Ludhiana, November 27
The passing-out parade of 280 (tradesmen) recruits of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police was held at the 26th Battalion ITBP Campus, Baddowal, here today. A spectacular display of drill, synchronised with the accompanying band, added colour to the ceremony.

The ceremony was held for the 280 newly trained soldiers, who completed their 24-week training at the Baddowal camp. Officials said the newly trained soldiers, hailing from different parts of the country, would report to the ITBP head office and would subsequently be deployed along the Indo-China border.

Nirmal Singh Dhillon, Commissioner of Police, Ludhiana, was the chief guest on the occasion. Dhillon, along with Chhota Ram Jat, Commandant of the 26th Battalion ITBP, took the salute from the soldiers in the parade ground.

In his speech, Commandant Chotta Ram Jat highlighted the training activities and the glorious history of the force.

He said the ITBP was raised on October, 24, 1962, as a paramilitary force during the India-China war. He said from remote locations on icy heights of the Himalayas to the treacherous forests in Chhattisgarh, ITBP jawans had always responded to the call of duty.

Dhillon termed the ITBP an elite force of India. A number of officers of the Indian Air Force, the Army and the Punjab Police were present on the occasion.

Ludhiana, November 27
The passing-out parade of 280 recruits of the ITBP brought immense joy to their families. A large number of parents and relatives of cadets were present during the parade here today. They were seen recording the "prized moments" of the passing-out parade in their mobile phones. Seven members of a family had come from Himachal to watch the passing-out parade of their son.

Anvar Haska, a resident of Gajipura in Uttar Pradesh, had come to the ITBP camp along with his wife to see their son Sajid Sah in uniform. Sajid has made his village proud by making it to the ITBP.

“I have six children and Sajid is the only on who has got a government job. There are only a few lucky persons in our village who have got government jobs. We are happy and feel proud of our son.”

Ten family members of a cadet, Harjit Singh, had come from Bhai Roopa village in Bathinda district to watch the passing-out parade.

Boota Singh, Harjit's father, said, “I have two sons. Harjit's brother works as mason in the village. Now that Harjit has got employment, I hope the financial condition of our family improves."

Three brothers of a cadet, Kuldeep Yadav, had come from Rewari in Haryana to the ITBP Baddowal camp to watch the parade.

Sandip Yadav, Kuldeep's brother, said, “We are happy that our brother has joined the ITBP. It was his wish to work for the force. He really worked hard to fulfil his dream."

Ludhiana, November 27
Two minor girls, who were kidnapped in separate incidents, have been rescued by the police. The police today arrested one of the accused. Suspecting rape, the police got the medical examination of both girls conducted.

In the first incident, a 14-year-old girl, who was kidnapped on November 14, was rescued today.

The girl, a resident of the Bhora area in Salem Tabri, was kidnapped from outside her house. A case under Sections 363 and 366 of the IPC was registered at the Salem Tabri police station in this regard. The case was registered on a statement of the victim's brother.

He alleged that Deepa, a resident of Ashok Nagar, had kidnapped his sister.

The police got secret information regarding the missing girl and rescued her from Saheed Bhagat Singh Nagar.

In the second case, the Division No. 5 police traced a 15-year-old girl who was kidnapped two days ago.

The victim is a resident of Jawahar Nagar. The Division No. 5 police had registered a case against the accused, Navrattan.

The police rescued the missing girl today and arrested the accused.

Dharampal, SHO of the Division No. 5 police station, said the police was awaiting the medical report of the victims.

Ludhiana, November 27
Thieves struck at two hosiery shops in the Ghas Mandi area and decamped with cash and hosiery items last night. The incident came to light when the owners of Rupam Store and Shekhar Store arrived at their respective shops and were shocked to find the premises ransacked.

Jai Kumar, owner of Shekhar Store, said the thieves entered from the rear side of the shop and took away Rs 15,000 from the cash counter.

