Bathinda, August 28
Mehna Chowk resident Ranjit Kaur had been bearing with her neighbours for the past many years. On August 27, she called the police on the newly launched Punjab police helpline 181. Ranjit Kaur's was the first genuine case to be addressed in the red category (issues to be attended within 24 hours) of calls in the district.

Launched on August 23 by Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal at Mohali, the helpline has seen 11 calls generated from Bathinda, of which two were found to be fake ones. The callers included four women and seven men.

"Within 15 minutes, the police team from kotwali was at my doorstep," said Ranjit Kaur, who is a widow and resides in the Mehna Chowk area with her two grown- up children.

Within an hour the matter was resolved and Ranjit Kaur received feedback calls to know if she was satisfied with the action taken by the police.

"This is the importance of 181, which has the facility of tracking feedback of the caller. It ensures that the complaint has been addressed to the satisfaction of the caller. Even the police has to report about the action taken on a complaint," said SSP Ravcharan Singh Brar.

Under the project, a centralised office has been established at Mohali. Calls are diverted to the Mohali centre. The content of the call and the number from where it originated is immediately sent to the SSP concerned as well as the police officials designated as R1 and R2 officers (R stand for response).

In case of Bathinda, the matter is forwarded to SSP Ravcharan Singh Brar, SP (headquarter) Jasvir Singh designated as the R1 and DSP (headquarter) Jagdish Kumar Bishnoi designated as the R2 officer.

The Bathinda police has set up a dedicated cell manned by seven people to run the helpline cell. SSP Brar said the helpline would prove to be a deterrent to anti-social elements.

"It would also stem out the rot in the system as few police officials take sides with the accused. People, even from the remotest areas, can lodge their complaint just from their phones," he added.

Though the helpline was launched on August 23, the Bathinda police started getting calls from August 25. Besides reporting fresh incidents, the people are also calling up to know about action taken in old cases. 

Bathinda, August 28
A meeting of the members of the Unaided Staff of Aided Schools Front, Punjab, was convened at Teachers' Home here today. The meeting was held under the presidentship of the district vice-president of the union, Harpreet Singh Vandar.

He shared that a march was taken out from Rama Mandi to Talwandi Sabo under the banner 'Lok Jagao, Aided School Bachao'. He added that a similar march will be taken out from Kotshamir to Bathinda.

He also added that as a way of expressing its dissatisfaction over the way the state government was dealing with the demands of the unaided staff of the aided schools, the staff members will observe September 5, Teachers' Day, as a black day.

He further added that if the state government failed to heed their demands, they would intensify their 'Lok Jagao, Aided School Bachao' rallies. 

Bathinda, August 28
In the wake of acute shortage of rooms at Government Rajindra College, several classes are being held in the open. Vijay Goyal, principal of the college, said he could do little about it as there was a shortage of rooms on the campus. "We are short of 10 rooms. Six of our rooms, which could have been used as classrooms, are being used as library. As soon as the new library is complete, these rooms will be free to be used as classrooms .

"Only those lectures are being conducted in the open for which a blackboard is not required," the principal said. He also added that conducting classes under the tress was an old practice, which he had been seeing from the time he came to the college.

Notably, one of the two green rooms attached to the auditorium of the college, has been given to the economics department to be used as a classroom. Meanwhile, the student and the teacher community stood divided on the issue of studying in the open. "This is the difference between studying in a government college and a private college. Everyone says that private colleges charge hefty fee, but then, they don't ask the students to sit in the open and attend classes," said Rachna Sharma, a student of the college.

Another student, Sumit Awasthi, said, "The grass has grown taller due to the rains and instead of concentrating on lectures, the students are busy fanning themselves with their notebooks. The risk of being bitten by some insect looms large."

A teacher said, "The condition inside the classrooms is no different For the strength of 100 students, there are only two fans in rooms. On the day when students are present in full strength, it id difficult to them."

Interestingly, the college had recently received a grant of Rs 53 lakh to upgrade the infrastructure of the college, but the work is yet to begin. "We had prepared a list of works that need to be done in the college and handed it over to the Public Works Department. Now, it is for the department to begin the work. As far as the problem of fans is concerned, I will take up the matter in the PTA meeting, which is scheduled to take place on August 31," the principal said. 

Bathinda, August 28
A city resident is running from pillar to post to get compensation for his car that allegedly caught fire while parked in front of his house. Ashok Kumar, a resident of street number 2, Arya Nagar, had bought Hyundai i20 car from Raja Motors in March, 2011. The car got completely damaged in the fire and fire tenders were called to douse the flames.

Ashok Kumar said when he took the car to Raja Motors, he was assured that 50 per cent compensation from the insurance company and another 50 per cent from the agency would be paid. Raja Motors officials said a team of Hyundai from Chandigarh would inspect the vehicle and the compensation would be paid thereafter. The Raja Motors officials asked Ashok Kumar to come after 15 days.

