. "There were two persons in the Swift car that was coming from the lake side. Both suffered serious head injuries," said a police official. The cyclist is yet to be identified.
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A monkey on Admn’s back
Chandigarh, August 19 The efforts of the department to float tenders to catch monkeys twice in the recent past have failed to bear fruit. A senior official said monkey catchers were not showing interest in the proposal of the department. Employees of the department have been given the task to catch monkeys by setting up cages at various places. The department will again float tenders by changing some conditions, he added. Recently, the UT Forest and Wildlife Department cancelled the contract of owners of langurs following a circular issued by the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF). According to the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, langur is a protected species under Schedule II and under Sections 2, 8, 9, 11, 40, 41, 43, 48, 51, 61
and 62 of the IPC. The sections stipulate that langurs cannot be owned, bought, sold or hired. Any violation is liable to punishable with a three-year jail term or fine or both. The department then roped in some trained monkey catchers to accomplish the task. For every catch, the department paid Rs 500 to a monkey catcher. Not lucrative A trained monkey catcher, Gaffar, said they used to deploy three men to catch a monkey for which they used to get ~500, which is very less. Trained monkey catchers have now started doing other jobs, he added.
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Conjunctivitis cases on the rise in city
Chandigarh, August 19 Excessive itching and rubbing of eyes can lead to conjunctivitis. Washing hands regularly is the best prevention. It is highly contagious and hence a person suffering from eye flu should remain isolated from others. “The infection usually lasts for seven to 10 days. Cold compressions usually bring a lot of relief to the infected eye,” said Dr Amit
Gupta, associate professor, department of ophthalmology, PGIMER. Symptoms of the disease include blurred vision, crusts forming on the eyelid and severe pain in the eyes. The patient also feels coarseness, tearing and redness in the eyes. “Avoid sharing of towels and pillows. An eye contact with an infected person does not transmit the infection. The purpose of covering the eyes with goggles is to put a barrier on the infected eye from the person himself touching it,” said Dr Sunanadan Sood, head, department of ophthalmology. Self medication should be avoided in case of infection and one must consult experts as the infection in the eye can be coupled with bacterial infection.
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MBBS admissions under HC scanner
Chandigarh, August 19 Besides, such candidates were admitted to the course in the first counselling and some other similar candidates were treated as eligible. Giving details, the petitioners contended their grievance was against the action of the respondents “acting in violation of the mandatory terms and conditions of the prospectus”. It was mandatory that only complete admission application forms with required documents were to be accepted. Moreover, reservation for the UT pool scheduled caste category was 14 per cent and reservation for the UT pool physically handicapped was 3 per cent.
Despite the mandatory conditions, the respondents illegally, arbitrarily, in utter violation of
the terms and conditions of the prospectus and well-settled law, included the names of
the candidates who submitted incomplete admission application forms. Seeking directions for summoning the records, the petitioners also sought inquiry by
an independent agency into the admission process for the MBBS course for
the academic session 2013-2014. They said: “The action of the official respondents in entertaining incomplete admission application forms is absolutely contrary to
the provisions of the prospectus.”
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Rakhi festival: Commercialising the very bond of love
Panchkula/Chandigarh, August 19 Studded with stones and crystals, the most expensive rakhi is worth Rs 3,100 and is gold plated. While the rakhi studded with American diamonds come within the range of Rs 375. Those who want to buy ordinary rakhis can settle for anything between 20 and 500. While the gold plated rakhis cost Rs 3,100, the silver costs Rs 1,600. This season, rakhis with practical purposes are there in store.
In the children collection, it’s not the usual angry birds, but there is new innovation. “Children have got bored with just the simple angry birds.
We have a robot with the angry bird which dances to the tunes of various songs,” said Chetan Kumar, owner of the Jewels showroom in Sector 11, Chandigarh. He further added, “Not just the rakhis, but even the basket to carry the “rolly”, rice and tilak have been made trendy with frills around so that later the same can be used by small children.”“I really like the new trend. now, the rakhis can be used later on,” said Geetanjali Sharma, a resident of Sector 16, Panchkula.
