Machiwara/Koom Kalan, September 29
Thousands of local farmers today held a lok panchayat and blocked traffic on the Koom Kalan road in protest against the threats of their eviction from land which they had made fertile with their hard work.

The workers of different political parties as well as farmers' associations participated in the protest besides a number of women. The protesters warned that they would intensify their struggle to save the farmers facing eviction threat and would go to the extent of taking the legal route to rescue them.

The speakers alleged that the farmers and labourers of the area had been cultivating this infertile land for a long time and had turned it into fertile fields with their hard work. But now the state government was trying to evict these farmers from their land. It is an injustice to them and their families.

They alleged that several families depended on this land to fend their families but now they were served eviction notices. The speakers vowed to fight for the farmers of the area till they were given the ownership rights of the land.

Former MLA Tarsem Jodhan, Chairman of Budhewal Sugar Mill Harinder Singh Lakhowal, BKU leader Sudagar Singh Ghudani, Congress leader Karnail Singh Kally, Amarnath Koom Kalan and other leaders expressed their solidarity with the struggling farmers.

Ludhiana, September 29
Owing to the lack of funds under the Centre-sponsored scheme, Panchayat Yuva Krida Aur Khel Abhiyan (PYKKA), the Sports Department has failed to conduct the block and inter-block (district)-level tournaments of rural games.

The sports department is going to organise the Punjab rural games for boys from October 18 to 20 in Ludhiana. Now, the department has selected players for the district teams by conducting trials instead of competitions.

Under the PYKKA scheme, block, district, state and national-level competitions are organised to encourage sporting talents.

Last year, some districts had reportedly failed to submit the fund utilisation certificates, which led to the suspension of release of funds.

"The Punjab Government releases funds to organise only kabaddi matches. The PYKKA scheme was a big hope for rural sportsmen as it used to frequently release funds to uplift sports at the grassroots level. It is unfortunate if PYKKA has stopped the release of funds," said a coach at Raikot.

Kartar Singh, District Sports Officer, said: "We are going to host Punjab rural games for boys, under 16. The Central Government has not released funds for the block and district-level tournaments under PYKKA, so we selected the players".

Ludhiana, September 29
Following yesterday's incidents of pickpocketing at Lord Mahavir Civil Hospital during the world's largest cancer screening camp, the Health Department remained extra vigilant today and deployed its own employees to keep a watch on miscreants. Organised by the Government of Punjab in collaboration with Max India Foundation and Max Healthcare, the camp concluded today. More than 300 patients visited the camp on the second day.

Civil Surgeon Subhash Batta said: "We received as many as 310 patients today in this mega cancer detection camp. To avoid any incident of pickpocketing, we deployed our own employees who kept a strict vigil on all visitors."

Yesterday, pickpockets stole wallets of some attendants and ASHA workers who were standing in a queue. Assistant Civil Surgeon Kaushal Saini said: "Late last evening, we caught hold of a suspected pickpocket (a woman) and let her go after issuing her a warning. In this two-day camp, we received 720 confirmed and suspected cancer patients. We conducted 46 FNAC tests, 24 PAP Smear, 71 ultrasound and 92 X-Ray tests."

In a cancer detection survey conducted by the Health Department last year, 5,811 suspected cancer patients were identified. Of them, 552 didn't come for preliminary investigations. Dr saini said: "But, in this two-day camp, of 552 old suspected patients, we received 527. As many as 148 new suspected patients also visited the camp."

On both these days, the suspected as well as confirmed cancer patients were served meals by an NGO, Aan Jal Sewa Trust.

Ludhiana, September 29
Cooks and helpers, working under the Mid-Day Scheme in Punjab, had not been paid salaries since February 2013. Sore over the apathetic attitude of government in redressing their grievances, the workers, at last, approached trade unions to intervene.

Hundreds of cooks and workers of mid-day meals, from all over Punjab held a protest against state government at Chatar Singh Park, here today. The cooks were supported by the leaders of INTUC. Suresh Sood, general secretary, district INTUC council, said the cooks and helpers working under Mid-Day Meal Scheme in Punjab were an exploited lot. He said though Central Government had sanctioned the wages of Rs 5,764 for these cooks but state government was paying them a meager salary of Rs 1,200 per month.