Deepak, owner of Rupam Store, told the police that an amount of Rs 10,000 was missing from his shop.

Assistant Commissioner of Police (Central) Deepak Hilori and the SHO of the Division No. 3 police station reached the spot and began investigations. — TNS

Jagraon, November 27
The Jagraon police have arrested a drug peddler and seized 25 gm of heroin from his possession. The accused has been identified as Vikas Gupta, alias Yamha, a resident of College Road, Jagraon.

The youth was arrested by a police team from the CIA, Jagraon, near Kothe Khajuran village on the outskirts of Jagraon following a tip-off last night.

According to the in charge of the Jagraon CIA staff, Inspector Prem Singh, the police had received a tip-off that a drug peddler had been spotted near Kothe Khajuran village. "We conducted a raid at Kothe Khajuran village and nabbed the youth. On his search, we seized 25 gm of heroin from his possession following which he was arrested," said Inspector Prem Singh.

He said the police had registered a case against the accused under the NDPS Act.

Ludhiana, November 27
The construction work on the proposed "school for meritorious students" is all set to start on the present hostel premises of the Government College for Boys here. Expressing concern over the axing of trees for the project, residents say the "lungs" of the city should not have been damaged by the government as the pollution level in the city has already reached alarming proportions.

President of the Government College Teachers Association and senior faculty member of the SCD Government College for Boys Jaipal Singh said he was not against the proposed school as it would provide an opportunity for the poor and needy students to show their mettle, but at the same time it must be ensured that the "lungs" of the city -- SCD Government College, the Government College for Girls, the PAU and the Rose Garden -- should not be disturbed by undertaking further construction work. "These are among the few places in the city which provide a little respite to residents and if these are also converted into concrete, it will be difficult to breathe," said Jaipal Singh.

About 180 trees have been axed to clear the site for construction work.

Meanwhile, inmates of the boys' hostel had a tough time today as the water pipes were cut for the construction work. As a result, the students did not get water.

The contractor said the problem was rectified within two hours. The contractor has already stocked construction material at the site for the project. Asked if the government had released any money to him, he said he had bought material worth Rs 4 crore, but the funds would be provided to him in December.

Ludhiana, November 27
The father of a victim of eve-teasing thrashed the teaser here today. An employee of a gold and jewellery showroom allegedly misbehaved with a girl when she had gone for a tuition near the showroom on the Mall Road near the BSNL telephone exchange.

Soon after the incident, the girl called up her father and narrated the entire incident. Her father reached the spot and thrashed the youth.

As passers-by gathered at the spot and asked the girl's father about the provocation, the youth managed to escape from the spot. The girl's father said the employee of the showroom was stalking his daughter for the past 15 days. Police officials also reached the spot.

Davinder Kumar, SHO of the Division No. 8 police station, said no complaint was lodged with the police. "We had asked the girl's father to file a formal complaint so that action could be initiated. However, no one has come to the police station so far," said Davinder. 

Ludhiana, November 27
To boost the morale of poor meritorious students, especially those coming from rural backgrounds, construction work on a "school for meritorious students" is all set to begin on 11 acres on the premises of the boys' hostel at SCD Government College here. The co-education school will be constructed at an estimated cost of about Rs 24 crore.

The government wants the school to be constructed on priority. District Education Officer (Secondary) Paramjit Kaur Chahal visited the sight along with engineers, who have prepared drawings for the project.

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal wants the school ready by June 2014 so that students can be admitted to classes XI and XII in the session, beginning July. Admissions to the school will be open to both girls and boys who score over 80 per cent marks in Class X in the Punjab School Education Board.

An official of the Education Department here said the school would have a total of 1,000 students, including 600 girls. The school would have 20 classrooms. It would also have the hostel facility.

The Chief Minister had visited the site in August.

Khanna, November 27
Enraged over the incident of firing in which a chemist was shot dead by an unidentified person at Samrala Road, Khanna, last night, the local shopkeepers blocked the traffic on Khanna-Samrala road for about an hour.