Celebrating the occasion positively
Chandigarh, August 19 The purpose of the event was to take away the stigma attached to the HIV-affected persons and find acceptance in society.
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She scales the vertical limits
Chandigarh, August 19 A mother of two, Preeti, a local mountaineer, wants to conquer the Mount Everest by 2015 and also to visit all the seven summits of the world. With a passion for trekking, Preeti has already earned fame after scaling peaks like Yamnotri, Gangotri, Kudermukh, Niti, Mana, Renauk and Ramnagaram. Not only this, adding another feather to her cap, she also conquered Mount Elbrus in Russia on June 27. Mount Elbrus is the 10th most prominent mountain of the world, known for its sudden storms and extreme change in weather. She also scaled the highest peak of Europe as part of a 12-member team sent by the Bangalore Mountaineering Club along with ABETO Foundation. The group is also scheduled to be felicitated during a ceremony hosted by the Chief Minister of Karnataka later this month. “The journey, so far, remains full of excitement and many hardships. Since my childhood, mountains have attracted me. And with the passage of time, I got attached to this vast adventurous field. Being a mountaineer, one needs full dedication and fitness. I am lucky to have both, even after my marriage. My family and children support me throughout to make me feel comfortable,” said Preeti. She has two children— Vedant (8) and Sheersh (4). A law graduate and a commerce postgraduate, Preeti got commissioned in the Indian Air Force in June 2003, in the accounts branch and continued with her love for climbing from peak to peak. She became a certified mountaineer from the Himalayan Institute of Mountaineering with an ‘A’ grade certification in 2012. “I have to leave my job for completing the first step of my dream. Conquering seven summits is not a child’s play. But I am confident of achieving this and for this, I am working day and night, thinking only about mountains and my strengths to overcome them,” said Preeti. When asked about her management and tour expenses, she said, “I am spending on my own. But it will be helpful if I get a sponsor. Mountaineering is based on expensive gear and it involves lots of money. But this year, I will be covering Frey peak in Sikkim, Aconcagua peak in Argentina and Kilimanjaro, the highest-peak of Africa, on my own expenses. Rest, I will try to carry the list forward, till the time I can,” said Preeti. Apart from being a mountaineer, she is also a marathon runner. She won Contours 10 km-run in Bangalore in 2012. “There are moments when one wants to fall flat but to overcome that challenge is the zest of life. I am doing the same, trying to live up to my dream, of attaining what I dreamt of. I want to see my children on the highest peak of the world, singing the National Anthem,” wished Preeti. |
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Rajasthani artistes cast spell
Chandigarh, August 19 The highlight of his performance was his khartal performance. His folk version of "nimbura" was one of his best presentations. The audience enjoyed the Rajasthani version of Bulle Shah, presented beautifully by the artistes. The performance ended with Rajasthani folk dance kalbelia, performed by two women dancers. The Secretary (culture), Ajoy Sharma, was the chief guest of the evening along with other senior officials of the department. Tomorrow a puppet play. "Gandhi", by puppeteer Dadi Pudumjee will be staged.
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Women need emotional support to deal with menopausal changes: Experts
Chandigarh, August 19 Dr Preeti Jindal, Senior Consultant, obstetrics and gynaecology with the hospital, said, “As women reach menopause, they need help to manage the symptoms. Along with the symptoms and heightened emotions, a woman going through menopause is likely to experience alarming physical changes such as a fast heart beat, thinning hair, skin flushing, irregular menstrual periods, and osteoporosis concerns. Menopausal symptoms include hot flashes, decreased libido, moodiness, weight gain, forgetfulness, hostility, and depression. Spouses should give emotional support to their better halves in this period and support their treatment decisions.” Jindal emphasised on the fact that women were reluctant to come forth and seek medical care, often because of the concept that physical discomforts associated with gynecological problems, menopause, and ageing were natural. Older women might not understand their unique health risks or know that screening tests could detect health problems early and that treatments were available for many specific reproductive health disorders or concerns. Jindal advised annual screening for blood sugar, cardiac, cancer and eye screening for both men and women.