"How can they survive in such meager salary in the present times? As if this was not enough, cooks and helpers in Punjab had not been paid salaries for the past eight months. They are all poor and needy persons, who need wages to meet their both ends but state government seems least bothered to release the salaries of such needy persons. We are with them, in case government fails to meet their demands, we will support them in their agitation," said Sood.

There are about 70,000 cooks and workers, working under Mid-Day Meal Scheme in Punjab and they perform duties for more than 12 hours.

Ludhiana, September 29
Over 24,400 new voters have filled the forms in the district in last 20 days during the amendment procedure of the electoral rolls being carried out following the directions of the Election Commission of India.

Role Observer-cum-Commissioner Patiala Division AS Pannu visited the city to get the feedback on the work being done on the corrections regarding voters' list today. He expressed satisfaction over the progress of the work and thanked the representatives from various political parties for extending their cooperation.

The Divisional Commissioner was chairing a meeting of the higher officials, District Election Officer, representatives from political parties and sector officers on electoral rolls at Bachat Bhawan today. Pannu asked the officials to ensure that none, above the age of 18 years, was left without registering his/her name in the voters' list. He motivated the representatives from various parties to encourage maximum youths (above 18 years) to get their voter cards made at the earliest. He also gave a patient hearing to the complaints filed by the representatives and asked Deputy Commissioner Rajat Aggarwal that the issue of those having wrong names in the voters' list be brought to the notice of Election Commission and necessary corrections be made.

Rajat Aggarwal said from September 5 to September 27, over 24,400 new voters had filled the forms. The DC said that total 2,623 polling booths were established and booth-level officers were deputed at these booths for making necessary amendments in voters' lists. He asked the officials to ensure that names were cut from the voting lists as per the law. He assured the Commissioner that negligence by officials would not be tolerated in the ongoing process of making amendments.

Jagdev Singh Gohalwaria from Shiromani Akali Dal, however, brought it to the notice of the Divisional Commissioner that certain names of his family members were not in the voters' list and officials were asked to find why their names were cut. But matter came to an end as all the names were there in the list and the complainant was not aware about it.

Ludhiana, September 29
An alert man found his stolen motorcycle and helped the police in identifying a vehicle-lifter gang.

On September 12, some unidentified persons stole a motorcycle (bearing registration number PB-10-CB-5485) of Gurdeep Singh, a resident of Partap Singh village, while he was visiting the Mini-Secretariat.

Gurdeep said he had parked his motorcycle near Friends Regency. He told the police that when he returned, he was shocked to find his vehicle missing.

However, Gurdeep did not lose heart. He reported the matter to the police and individually kept looking for his vehicle.

He visited several areas where motorcycles are dissembled. Besides, he also kept visiting vehicle markets to find out whether his motorcycle had been sold on fake documents or not. But, there was no clue about his stolen vehicle. Everyday, he used to visit different places for locating his motorcycle.

On September 28, he visited the police lines to locate his motorcycle in the junk yard. Luckily, Gurdeep found his two-wheeler there. He told the traffic policemen that the motorcycle belonged to him.

The policemen told him that the vehicle was impounded as it was involved in an accident.

Gurdeep showed the documents and other relevant details of the bike to the police. He also brought the matter to the notice of Ranjit Singh, SHO, Division No. 8 Police Station.

Ranjit Singh launched a probe into the matter. Challan details were collected. Soon, the police came to know that three persons, identified as Klwinder Singh, Gurinderjit Singh and Butta Singh from Alliwal village in Phillaur, were notorious vehicle lifters.

After stealing the motorcycle, the trio met with an accident. Later, they were let off and their details were jotted down by the police.

Revealing the details to the police proved to be their undoing. The police has registered a case of theft against the trio and launched a hunt to nab them.

Ludhiana, September 29
To mark the World Heart Day, different hospitals of the city organised numerous events.

SPS Apollo Hospital organised Apollo Dil ki Daud - a mini marathon at Guru Nanak Stadium. Large number of people including senior citizens, patients, doctors and hospital associates participated in the marathon.