The protesters demanded immediate identification and arrest of the accused who killed Pardeep Chahal, a chemist, by firing a shot at his head when he was sitting on his medical store. He died on the way to hospital. Due to the traffic blockade, long queues of vehicles were witnessed.

The shopkeepers led by association president Hans Raj Birani and vice-president Krishan Gopal kept their shops closed in protest against the incident. The shopkeepers alleged that there were some incidents of snatching and attack on this road and they were forced to live in fear. They had demanded security too.

The shopkeepers lifted the traffic blockade only after SSP Khanna along with SPD reached the scene and assured the protesters of strict action in this regard. The body of the deceased was lit to pyre today amidst heavy gathering.

Meanwhile, the police remained clueless about the killer even after 24 hours. SSP Khanna said the police was working on different theories to solve the case. He said the police had found some clues, including some CCTV footage, and they were hopeful of an early breakthrough. He assured that the police patrolling on Samrala road would be intensified as per the demands of the shopkeepers.

Residents and shopkeepers were of the view that the crime in the area was spreading due to the use of smack and other drugs. Also, several incidents of firing had taken place in the past few months. However, the SSP said they were acting tough against the law-breakers and against the sale of drugs, including smack in the area, and they had cracked and registered cases in this regard.

Ludhiana, November 27
The teachers in the colleges/universities, will now be given equal distribution of duties. As per the recent decision taken during a meeting of the Panjab University, Chandigarh, all the teachers, be it in colleges or the university, will now be asked to evaluate at least 250 answer sheets of students (Undergraduate or Post Graduate or both) every year.

This decision will not just give every teacher the equal sense of duty but the results of various classes, which often get delayed, will be declared on time.

As per the information available, the teachers in colleges have been evaluating the answer sheets regularly but a majority of those in the university tried to stay away from the checking-part.

A teacher here, wishing not to be quoted, said though it was also mandatory by the UGC scoring point that to claim the revision in scales, evaluation by teachers had to be considered, still majority of teachers never wanted to check the answer sheets.

“One reason for this could be that the university pays too less for evaluation. Till recently, for checking answer books of undergraduate classes, we were paid Rs 12 per answer sheet while for post-graduate, we are paid around Rs 15 per sheet. The checking part is cumbersome and time consuming. Besides, it has to be paid a lot of concentration as the careers of students depend on these results,” said the teacher.

Meanwhile, the Punjab Commerce and Management Association (PCMA) have welcomed the decision taken by the university. Professor Ashwani Bhalla of PCMA said it was a welcome step and now results would be declared on time as all the teachers would perform their duties in equal manner.

“It is the duty of the teacher to teach and evaluate so we are bound to perform the duty religiously,” said Prof Bhalla.

Ludhiana, November 27
A meeting of the Punjab Aided School Union was held at Nauria Mal Jain Model High School today. The dignitaries discussed about the problems being faced by the employees of aided primary schools, who had not been paid salaries for more than seven months. They said though the government had released the salaries of employees of high and secondary schools but those of primary school employees were still not disbursed.

Savinderjit Kaur, district president, said the Director Primary Education had still not prepared the annual claims of salaries. She said since April, salaries were not released to employees and there was huge resentment among the cadre. — TNS

Ludhiana, November 27
The Ludhiana Municipal Corporation seems to have failed to completely check the illegal chowpatis operating from different parts of the city. Though MC officials claim that three out of the six chowpatis operating from the city have been closed down, the remaining three are still operating openly.

For the past several months, the trend of setting up chowpatis on vacant plots in the city has been going on openly and the MC has failed to take any action against the violators. These chowpatis are no more than a group of rehri vendors selling fast food, gol gappas, pav bhaji, dosa and other such eatables.

On November 6, the MC had issued notices to chowpati owners and had given 72 hours to them follow building bylaws and get CLU (change of land use) certificates, failing which there premises would be shutdown permanently.