“However, when I went after 15 days and met the Chandigarh team, they refused to pay the compensation. The company officials also misbehaved with me, of which I lodged a formal complaint with the company through an e-mail,” he said.

Meanwhile, Raja Motors official Charanjit Singh said Ashok Kumar had installed a local-made amplifier in his car ans as per the report of the team, short-circuit in amplifier was responsible for the fire and subsequent damage.—TNS 

Bathinda, August 28
The Bathinda police claimed to solve Oriya Basti murder case with the arrest of accused Raju Kumar, a resident of the same colony. Addressing mediapersons here today, ASP Alka Meena said Raju had killed Dhanpat aka Mantri as he had illicit relation with Raju’s wife. Dhanpat was found murdered at his residence on August 21.

Alka Meena said Raju, a native of Balrampura in Uttar Pradesh, had come to Bathinda about four years ago with his wife and four children. Raju used to work at a local hotel. Few months ago before the incident, he met Dhanpat.

”Dhanpat had offered Raju to stay in his jhuggi free of cost. When Raju shifted to the jhuggi, Dhanpat and Raju’s wife Lajawanti developed illicit relations,” said Meena.

When Raju became aware of the affair, he immediately left his accommodation and started living at the other end of the colony. However, Lajawanti started frequenting Dhanpat’s house at odd hours.

On August 21, Raju decided to kill Dhanpat. He told his wife that he was going to hotel and would not be able to return at night as there was a party at the hotel. Instead of going to hotel, he kept on loitering around and sat outside Dhanpat’s jhuggi, waiting with a kappa (an iron made weapon) to kill him.

On finding Dhanpat and his wife in a compromising position that night, Raju killed Dhanpat with the kappa. He threatened Lajawanti to remain quiet. Later, Raju disposed off the weapon and his blood-stained clothes in shrubs at a secluded spot in the Oriya Basti.

The police arrested Raju from the Bir Talab area and recovered the weapon as well as blood-stained clothes.

ASP Alka Meena said a case could be registered against Lajawanti under Section 201 of the IPC for concealing the facts and not informing the police about the murder. 

Bathinda, August 28
The two-day training programme on conducting elections concluded here on Tuesday

Divisional Commissioner VK Sharma presided over the concluding session of the training programme that concentrated on election related issues and ways to hold free and fair elections.

The officials trained at this two-day workshop are now master trainers who will train their subordinate staff on the issue. DC Bathinda Kamal Kishore Yadav, DC Mansa Amit Dhaka, DC Faridkot Ravi Bhagat, DC Fazilka Basant Garg, DC Moga Arshdeep Singh Thind, ADC (Development) Mohammad Tayyab, ADC (D) Rajiv Prashar, ADC Mansa Varinder Sharma, ADC Fazilka Vipal Ujjwal¸ ADC Ferozepur Sonali Giri and other officials present have been trained as master trainers.

Addressing the trainees, Divisional Commissioner VK Sharma said it was important for every official to be well versed with the guidelines on holding elections. He also informed about the new rules and regulations of the Election Commission of India. He added that any suggestion for the election procedure should be e-mailed to the election commission in two days.

Bathinda DC KK Yadav said sharing of experiences related to elections has helped the trainees understand important issues. DC Mansa Amit Dhaka gave a lecture on safety plan to be implemented during the election procedure.

The trainees were delivered lectures on election expenses, videography, accounts, usage of electronic voting machines (EVM), formation of media certification and monitoring committee, monitoring paid news, training of election staff, role of block level officers (BLOs), meeting representatives of political parties, to inform them about the poll procedures, arrangements at the counting centre and the duties of DEOs and returning officers.

Bathinda, August 28
SSD Girls' College today contributed Rs 16,000 to the Prime Minister's Relief Fund for the victims of the Uttarakhand tragedy. The amount was collected by the NSS volunteers and teachers of the college.

Principal of the college Parminder Kaur Tanghi and NSS programme officer Usha Sharma handed over the cheque to the president of the college, Nandlal Garg.

Garg praised the students for extending a helping hand and doing their bit towards the relief operations in Uttarakhand. 

Bathinda, August 28
A meeting of the executive council members of the Punjabi Sahitya Sabha, Bathinda, was convened today under the presidentship of Gurdev Khokhar at Teachers' Home here today.

During the meeting, it was decided that the Punjabi Sahitya Sabha, in association with the Sahitya Akademi Punjab, will organised a seminar on September 29. The theme of the seminar will be 'Malwai Sahitya: Sarvekhan Te Mulankan'.

Among others who attended the meeting were Dr Labh Singh Khiva, Jagmohan Kaushal, Dr Ravinder Sandhu, Ranvir Rana, Mangat Kuljind, Sukhdarshan Garg, Jaspal Mankhera, Jarnail Singh, Ranjit Gaurav and Amarjit Singh Jeet. 