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Show-cause notice to two employees
Chandigarh, August 19 The issue came to light when the Steel Authority of India (SAI) refused to issue E-1 form against the sales made by CITCO, resulting in financial loss to the corporation. “Had the SAI given its nod to issue E 1 form, CITCO would not to have pay tax. Thus the implications could run into lakhs”, said a senior CITCO official. Attributing the financial loss to procedural lapse in E-1 transactions at sales depot, CITCO is seeking recovery of the amount from the officials. Apart from the projected loss, CITCO did not withhold rebates of the customer when the corporation did not receive E-1 forms, resulting in financial implication of CST. Earlier, functioning of the sales depot had drawn flank on account of buying hot rolled (HR) coils worth around Rs. 1.13 crore. It was alleged that despite the norm of the customer having to submit 10 per cent of the cost of material to be purchased as advance, the officials did not take any advance payment.
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Technical snag hits power supply
Chandigarh, August 19 MP Singh, UT Superintending Engineer (electricity), said that there was fault in the power substation of Sector 52 due to which there was no proper power supply to the substation at Sector 34 and Sector 17. The sectors, which were receiving power supply from the substation of Sector 17 and Sector 34 faced power cuts. The power cuts were imposed to repair the fault, he added. Due to the snag, residents of 19, 21, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34 and many other areas of the city, witnessed power cuts. In Sector 19 there was no power from 4 am to 2 pm.
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I-T survey at three hospitals in P’kula
Panchkula, August 19 The search operation started in the morning by three different teams of the Income Tax Department and continued till the filling of the report. Till then, nothing was seized by the officials of the department. Sources also said that similar surveys would now be conducted regularly at different places in Panchkula.
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Special passport adalat tomorrow
Chandigarh, August 19 Records of 2010 at the Chandigarh Passport Office revealed that around 2.40 lakh applications were received by the department out of which objections were raised on around 1,000 applicants file by the department. Similarly in 2011 and 2012, on 2,000 applications respectively objections were raised by the department. To clear these cases, the department will hold a passport adalat in the coming weeks. Rakesh Agrawal, Chandigarh Regional Passport Officer, stated that the department would hold special passport adalats in the next one month and clear all these cases which had been pending for long. He said that these applicants were being given last opportunity to produce their original documents and file number receipt for the clearance of their case. He said that the department had already started issuing the letters to the applicants of 2011 and 2012 to appear in the adalat with their documents for further proceedings. The department has not been able to inform many applicants who are not residing on the address mentioned on the application. The districts which will be covered in this adalat will be SAS Nagar (Mohali), Chandigarh, Panchkula, Fatehgarh Sahib, Ropar, Bhatinda, Sangrur, Barnala, Patiala, Mansa. Ludhiana, Khanna, Jagraon, Moga. Ambala, Jind, Karnal, Kaithal, Kurukshetra, Panipat, Bhiwani, Yamuna Nagar, Hissar, Fatehabad, and Sirsa.Meanwhile, the department is also going to hold a passport mela. Agrawal said that there are three holidays on the working days in August, so the department has decided to keep the Passport Seva Kendra open on Saturday to facilitate the public.
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UT SSP deposes in corruption case
Chandigarh, August 19 Sharma was arrested for allegedly taking a bribe of Rs 5 lakh from Sukhbir Shergill, a Ludhiana resident, for not opposing the bail application after non-bailable warrants was issued against his wife, Gurveer Shergill, in the district courts here on September 6, 2012. SN Aneja, a former employee of a nationalised bank, was also arrested in the case. The two were booked under Anti-corruption Act. CBI sleuths had filed the chargesheet on January 8. During probe, it was revealed that Sharma had demanded Rs 10 lakh but later the deal was settled at Rs 5 lakh.