The modus operandi adopted by these chowpati owners is that they hire a vacant chunk of land, set up rehris there and start their operations. Ironically, no arrangements for parking are made, besides the owners carry out business operations without even getting CLU certificates.

MC Additional Commissioner Isha Kalia said six chowpatis were identified in the city. “Three of them have already shutdown, while the remaining three have sought some temporary permissions for running their businesses. We are still studying the matter and will take action against them as well if they fail to follow the rules,” she said.

Ludhiana, November 27
Gone are the times when wedding invitations meant a simple card with a box of sweets form a local sweetmeat shop. Today, invitations foretell the kind of wedding party one will be hosting. These days, marriage invites are getting to be a glitzy and an exclusive affair.

Wedding cards could be Swarovski-studded, they could match the bride's trousseau, they could come in multiple folds and, yes, they might just cost anything you can think of!

NRIs are a major constituent of this market. "NRIs based in the US, Britain, Canada, the Middle East and Australia want their marriages to be a complete Indian affair and this desire propels them to visit India for the selection of cards, jewelleries and venues,” said Siddhartha Kapoor, one of the wedding planners from the city.

“People from around the globe are splurging on wedding cards like never before. This has added to the growth of designers, manufacturers and paper importers. Since cost and variety have gone up, there is no end to innovation,” he said.

“People no longer want simple designs. More designers are entering into this business. The prices have skyrocketed. Everyone, including the NRI, asks for the fanciest and most exclusive designs even if it's not worth the amount spent,” said Vinay Verma from Cards and Packers.

“Indian wedding cards have no match. I personally like a lot of bling, something which has to do with fabrics or metal. Indian designs have so much of variety - scroll with silk fabric and traditional Indian fonts or silver-plated wedding card with embossed content,” said Shruti, who was busy selecting cards for her wedding at a designer studio.

The designs include from an oversized envelope with Lord Ganesha's picture drawn over with details about the wedding to an exquisitely worded invitation. The invites sent out are designed to wow guests. Also, personalised and handmade cards are a big trend nowadays as many people feel these add an emotional touch to the entire occasion," said Sushant Singh, a wedding card designer.

Ludhiana, November 27
The Government Pensioners' Association has urged the Punjab Government to reconsider the decision and release arrears from January to June 2013 at the earliest.

PL Nirmal, additional general secretary, said the Punjab Government had sanctioned DA to its pensioners at the rate of 8 per cent from July 2013, which was due from January 2013, at the rate of 8 per cent raising it from 72 per cent to 80 per cent and has kept the pending decision about the payment of arrears from January to June, 2013. It has caused hardships to the pensioners,” said Nirmal.

“Besides, the government has so far not granted DA due at 10 per cent from July 2013,” said Singh.

Ludhiana, November 27
A man took poison outside a police station here late this evening. The victim has been identified as Manish Kumar (28), a resident of Pritam Nagar in Haibowal. After taking the poison, the condition of the victim worsened and he was taken to the Civil Hospital.

Kala, a relative of the victim, said Manish had purchased a motorcycle a few months ago. Later, it came to light that it was a stolen motorcycle.

He alleged that Manish was being harassed by the SHO of the Division Number 4 police station, Bitten Kumar.

Jagraon, November 27
The need for setting up a fire brigade station in Jagraon was felt yet again when a fire broke out in a slum area located near Gurdwara Nanaksar Sahib. This time, too, the fire brigade was called from Moga to douse the flames.

In fact, the need for setting up the fire station in Jagraon is being felt direly. Residents of the area led by some NGOs have been struggling to get a fire station constructed in Jagraon for a long time, but the demand has not materialised so far.

This is not the first fire incident in the area. Every year, several incidents of fire take place in Jagraon and the surrounding areas. Some people as well as several cattle and birds have already been killed in these incidents. Apart from this, the fire incidents in the past have also caused damages worth several crores of rupees.