All participants were felicitated with participation certificates, attractive prizes and medals. Jugdiep Singh, managing director, SPS Apollo Hospitals also thanked the police authorities, district administration, sports authority and municipal corporation for their support and cooperation in making the marathon successful.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr JS Grewal, senior consultant, Department of Interventional Cardiology, SPS Apollo Hospitals said “Cardiovascular diseases are the world’s largest killers, claiming 17.3 million lives a year. Cardio vascular diseases have assumed epidemic proportions in India with 10% of the adult population affected by it”. Dr Grewal reiterated the importance of keeping the heart healthy through a disciplined lifestyle including good, balanced diets and regular exercise.

While Pancham Hospital organised a free heart check-up camp under the surveillance of chief cardiologist Dr RP Singh and Dr AK Chaudhary. More than 300 patients were examined during the camp.

“The unhealthy lifestyle of the youth today is the major cause of this catastrophe. Our youngsters are getting engulfed by drugs, alcohol and unhealthy eating habits, which is slowly but continuously destroying their health. Spreading awareness and immediate consultation are the need of the hour,” said Dr RP Singh, MD & Chief Cardiologist, Pancham Hospitals.

While a free medical & heart check-up camp was organised by Hero DMC Heart Institute in association with RK Arya College, Nawanshahr at the college premises. Dr GS Wander, chief cardiologist & coordinator, HDHI and Dr Rakendra exmained around 200 patients. RG Stone Super Specialty Hospital organised a special camp and consultation programme. More than 100 patients were benefited with this camp. Free ECG and other tests were conducted.

Dr Bhim Sen Bansal, CMDE of RG Stone Hospital said, “In case of severe chest pain being reported by the patient the care takers should give him a tablet of Disprin and Sobetrate followed by immediate rush to a hospital.

Mandi Ahmedgarh, September 29
Dr Indu, Deputy Commissioner, Sangrur, aims at roping in office-bearers and activists of social, religious and educational organisations for getting government welfare schemes implemented in letter and in spirit. More privileged groups and families will be mobilised to help members of the lower strata of society.

Realising that delay breeds corruption, the administrator, known for her bold methodology of working, is poised to monitor accountability for rank and file in every office so that the public does not feel harassed.

“As an administrator of the district, it becomes my prime duty to ensure that the residents get their dues and all officials come true to their expectations,” said Indu, maintaining that the strategy would be conveyed to all concerned when she assumes her duty on Monday.

Recollecting the cooperation extended by the residents of the area towards achieving her targets during her last tenure as the Malerkotla SDM, Indu said she was able to bring social reforms only due to the active involvement of office-bearers of certain organisations.

Constituents of various organisations felt rejuvenated on posting of Dr Indu as the administrator of the district.

Tarsem Garg and Bimal Sharma, office-bearers of the Eco Club, said during her earlier stay as the head of the Malerkotla sub-division, Dr Indu had succeeded in involving a majority of the social and religious organisations in various projects undertaken by the civil administration from time to time.

Save environment projects, marriages of poor girls, medical camps, de-addiction camps, adult education and crusade against social evils were cited as major projects launched by various organisations following persuasion by Dr Indu. — OC

Ludhiana, September 29
Many weeks have passed but people are still waiting for the prices of vegetables to come down. Onion is still priced between Rs 50 and Rs 60, while tomato prices stand at Rs 40.

“We have come to know that export order of onions had arrived and the prices will come down, but nothing of that sorts happened. Onion is still priced at Rs 60 per kg, and it seems to remain same for the coming months as well,” said Ginni, a homemaker from South City.

Housewives are finding it difficult to adjust the household budget. “With the prices of vegetables and fruits increasing like anything, I am finding it difficult to adjust the household budget within the given amount of money. As a result, I have omitted some vegetables and fruits from my list,” said another homemaker for Kitchlu Nagar.