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No stopping car thieves in Sector 45
Chandigarh, August 19 Jappreet, a resident of Burail in Sector 45, said that someone had tried to steal his car by breaking open the windowpane. “The windowpane was broken and someone had tried to break open the lock of the car in a bid to steal it”, he stated. Sukbir Singh, a Burail resident, said the miscreants also opened his MUV, however, nothing was stolen from the vehicle. “The accused opened the vehicle without breaking the windowpane”, he stated. Residents stated that the miscreants had tried to open several other vehicles also parked in the locality. The police was informed about the incident and a probe had begun.
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Victim of mistaken identity
Mohali, August 19 The villagers mistook him for a member of Kala Kachha gang, he said. Station house officer of the Balongi police station Gurjit Singh said, "The accused has been identified as Ramesh Vishwa (31) and he hails from Odisha. The man told the police that he was a labourer at Gandhinagar (Gujarat) and was brought to Delhi by a contractor who then took him to Punjab," said Gurjit Singh. Vishwa said his bag and mobile phone were snatched by the contractor. Vishwa, who was nabbed by the residents in the wee hours, claimed that he did not even know the name of the place. He claimed that he had come to Punjab for the first time and did not know anything about the state. "The contractor took us to some place last night," stated Vishwa. He was thrashed black and blue by the villagers, who were on a 'thikri pehra' following rumours of the gang being active in the area. "We have already registered a case against Vishwa and his accomplices. He is recuperating at the Civil Hospital, Kharar. We will take him into custody once he is discharged from the hospital," said the SHO.
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Reshuffle in UT Admn likely
Chandigarh, August 19 Amandeep Kaur, who is currently holding the charge of Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM south) and Secretary of the Red Cross society had recently shot off a letter to the senior UT officials against the functioning style of the UT Deputy Commissioner, Mohammad Shayin. She had accused DC Mohammad Shayin of interfering in her functioning by ordering raids at her office without valid reasons. She had sought transfer from her present department. The UT Administrator, Shivraj Patil, also held a meeting with the officials of the administration to discuss the issue of reshuffling. Sources revealed that there would be major reshuffling in the UT Administration in a day or two. Recently, Punjab Cadre IAS officer, DK Tiwari, and HCS officer, Lalit Siwach, was relieved by the UT Administration.
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Suman case: Commission accepts plea against GMCH-16
Chandigarh, August 19 Pankaj Chandgothia, counsel for the family, contended that earlier the commission had directed the GMSH and its three doctors Kirti Sood, Navdeep Kaur and Manpreet Kaur to pay Rs 4 lakh as compensation and Rs 50,000 as legal cost. The payment was to be made within one month, failing which the penal interest at the rate of 12 per cent per annum was to be paid. The GMSH was also directed to bear the burden Suman's treatment for life. Chandgothia pointed out that the had paid Rs 1 lakh as compensation and Rs 12,500 as legal costs. Suman had lost her baby due to wrong transfusion of blood at the hospital.