Only six months ago, goods worth several lakhs of rupees were gutted when a major fire broke out in the multi-storeyed building of Indo-Canadian Departmental Store situated on the Tehsil Road, Jagraon. Only a few days before that incident, a fire had engulfed a bank ATM near Rani Jhansi Chowk on the same road.

Every time when a fire breaks out in the area, fire brigade teams are called from Ludhiana or Moga. But as it takes a lot of time for the fire brigade teams from Ludhiana or Moga to reach here, the fire has already caused a huge damage till that time. Despite repeated demands by the residents of the area, the efforts to set up the fire station seem to be yielding no results.

The authorities often claimed lack of funds the reason behind failing to set up the station. Recently, when a fire broke out in a departmental store and the people started pushing hard for the demand, local Akali MLA SR Kaler promised to set up the fire station in Jagraon soon. Around two months ago, Kaler even got sanctioned a grant of Rs 50 lakh for setting up the station here. Despite that, the local administration has not even initiated the process to set up the station. Besides this, MP from Ludhiana Manish Tewari had also offered a grant of Rs 35 lakh to set up a fire station in Jagraon some time ago. But, the local Municipal Council refused to accept the grant for reasons best known to the authorities.

According to sources, now there is no scarcity of funds for setting up the station. “The issue is hanging in the balance only due to political reasons because both the ruling party as well as the Opposition party want to take the credit for setting up the station,” said the sources.

“The local MLA does not want to give a chance to the Opposition party to take political advantage. That is why the grant offered by Manish Tewari for the fire station was not accepted,” claimed Congress leader Satinderpal Singh Kaka Grewal.

Jagraon MLA SR Kaler, who has been camping in New Delhi on the election duty, was not available for comments. Repeated efforts to contact him on his cell phone went in vain.

However, it is the common people who are suffering most due to the dirty politics. The political parties' battle for taking credit is costing high to the people of Jagraon area.

Ludhiana, November 27
Army recruiting office, Ludhiana, will be organising an Army recruitment rally here from December 3 to December 9 for general duty candidates hailing from Ludhiana, Roop Nagar, SAS Nagar and Moga districts of Punjab, and for soldier clerk/storekeeper technical/technical from all districts of Punjab.

Token distribution and screening of candidates hailing from SAS Nagar (for soldier general duty, soldier clerk/storekeeper technical, soldier technical) will be done on December 3. Token distribution and screening of candidates hailing from Moga district will be done on December 4. Token distribution and screening of candidates hailing from districts of Roop Nagar will be done on December 5 and for candidates of Ludhiana, token distribution will be done on December 6, whereas token distribution and screening of candidates hailing from all other districts, except the districts mentioned above, will be done on December 7. — TNS

Ludhiana, November 27
Everyone loves to have salty and spicy food. But this type of diet shoots up blood pressure among children in the age group of 10 to 16. This was revealed by Dr Shashank R Joshi, endocrinologist from Lilawati Hospital, Mumbai, while talking to Ludhiana Tribune.

Dr Joshi, who was at the DMCH to attend an event, said: "The problem of hair-fall has advanced. Earlier, it was encountered in mid-twenties but nowadays some school boys are also facing this problem. Similarly, about 5% or 7% school-going girls have acne and hairy growth on their faces. It is because of ovarian diabetes or polycystic ovarian syndrome. As a consequence of this, the very onset of menstrual cycle becomes irregular."

Citing the reason behind it, Dr Joshi said: "Adults love to have fats and a fried diet and avoid exercise. They skip breakfast and take food during lunch hours. It disturbs the rate of metabolism of the body. And improper diet also leads to aggression in their behaviour". He suggested adults should go for at least 30 or 45 minutes of rigorous exercise and should avoid taking less fat and carbohydrates.

He said Type-11 diabetes is on the increase among children. Children suffering from this disease gain weight. This type of diabetes can be treated with medicines and insulin is not required. The sedentary lifestyle of students is the main reason for it. They keep sitting in classrooms for hours together and also prefer to play indoor games on computers, etc. 