“I spend nearly Rs 7,000 to Rs 8,000 per month on fruits and vegetables, and the budget of the same has been increasing over the couple of months,” said Shrishti Aggarwal from Aggar Nagar. — TNS

A bird lover with her parrot in a park in Ludhiana. Tribune photo: Inderjeet Verma

On one hand, civic administration has launched a drive to remove all sign boards, hoardings and unipoles from all parts of the city, after expiry of the advertisement contract, and a new long-term advertisement policy is in process of being formulated as per the guidelines of Punjab government, while on the other hand, huge hoardings and billboards that have been put up at the behest of senior functionaries of the ruling coalition (SAD-BJP) are dotting the city. Giving two hoots to the MC action against illegal hoardings, supporters of Punjab Cabinet Minister Bikram Singh Majithia have installed sign boards for the minister's rally in the city on Sunday. Not to be left behind, some other billboards put up by BJP activists hail the appointment of Rajinder Bhandari as vice-chairman of Punjab State Planning Board, while a few more announce a youth awareness rally in memory of Swami Vivekanand. Interestingly, majority of these hoardings carry photographs of Majithia, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, his son and deputy chief minister Sukhbir Badal, district president of BJP Parveen Bansal and other cabinet ministers and even city mayor Harcharan Singh Gohalwaria to ensure that these "illegal" boards are not removed by the MC employees in the course of ongoing drive.

Senior Badal complex

For more than two and half hours before Deputy CM was to arrive in the city to attend a function recently. Every speaker making any reference to him would go 'Punjab de Deputy CM Sukhbir Badal' and 'Shiromani Akali Dal de Pardhan Sukhbir Badal'. Not once did any of the speaker said Badal saab or Sukhbir Badal ji, his designation was mentioned without fail every time his name was mentioned. A listener in the audience said this is called the 'senior-Badal-complex'. His designation is mentioned so that his name is not confused with CM Parkash Singh Badal, he said. Another listener laughed saying that people are very forgetful of him, so his introduction has to be made every time.

Impressive invitation

We usually get invitations for coverage for one event or the other from different social, religious, political and other organisations. Everyone has its own style of invitation. A few days ago we got an invitation from Senior Citizens Welfare Association, Urban Estate. President of the NGO personally came for invitation. The elderly person handed over an invitation card for the coverage of Senior Citizen Day. The card was simple but it reflected affection of the Association as a rose flower was tucked on it. With all requests the office bearer said, "Please do come". His etiquette impressed all present there. Long live senior citizens!

Obey the orders

During a meeting, on paddy procurement at Bachat Bhawan, yesterday, DC Rajat Aggarwal asked the officials to prepare well in time to avoid last minute panic; still one of the official continuously maintained that preparations will be done within first week of October. Since the procurement starts from October 1, DC again politely asked the person concerned to make arrangements before procurement the official again said that within a week arrangements will be made. Having no other option, the newly appointed DC sternly summed up in just one sentence, "Then, we must ask the government not to send us letters as we are not prepared". The official had no answer but to say, "Arrangements will be made within time, sir".

Contributed by Kuldip Bhatia, Gurvinder Singh, Anupam Bhagria and Shivani Bhakoo.

Ludhiana September 29
Department of Livestock Products Technology at Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (GADVASU) has developed the edible films to wrap the food by incorporating degradable components which further has nutritive value.

According to the Scientists at GADVASU, the development of edible nutritive films from animal industry byproducts is one of novel approach to enhance the nutritive value of food products and environmental safety. Two students of Masters of Veterinary Sciences (M.VSc), Richa Sharma and Mohan Jairath, developed this film under the guidance of Dr Manish Chatli.

The students claim that bioactive films have variety of advantages such as biodegradable, edibility, biocompatibility, aesthetic appearance and barrier properties against oxygen and physical stress. Moreover, these can also be developed as muscle specific, product specific or piece specific. Dr Manish Chatli, professor cum head of department of Livestock Products Technology said. The storage life of livestock products is very short.

The department has developed films from many materials such as whey proteins (milk), chitosan (fish) and starch (potato). Now, GADVASU is interested to transfer the technology to the industry for its commercial exploitation.

Mandi Ahmedgarh, September 29
National Social Service wing of Shanti Tara Girls College, Akbarpur Chhanna, vowed to undertake comprehensive improvement of the Sohian village and educate residents of the area about causes and consequences of social evils including female feticide, dowry system, drug addiction and illiteracy.

Oath was taken in response to a call made by Punjab Vidhan Sabha Speaker Charanjit Singh Atwal who inaugurated the social welfare camp being held at the Sohian village, near here.