Bathinda, August 28
The student body, AART, of the Architecture Department, Giani Zail Singh Punjab Technical University Campus, Bathinda, organised a heritage walk for the students on August 24. The heritage walk was organised to show the students the rich cultural traditions of the Malwa region that stands ignored today.

About 40 students from the final, third and second year of went for the heritage walk. They were accompanied by two faculty members. Dr Subhash Parihar, historian and an expert on Mughal architecture of North India, was invited to accompany the students. He is a professor of archaeology at the Central University of Punjab, Bathinda.

The walk commenced from a rest house built during the 16th century in Kotkapura. The circular building had traces of Gothic architecture. Dr Parihar questioned the students on various elements of the period like the pointed arches and pilasters used in the building.

The group then moved on to the gurudwara in Kotkapura, built by the last ruler of the Faridkot state. The gurudwara was completed in the year 1937. The building had an octagonal plan and a modernist touch to it. The next and the last building in Kotkapura was a Haveli depicting the elements of vernacular architecture of the region. The Haveli is still inhabited by the residents there.

The walk then progressed to Faridkot. The history of the Faridkot district pertaining to the ancient period has been traced to the Indus valley civilization. The most important building of Faridkot is the judicial court complex that was completed in 1934. The building has an imposing facade and is believed to have been designed by a German architect.

The students were allowed to see the double dome from the inside, a type of construction popular after the 15th century. Students asked various questions on the design of the complex and Dr Parihar provided the answers. He also threw light on the various political, social, and economic aspects of the growth of various monuments in the region. The students were enriched with the knowledge and thanked Dr Parihar.

Prof Bhupinder Pal Singh Dhot, head of the Department of Architecture at PTU GZS campus, thanked him for enlightening the students. 

Bathinda, August 28
Deputy Commissioner, Bathinda, Kamal Kishore Yadav will hold sangat darshan on September 3 in the meeting hall of the District Administrative Complex (DAC).

The sangat darshan program will be held from 10 am to 1 pm. All kinds of problems related to the municipal corporation, municipal councils and development works will be taken up at the event.

The Deputy Commissioner holds sangat darshan on the first day of every month. As September 1 is a holiday, the event has been scheduled for September 3.

Bathinda, August 28
The Punjab State Minorities Commission will listen to the grievances of the minority communities on August 30.

Deputy Commissioner Kamal Kishore Yadav said members of the commission, Hamid Masih and Albert Dua, will listen to the problems at the Field Hostel in the Thermal Colony at 11 am.

Deputy Commissioner KK Yadav appealed to the people belonging to the minority communities to bring up their problems and meet the members of the commission so that their problems can be redressed.

Bathinda, August 28
Members of the District Handball Association convened a meeting at the Teachers' Home here today.

The agenda of the meeting was to discuss the arrangements for the state-level Junior Handball Championship to be held in the city from August 31 to September 2. The championship is being organised by the Handball Association, Punjab. Addressing the gathering, the head of the District Handball Association, Ravinder Singh Gill, said all the arrangements for the championship were in place.

He also assured everyone that satisfactory arrangements had been made for the accommodation of the handball teams participating in the event.

The championship which is being conducted under the supervision of the head and secretary of the Handball Association, Punjab, Tejinderpal Singh Sidhu and Amanvir Singh, respectively, will be held at St Xavier's School. While the chairperson of the Zila Parishad, Gurpreet Singh Maluka will inaugurate the championship, former Mayor of Bathinda, Baljit Singh Birbehman will be present during the awards ceremony.

Also present at the meeting were Paramjit Singh Sekhon, Karamjit Singh Ghudda, Mandeep Kaur, Gurpreet Singh Nathana, Ramandip Singh Gill, Devinder Singh, Surjit Singh, Gurtej Singh Sidhu, Amritpal Singh Walahan and other members of the association.

Bathinda, August 28
As many as 68 aspirants appeared for the selection trials for the Under-15 district girls' hockey team. The trials were conducted at the AstroTurf ground of the Government Rajindra College.

An 18-member team was constituted by the end of the trials. Rajni Mann has been chosen to lead the team. All the members of the team are born on or after Jaunary 1, 1998.

The team will first participate in the state-level Under-15 girls' hockey championship to be held at Bassi Pathana in Fatehgarh Sahib and then in the national level tournament which is also to be held in Bassi Pathana.

The tournaments are being conducted by the Patiala Union Hockey Association on August 30-31 and September 1.

Baljit Kaur of the Punjab Sports Wing, Badal, Gurwinder Kaur of the Sports School, Ghudda, Charanjit Singh of the Punjab Police and Rajwant Mann, hockey coach of the Punjab Sports Department, were present during the trials and chose the team.

An exhibition match will be played between the selected team and those undergoing training at the AstroTurf ground. The match will be played on Thursday.

It may be mentioned that the AstroTurf surface is basically a synthetic surface and the main aim behind laying it is to avoid the high cost of preparing a natural surface.

In hockey, the advent of AstroTurf coincided with the decline of glory for India in global competitions and the rise of the European teams.