Ludhiana, November 27
Ludhiana City Bus Service Ltd (LCBSL) has tied up with a private company for the maintenance and operations of buses plying under the City Bus Service project. The new company, Prasanna Purple Mobility Solutions Pvt Ltd, would provide drivers, diesel and maintenance for the buses.

A contract in this regard was signed between the LCBSL and Prasanna Purple Mobility Solutions Pvt Ltd on November 12. The company is basically based at Pune (Maharashtra) and is already managing a fleet of close to 5,000 buses across the country.

The contract has been signed for a period of nine years, which would be renewed every year. The LCBSL would be paying Rs 30 per km to the company.

The buses would be repaired by the company at the workshop which would be constructed by Prasanna Purple Mobility Solutions Pvt Ltd on a three-acre piece of land on the Tajpur road. The renovation of this workshop has already started and the company is expected to start the project this week. The MC would provide basic infrastructure for the setting up of this workshop.

“Initially, the company would be managing a fleet of 20 buses and the remaining buses would be handed over to them in a phased manner,” said Isha Kalia, chief executive officer, LCBSL, while speaking to The Tribune.

Ludhiana, November 27
Secretary of the Local Bodies Department has issued orders that the Additional/Joint/Deputy/Assistant Commissioners of municipal corporations would continue to work as First Appellate Authorities (FAA) while the MC engineers and superintendents as Public Information Officers (PIOs) and all Assistant Corporation Engineers and Inspectors as Assistant PIOs.

This order was issued by Ashok Kumar Gupta, Secretary, Local Bodies, on November 21.

In April, when the RTI wing of the Ludhiana Municipal Corporation, was changed in a big way and MC Additional Commissioner Davinder Singh was made the first appellate authority (FAA) in place of the then MC Commissioner Rakesh Kumar Verma. While the zonal superintendents were made the Public Information Officers (PIOs) and Inspector-level officers Assistant Public Information Officers (APIOs).

Perturbed over this, some Right to Information Act (RTI) activists had approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court against this development. The RTI Activists had rued that the Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation, Ludhiana, was not competent to appoint PIO, APIO and FAA, especially when the state government had issued a notification on November 20, 2009, in this regard.

Ever since the Right to Information Act came into being, the PIOs of Buildings and Roads, Horticulture and Operations and Maintenance were officers of the superintending engineer (SE) level while the Municipal Town Planner was the PIO of building branch, zonal commissioner level officer was the PIO of house tax. Other senior officers were the PIOs of other departments.

An RTI activist, Kuldeep Singh Khaira, said as per a state government notification (dated June 2, 2009), only the MC Commissioner could be the first appellate authority, Joint/Deputy/Assistant Commissioners as PIOs and branch superintendent or in charge concerned will be the APIO.

On August 20, the court had issued orders wherein the secretary (local bodies) was asked to issue an order in this regard so that the matter could be clarified.

The recent order, copy of which is in the possession of Ludhiana Tribune, states Additional/Joint/Deputy/Assistant Commissioners (if they are IAS or PCS officers) “Where there is no IAS/PCS officer, the commissioner will be the FAA. MC engineers and superintendents as Public Information Officers (PIOs) and all Assistant Corporation Engineers and Inspectors as Assistant PIOs”. 

Ludhiana, November 27
With the Delhi Vidhan Sabha elections due on December 4, several Congress, Akali and BJP councillors have headed to Delhi. Not only this, but a Congress councillor, Sanjay Talwar, has also been appointed observer for the Delhi election and he is looking after affairs in the Dwarka constituency of the state.

Besides Talwar, member of legeislative assembly from Ludhiana (West) Bharat Bhushan Ashu, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee secretaries Ishwarjot Singh Cheema and Sunil Kapoor, have also been appointed observers for the elections in the national capital.