The inaugural session was presided over by principal Ajay Batra and member SGPC Raghbir Singh Saharanmajra was the guest of honour.

Charan Preet Singh Dua and Lakashdeep Sharda, conveners of the project, said volunteers were enthusiastic about contributing in a movement that according to organisers would have an everlasting effect.

Besides, undertaking cleaning of streets and drains, the volunteers persuaded womenfolk to maintain hygienic environment at their homes and surroundings.

The organisers felicitated Atwal for his contribution.

Ludhiana, September 29
A postage stamp on noted Hindi poet and writer Pratap Narayan Mishra was released by the Postal Department at a city post office yesterday.

He was born in UP in 1856. He was prolific in Sankrit, English, Urdu and Bengali. His contribution lies in more than 50 books he wrote.

"I am a great admirer of poet Mishra. His poems are inspiring and great contribution to Hindi literature," said Kapil, a resident.

Mandi Ahmedgarh, September 29
Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes Welfare Minister Gulzar Singh Ranike exhorted rural youths to raise their standard of living by seeking self employment through various schemes being launched by the government.

While addressing a meeting of activists of scheduled caste and backward classes wing of the SAD, at Gurdwara Manji Sahib Alamgir Ranike said that the SAD-BJP had brought unprecedented development for lower strata of society, including scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, backward classes and economically weaker sections.

Recounting special schemes launched by the government for weaker sections, Ranike claimed that the state government had earmarked crores of rupees for construction of memorials of Bhai Lalo Ji at Sangrur), Rang Rete Guru Ke Bete Baba Jiwan Singh at Anandpur Sahib) and Bhagwan Shree Balmiki at Amritsar.

Exhorting rural youths to seek their future in self employment instead of running after petty jobs, Ranike said special teams of professional and experts had been constituted in each department with intent to impart free training to desirous young entrepreneurs. Besides arranging loans from nationalised and cooperative banks on liberalised terms, the experts educate entrepreneurs about subsidies and other facilities.

Ludhiana, September 29
Punjab Orthopaedics Annual Conference (POACON-2013) under the aegis of the Punjab Orthopaedic Association was held today at the hospital auditorium. Dr SS Gill, Vice-Chancellor, BFUHS, inaugurated the conference.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Gill highlighted the importance of training in super specialties and for continued medical education in the field of orthopaedics and trauma care in view of the increasing number of cases in road and industrial accidents.

Organising Chairman Dr Mohammad Yamin and Dr Rajnish Garg, Organising Secretary and Professor of Orthopaedics at DMCH, said Orthopaedic surgery has made tremendous advances during the past two decades, especially in surgical techniques like replacement of joints and arthroplasty.

Over 250 orthopaedic surgeons from Punjab and neighbouring states attended the conference. Guest speakers from different parts of the country shared their experiences on different aspects, including post operative problems faced in orthopaedic surgery, minimal invasive endoscopic spine surgery, acetabular and pelvic fractures, managment of Scoliosis and tendinopathies and recent advances in management of Giant-cell tumor (GCT).

Ludhiana, September 29
Though the campaign 'Direct Seeded Rice' initiated by the Punjab Agriculture Department and Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) got lukewarm response from farmers of Ludhiana but the scientists of Punjab Agricultural University are still optimistic about this technique for sowing the paddy.

The PAU scientists have been encouraging the farmers for direct seeded rice by field visit, where farmer cultivated the by direct seeding technology.

Dr MS Bhullar, Agronomist from the PAU said, "There are many farmers in the state who have shifted completely 'direct seeded rice' in a span of five years since 2009. There is around 20,000 acres of area under the direct seeded rice in the state."

With the objective of promoting direct seeded rice, a field day on 'direct seeded rice' was organised at Mehraj village in Bathinda. More than 300 farmers, including trainees participated in this field day.

Ludhiana, September 29
The last league fixture between Jalandhar and Bathinda ended in a 2-2 draw, but on the basis of better goal average, the former were declared winners in the Punjab State Hockey League for Girls (above-15) organised by the Punjab Sports Department at the Prithipal Singh Memorial Astro Turf Hockey Stadium of Punjab Agricultural University here today. Bathinda and Patiala girls secured second and third place, respectively.

