Bathinda, October 11
Students of Shahid Sipahi Sandeep Singh Government Senior Secondary School were taken aback as they spotted dead worms in the mid-day meal served to them today.

As the students raised an alarm, the school management showed alacrity and stopped all students from having the food. Cooks were told not to serve food.

Suraksha, a teacher at the school who supervises the servings to students, said, “Shortly after the food was served to students, a few students pointed out that the rice had dead worms and small stones in it. I checked the food and stopped all students from eating it.”

School principal Anju Gupta said, “I have already called up the private firm that provides the cooked food. It has been only 10 days since the company started providing food and regularly asks us for suggestions and feedback.”

District mid-day meal manager Daljit Singh Joshi denied having information about the incident. “I was on leave and no one told me about the incident. On Wednesday, I had gone and inspected the place where food is cooked and found it satisfactory. I tasted the food and asked them to make little changes. I will look into the matter on Monday.”

It is pertinent to mention here that the Bishalakshmi Club, a private firm from West Bengal, started cooking and delivering food to all government schools within the municipal limits of Bathinda from October 1. Food is served to the primary and upper primary students.

This is not the first time that the firm’s performance has come under scanner. On October 1, the firm had failed in delivering the meal in time. At some schools, the food reached almost one and a half hours later than the time it was to be served to students.

Bathinda, October 11
“If the actresses, who are not getting enough work in Bollywood are turning towards regional cinema to utilise both their time and potential, I don’t think one should look down upon it,” said Bollywood actress Minissha Lamba while promoting her maiden Punjab film “Heer and Hero” in Bathinda on Friday.

Talking about withdrawing from the film ‘Tina and Lolo’ opposite Sunny Leone, she said, “I had signed the film but later thought that the film wouldn’t work in my favour. I withdrew from the project since I wasn’t sure if working with Sunny would in any way add to my professional growth.”

Accompanying her was her co-star in "Heer and Hero", Arya Babbar, who even answered several questions on her behalf at the press conference which the actress chose to give a miss.

“If you want, I will become Minissha and answer all your quesries,” he said. The actor had everyone in splits as he answered the questions in a modulated voice.

When asked what kind of roles as an actor he prefers to do, he said, “Although all kinds of roles are offered to me, I have a liking for comedy roles since it is the most challenging job to make the audience laugh. I also like doing intense roles since being intense comes naturally to me.”

Talking about Bollywood actors and actresses trying their hands at Punjabi films, he said, “It should be a matter of pride for us that the Punjabi film industry is growing so big that Bollywood is taking note of it. This is how big producers and directors will come here and launch big projects.”

The actor chose to be diplomatic when asked about competition in the industry. “I am very self-centred and there’s no harm in being one. I am happy that all my films are doing very well. I watch all Punjabi films and appreciate work done by all actors in the Punjabi film industry. But I don’t think about competition since I want my films to work well and don’t give a thought to how others’ films are faring at the Box Office.” 

Bathinda, October 11
Demanding shifting of proceedings from executive to judiciary under the yet-to-be-notified Rent Act, members of the District Bar Association today suspended work for a day.

Association president Mohinder Sidhu said a state-wide call was given to suspend work against the decision to give powers to SDMs to proceed the cases under the new Rent Act.

The Punjab Government is all set to bring in the Rent Act allegedly to ensure easy eviction of tenant in case of a dispute. The Act is yet to be implemented as its notification is still pending.

At present, the disputes between tenants and the owners are settled under the East Punjab Rent Eviction Act. As per the new rules, tenants will have to vacate the residential or commercial properties, as per the notice period mentioned in the rent deed with their landlords.

Sidhu said though they supported setting up of three tribunals in Punjab, including Bathinda, Jalandhar and Chandigarh, they opposed the powers to listen hearings by the SDM instead of judicial officers. — TNS

Bathinda, October 11
The two-day TEQIP-II sponsored national conference on "Advancements in Sustainable Practices and Innovations in Renewable Energy" (ASPIRE 2013) concluded at the Giani Zail Singh Punjab Technical University (GZSPTU) campus, Bathinda, today.

On the second day of the conference, there were three technical sessions during which 15 research papers were presented. The invited speakers, Dr Sandeep Dua, Dr Prabhjot Kaur, Prof Nisar Khan and Dr JN Jha, deliberated on the need to conserve environment, design green buildings, provide renewable energy practices, use low embodied energy materials, water conservation and other eco-friendly practices.

The technical sessions were attended by more than 40 delegates from IIT Roorkee, GNDU Amritsar, CCA Chandigarh, DCRUST Murthal, GZS PTU Campus, SLIET Longowal and other institutes.