While speaking to Ludhiana Tribune, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee secretary Ishwarjot Singh Cheema said these appointments had been made by Dr Shakeel Ahmad, party in charge of Delhi, Haryana, Punjab and Chandigarh. “All four of us are working hard in the areas allotted to us in Delhi,” he said.

Akali councillors Tanvir Singh Dhaliwal, senior Youth Akali Dal leaders Meetpal Singh Dugri and Prabhjot Singh Dhaliwal, besides several other leaders from the SAD are also camping in Delhi as the party has fielded four candidates from Delhi.

Tanvir Singh Dhaliwal said he was handpicked by Youth Akali Dal president Bikram Singh Majithia for this job.

Power shutdown

Due to necessary maintenance, power will remain shut from 9 am to 3 pm at Kucha Number 10-16, Field Gunj, Karimpura, Jail Road, Kucha Aniyat, Sukkram Nagar, Harnam Das, Shahpur Road, Brown Road, Kalgidhar Road, Rehri Mohalla, Bhatia Mohalla, areas adjoining to Subhani Khoti, Mochpura Bazaar, Nava Mohalla, Karimpura Bazaar and the adjoining areas.

Birth anniversary

Sahit Sadan working under the language, literature and cultural affairs council of Guru Gobind Singh Study Circle is celebrating the birth anniversary of legendary Punjabi writer Bhai Veer Singh on December 5 in Chandigarh, Ludhiana and Amritsar. Prof Balwinderpal Singh, additional chief organiser, said Dr Jaspal Singh, vice-chancellor, Punjabi University, Patiala, will be the chief guest on the occasion.

Seminar on Dec 1

To commemorate the 106th birth anniversary of Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Vichar Manch is organising a state-level seminar on December 1 at the Punjabi Bhawan. Dr Manisha Sethi, a human rights activist and scholar of terror-laws from Jamia Millia Islamia University, will deliver the keynote address on the subject “Democratic rights, democracy and repressive laws in India”.

Desh Sewa Divas celebrated

Ludhiana, November 27
With the arrest of two persons, the city police has claimed to have busted a gang of vehicle thieves and recovered two stolen motorcycles from their possession. The accused have been identified as Krishan Kumar of Prem Nagar and Shakel Ahmed of Welcome Colony in Delhi.

The duo were nabbed by the police of Division No. 1 in the Clock Tower area last night following a tip-off.

The police received information that the duo were behind a series of vehicle thefts reported recently.

Investigating officer said even last night the duo were planning to steal a motorcycle.

The police said their modus operandi was simple. They had a master key and used to steal old motorcycles lying abandoned.

After stealing a bike, they used to take the motorcycle to other districts and sell it at throwaway prices. Sometimes, they would dismantle the vehicle and sell its spare parts.

Ludhiana, November 27
Hosts BCM Senior Secondary School, Chandigarh road, and Sacred Heart Senior Secondary School, BRS Nagar, emerged champions in the boys and girls' sections, respectively, of the Ludhiana Sahodaya School Complex Basketball Tournament (u-19) which concluded here today.

In the boys' final, BCM School, after some hiccups, managed to prevail upon DAV Public School, Pakhowal road, 48-38 to lay their hands on the winners' trophy whereas the final of the girls' category between Sacred Heart Senior Secondary School and BCM Senior Secondary School, Chandigarh road, witnessed a see-saw battle in which the former eventually romped home victorious with a thin margin of (27-26).

Guru Nanak Public School, Sarabha Nagar, and Green Land Senior Secondary School, Jalandhar bypass, secured the third position in the girls and boys' sections, respectively.

Ludhiana, November 27
Despite a strict warning from the district administration, the installation work of canopy on the F block at Guru Nanak Stadium has again failed to meet the deadline. At a meeting with officials of the Punjab Mandi Board and Sports Department, Deputy Commissioner Rajat Aggarwal had given instructions to install the canopy by November 25. But, the Mandi Board authorities failed to comply with his instructions.

It has been observed that the contractor hired by the Mandi board will take another couple of days to complete the installation of canopy.