In the U-15 years’ category, Muktsar routed Tarn Taran 6-1 to emerge champions, while Bathinda blanked Gurdaspur 2-0 to secure third position.

Rupinder Singh, Assistant Director, Punjab Sports Department, was the chief guest on the concluding day. He distributed prizes among the winners. Each player was given a hockey stick in addition to the winners and runners-up trophies.

Kartar Singh Sehmbey, District Sports Officer, Ludhiana, along with other officials of the local office of the Sports Department, Punjab, was also present there.

Ludhiana, September 29
Students of Guru Nanak Public School (GNPS), Sarabha Nagar, who stamped their class yesterday to win 10 titles, continued their dominance today also. They added as many as 13 titles to their kitty to secure 65 points and romped home as overall champions in the 16th Ludhiana District Roller Skating Championship that concluded here at the Leisure Valley Skating Rink, Sarabha Nagar. Skaters from this school also bagged a couple of silver and bronze medals, which helped their school to fetch top honours.

Khanna, September 29
International karate player Simmi Batta of Khanna, who has been selected for the World Karate Championship and the Asian Karate Championship, was honoured by the Morning Walkers Football Club, Khanna, this morning at the Naresh Chander Stadium, here.

Advocate SK Gupta said Simmi Batta had won several gold medals at the national and international level.

She was the quarter finalist of the Asian Games and gold medallist of the National Games. She won gold medal in the National Karate Championship, which was held in September 2013 at Talkatora Stadium, New Delhi. She has also been selected for the upcoming World Games and the Asian Karate Championship.

Dr VK Aggarwal, Lalit K Gupta, Subash Chand, Prof Sanjeev, Harjinder Singh, Dr Anand Dev Verma, Dr SS Vithal, Dr SL Bansal, S Dubey, Pankaj Vij, Achal Kansal, football club members and Puja Goyal congratulated Simmi Batta and her coach, Rajesh Joshi, on the grand success and wished luck for the future.

Ludhiana, September 29
Green Land Senior Secondary School, Ludhiana, survived a scare against Guru Hargobind Academy, Jagraon, before coming out triumphant with a wafer thin margin (14-13) in the boys’ U-14 section on the second day of the Ludhiana District Basketball Tournament being held at the Guru Nanak Stadium here today.

Jashandeep of Green Land School contributed 8 points to steer his team to clinch the cliffhanger, while Inderjot Singh chipped in with 6 points for the losers.

In the boys’ U-19 group, Police Lines Club beat New Punjab Senior Secondary School, Jagraon 34-30 in which Ridham scored 14 points for the winning side, while DAV Public School, Pakhowal Road branch, defeated PS Khalsa School, Ludhiana, 36-22 with the main contribution coming through Haqshveer who sank 12 baskets.

In other encounters in the same age group, CFC School, Ludhiana, outplayed BVM Senior Secondary School 13-5; Gymkhana Club, Ludhiana, outnumbered AS Senior Secondary School, Khanna, 33-12; Government Model Senior Secondary School, PAU, Ludhiana, outclassed Government Multipurpose School, Ludhiana, 24-15; Arya Senior Secondary School, Ludhiana, drubbed Guru Hargobind Academy, Jagraon, 44-22 and Delhi Public School beat BCM Senior Secondary School, Shastri Nagar, 27-19.

In the U-14 years’ section (boys), Drishti Public School, Ludhiana, proved too good for Doraha Public School, Doraha, whom they defeated convincingly 29-18. Lovepreet and Garvit Jain accounted for 8 points and 6 points, respectively, for the winners. — OC

Ludhiana, September 29
Prices of yarn have gone up by 20 per cent giving a tough time to the knitwear and textile industry.

The industry is finding it difficult to cope with the rising prices as the orders have been booked on the previous rates.

“Dwindling rupee in the international market is giving us a tough time. The orders for the coming winter season have been booked well in advance at the previous prices. As a result, we are facing difficulty in completing them within the stipulated cost,” said Tejinder Singh, a knitwear unit owner.

Another exporter said in the coming months the orders would be booked according to the new prices. The prices of finished products would also see an increase.