Dr Sanjiv Aggarwal and Prof Bhupinder Pal Singh, co-chairman, thanked the delegates and the invited speakers for delivering expert lectures in the field of sustainability and renewable energy.

Prof Jatinder Kaur, coordinator of ASPIRE-2013, proposed a vote of thanks.

Campus director Dr Jasbir Singh Hundal presided over the valedictory function during which certificates were presented to the delegates who presented and contributed papers at the conference. The organising team of ASPIRE 2013 was also felicitated on the occasion.

The findings of the conference shall be instrumental in developing guidelines for the future growth of buildings in cities and towns.

The proceedings of the conference shall be sent to the National Advisory Committee, Ministry of Renewable Energy and the Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) for formulating new laws related to energy conservation.

Bathinda, October 11
First Aid First, a wing of the United Welfare Society, today organised an awareness camp at the Punjab Central School in Urban Estate. The camp was held under the supervision of first aid trainer, Naresh Pathania, and the principal of the school, Ishara Bansal.

During the camp, the volunteers demonstrated to the students various ways of administering immediate medical help to the victims of road accidents and in cases of bleeding nose, wounds, burns, insect bites, choking on food and other situations.

The students were also informed about ways to help the victims of natural calamities like an earthquake. The students were also told about the importance of first aid which can save the lives of victims.

The students and the staff members of the school were told about how they could be brave and save their own and others' lives by knowing the ways and means of providing medical help to the victims. 

Bathinda, October 11
Police today arrested the worker of a gas agency for extracting LPG from the cylinders meant for home delivery in residential areas. The accused Ranjan, a native of Uttar Pradesh, presently residing in Manocha Colony, was assigned the task of delivering LPG cylinders by Mann Gas Agency.

He, however, extracted LPG ranging from 1 kg to 5 kg from every cylinder and refilled the same into an empty cylinder and then sold the cylinder in black to make a fast buck. Police have registered a case against him for cheating and theft under sections 420 and 379. He has also been booked under section 7 of the Essential Commodities Act.

Investigating Officer and SHO (ad hoc), Civil Lines, Jagraj Singh said that they raided the hideout of the LPG worker where he was caught red-handed extracting LPG from the cylinder.

Police said this is perhaps for the first time that the worker of a gas agency has been booked for cheating the LPG customers.

Meanwhile, Jeet Singh, a resident of Model Town Phase-III, said he too had been complaining about early consumption of his LPG cylinder to his gas agency but now with the arrest of one of the workers, others involved in such illegal activities will be under pressure, he said.

Bathinda, October 11
The concluding ceremony of the 59th Punjab State School Sports Tournament, which was being held in Bathinda, was cancelled after a player of the Sangrur kabaddi team died due to electric shock late on Thursday night. The games were being held under the direction of the Education Minister of Punjab, Sikander Singh Maluka and supervision of the District Education Officer (Secondary) Harkanwaljeet Kaur.

Players in action during a basketball match in Bathinda on Friday. A Tribune photograph

On the concluding day of the tournament, trophies and shields were given away to the players and the teams which won in their respective disciplines. The ceremony was conducted in a very subdued manner to condole the death of the player.

On the last day, the girls' teams showed their prowess in the finals of the basketball competition. While Amritsar Wing beat Patiala (40-26), Ludhiana beat Hoshiarpur (33-17). Amritsar Wing also defeated Ludhiana (43-14) to grab the first place while the second place went to Ludhiana and the third place was grabbed by Hoshiarpur.

Also present on the occasion were Sukhjinder Singh Manshahia, Balvir Singh, Rajinder Singh Deon, Gurinderjit Singh, Shyam Chanarthal, Neelu Khan, Sandeep, Nazar Singh, Shor Singh, Surinder Singh, Gobind Ram, Gurmandar Singh, Jasvir Singh, Angrez Singh, Kuldeep Singh, Ramesh Multania and Jasveer Singh.

Silence observed to condole player’s death

To condole the death of Talwinder Singh, a student of Government Senior 
Secondary School in Bhawanigarh and a circle kabaddi player of Sangrur team, a two-minute silence was observed by the players, coaches and officials on the concluding day of the tournament.

Match stopped

Meanwhile, the basketball match between Ludhiana Wing and Bathinda was stopped after half-time as the Bathinda team raised objections over the inclusion of an ineligible player in the Ludhiana Wing team.

Speaking to Bathinda Tribune, Amarjot, coach of the basketball team of Bathinda, said, "One of the boys in their team got a re-appear in his class XII examinations. How can he play in the team when he is not in the school? We raised an objection during half time and they stopped the match." The match did not resume till late in the evening.