The concluding ceremony of the coming mega event, World Kabaddi Cup, is scheduled to be held at Guru Nanak Stadium on December 14. Moreover, the other renovation work at Guru Nanak Stadium is still hanging fire.

Anmoldeep Singh, a player who practises daily at the stadium, said: “The authorities did not take any initiative to renovate the Guru Nanak Stadium throughout the year. The Kabaddi Cup is a ray of hope that the government will spend money on renovating the existing infrastructure”.

District Sports Officer Kartar Singh was not available for comments.

Ludhiana, November 27
The two-day Ludhiana District Inter-Zonal Athletics Meet organised by the Education Department concluded at Guru Nanak Stadium here today. Around 1,000 boys and girls took part in different track and field events during the meet.

Ajit Pal Singh, Assistant Education Officer (sports), Ludhiana, was the chief guest at the prize-distribution function. Other officials from the department and a large number of students were present on this occasion.

Results: Boys (u-17)- 1500m race: Deepak Kumar of Samrala 1, Vicky Singh of PAU, Ludhiana 2 and Babbandeep Singh of Sahnewal 3; Hammer throw- Gurpreet Singh of Khanna 1, Baldeep Singh of Sahnewal 2 and Amrik Singh of Ludhiana II 3; 100m hurdles- Dilpreet Singh of Ludhiana II 1, Amandeep Singh of PAU, Ludhiana 2 and Gurjinder Singh of PAU, Ludhiana 3.

Boys (u-19) 5km walk- Manpreet Singh of Khanna 1, Vishal Garcha of Ludhiana II 2 and Amrit Pal Singh of Dakha 3; Long jump- Vinod Kumar of Khanna 1, Harmanjeet Singh of Sahnewal 2 and Rakesh Kumar of Jagraon 3.

Boys (u-14) Long jump- Shah Nawaz Hassan of Sahnewal 1, Sonu of Khanna 2 and Monu of Dakha 3; Discus throw- Harjot Singh of Khanna 1, Hardeep Singh of Ludhiana II 2 and Inder Preet Singh of Jagraon 3.

Girls (u-17) 100m hurdles- Preeti of PAU, Ludhiana 1, Gurpreet Kaur of Raikot 2 and Prabhjot Kaur of Sahnewal 3; Shot put- Nirmaljot Kaur of Rara Sahib 1, Jaskirat Kaur of Rara Sahib 2 and Harmehak Kaur of Ludhiana II 3, Javelin throw- Gagandeep Kaur of Kila Raipur 1, Neha of Sahnewal 2 and Pardeep Kaur of Raikot 3.

Girls (u-19) 100m hurdles- Gagandeep Kaur of Sahnewal 1, Amanpreet Kaur of Raikot 2 and Sukhpreet Kaur of Khanna 3; Triple jump- Rekha Rani of Samrala 1, Shehnaz of PAU, Ludhiana 2 and Dharampreet Kaur of Raikot 3; High jump- Rekha Rani of Samrala 1, Jeewanjot Kaur of Kila Raipur 2 and Shehnaz of PAU, Ludhiana 3; 3km walk- Pallavi Sethi of Khanna 1, Ritu of Sahnewal 2 and Amanpreet Kaur of Khanna 3; Shot put- Pavneet Kaur of Kila Raipur 1, Inder Preet Kaur of Sahnewal 2 and Mandeep Kaur of Kila Raipur 3; Javelin throw- Parvinder Kaur of Kila Raipur 1, Rajpreet Kaur of Kila Raipur 2 and Prabhjot kaur of Dakha 3.

Girls (u-14) High jump- Puneet Kaur of Kila Raipur 1, Anmolpreet Kaur of Sahnewal 2 and Pawandeep Kaur of Kila Raipur 3; Shot put- Harmanpreet Kaur of Rara Sahib 1, Jashanpreet Kaur of Ludhiana II 2 and Simranpreet Kaur of Rara Sahib 3.