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Chandigarh, August 19 They had gone on work at the PGIMER. The police has ruled out any foul play in the case. — TNS
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‘Evaluation system still in its infancy’
Chandigarh, August 19 He, however, said that any new system had problems in its initial years of implementation and the CCE was no exception. He said, “When teachers themselves are the product of the old system, it will take time to adjust to the new changes introduced under the system.” “But, I am happy that things have started moving towards the right direction. If we compare the implementation of the system with the time when it began three years ago, we are in a much more comfortable situation," said Vineet Joshi. "Soon the board will release the revised CCE manuel for teachers' help," he added. “The board is confident that the system will run smoothly in the next one-and-half-years, for which more teacher training programme are in the pipeline," he said. When asked how the board produced a glut of students with 10 CGPA this year, CBSE chairman said no school was found exaggerating its performance so far. "We have a full-proof system at the district level and schools are now being asked to submit their evidence of assessment to the local CBSE officials.," he said. He further added that the school based and board based exams were a necessity as there were several state boards in India that enrol students in class XI on the basis of marks than the grading system. “There ia a need of improvements in the school-based system for which our supervisory system at the district level will keep a proper check on schools," he said He said the board had focused on speaking and listening skills for which 10 per cent weightage would be added in the formative assessment grades from this session. “While the board has made efforts to increase the reading habits of students, listening and speaking skills are equally important for which we have tied up with Trinity College, which will train our master resource persons who will further train teachers,” he said. Meanwhile, On the JEE’s controversial normalisation process Joshi said, "the system was universally accepted and had no problem. We must understand that there is no other system in place to compare the absolute percentage of one state board with other state boards.”
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NSUI releases handbook for PU students
Chandigarh, August 19 The handbook has information regarding ragging, the Right to Information (RTI) Act and the Right to Education (RTE). NSUI leader Manoj Lubana said through the handbook they wanted to inform students about their rights and different scholarships. “Apart from the phone numbers of the Dean Student Welfare (DSW), we have also provided the phone numbers of all hostel wardens in the handbook," he said. —TNS
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PUSU holds protest outside VC’s office
Chandigarh, August 19 Yadwinder Singh Dhaliwal, president of the PUSU, said the first-year students who could not meet the minimum requirement to get promoted to the second year were demanding that reappear exams should be held soon so that they could fulfil the set requirement and get promoted to the next year. Hostel wardens Yograj Angrish and Harish Kumar arrived at the scene to pacify the agitating students. "The PU authorities have assured that a committee will be formed to look into our demand," a PUSU leader said.
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Skit presented
Kids ‘R’ Kids School, Sector 42, Chandigarh, demonstrated the importance of Raksha Bandhan in our folklore and tradition by enacting a skit, “Goddess Lakshmi and King Bali” today. The children learned about the love between brothers and sisters through a rakhi-decoration activity. They stressed on the need of platonic love in the daily life and the immense responsibility that the festival symbolises. Environment conservation
The Sky School, Panchkula, celebrated Raksha Bandhan in a unique way this year by tying rakhis on trees and resolving to protect and conserve the environment. Students of Kindergarten and primary classes made sparkling rakhis during their classes. School principal Santosh Bhandari said celebrating the festivals in the schools was necessary as it helped in teaching students about the cultural values. Raksha Bandhan
Students of Blue Bird High School celebrated Raksha Bandhan with great enthusiasm. A special assembly was organised by the junior wing students. The students recited poems on brother-sister relationship. A group of children mesmerised everyone by singing songs. The primary wing also made colourful rakhies. Principal Vandana Bhatnagar urged them students to save the girl child. NSS wing launched
Bhavan Vidyalaya, Sector 27, Chandigarh, launched the NSS wing of the school. Bikram Rana, Regional Director, NSS, Chandigarh region, inaugurated the NSS wing. Bikram Rana called upon the NSS volunteers to work for the betterment of society. A short documentary was also screened for the students. —TNS
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Despite reports of meals being prepared in unhygienic conditions, the officials concerned have failed to carry out inspection in schools. 
The police said the drivers of a Maruti Swift (CH-01-AJ-5523) and a Fortuner (PB-05-U-0018) tried to save the cyclist but lost control over the vehicles. The cyclist died on the spot, while the occupants of the Swift suffered injuries. The driver of the Fortuner fled the scene, leaving his vehicle behind. 
The designer rakhis can be used for other purposes as well. Those is great demand are the rakhis studded with American diamonds which later can be used as pendants, designer diyas, frames of glares which can be later used as pens.
