Amritsar, February 6
After finding several lacunae in the functioning of the Municipal Town Planning (MTP) Department, the MC Commissioner passed immediate instructions to expedite the process of passing building plan maps within a span of 30 days and held the accountability of the officials concerned for any delay.

Now, it would be the liability of officials to establish direct rapport with applicants. The applicants would be asked for submitting a self-addressed envelope through which they could be contacted after their building plans get sanctioned officially. Besides, the officials would have to intimate the applicant through SMS about the status of their case.

As per orders of Local Bodies Minister Anil Joshi, the requisite formalities to sanction the building maps have to be completed within 30 days from the date of submission of the same by the applicants with the MTP Department. Numerous complaints were received in which even after a lapse of 90 days, the applicants seldom got any response.

Taking it into account, Municipal Commissioner DPS Kharbanda scrutinised the existing functioning of the department and found that no proper record was ever being maintained, leading to public harassment, and corruption was prevailing in the department.

It was revealed that the draftsmen never bothered to update the records since 2012. The head draftsmen never maintained any register. Consequently, the work was piled up with no guilt or shame.

The sanction of the building plan passes through many hands and it involved building inspectors, draftsmen, head draftsmen, Assistant Town Planners and finally the Senior Town Planner. It was observed that if some particular case gets stuck up at a point, no efforts were being made by the officials to rectify its shortcomings. No channelised record was being made, hence it was difficult to find out how things delayed.

The department always find a place on the agenda of the MC House and it had been numerous times in the past when the councillors in one voice raised fingers over its functioning. Kharbanda agreed that the work culture of the department was virtually dismal and steps have been taken to revamp the whole system, leaving no room for corruption, and make it public-friendly.

“We have decided to put all record digitally. Now, a software would be developed within a week for the same. But before that a systematic proforma has been chalked out wherein every single official involved in passing the maps would have to sign on the document with date. I have allocated them timetable to furnish their respective official duties.

They have been directed to maintain a proper register with serial number mentioned over it. Similarly, the officials would get in touch with the applicants through SMS and intimate them through hard copy once their case gets approved. Earlier, no communication mode was there in the process.

Amritsar, February 6
The trend of installing gates on the entrance of residential colonies and constructing speed-breakers on roads at such places is on the rise in the city even as it is against the norms.

Though residents of these colonies cite security reasons for constructing these, commuters are facing hardship due to the same.

Even a few of the localities have installed poles in the middle of roads to disallow four-wheelers from using these.

"Most of the long-route drivers use the roads between residential localities as shortcut," said Partap Singh, a resident of a colony near Chehharta.

"They often drive fast and are a threat to children playing in streets," he said.

He added that considering snatching incidents and other petty crimes, gates on lanes provide people a sense of security. and anti-social elements think twice before entering streets.

However, drivers said the speed-breakers were constructed without involving a person with expertise.

Many of them were not happy with the entrance gates in localities.

Gurpal Singh, an architect, said: "There is no fault with people using lanes between localities as shortcuts as long as they are following traffic rules." He said installing of gates or oversized speed-breakers should be checked by the government.

Even as the Haryana Government had recently notified a policy with regard to the construction of such gates on entrances to colonies, the Punjab sholuld also follow it.

Kuljit Singh, an advocate, who had earlier taken up the issue with the district administration, said: "Its worse when people fix permanent poles in the middle of roads to disallow entry of vehicles." He added that the administration should curb this tendency as it was against the norms.

Amritsar, February 6
The Mobile Number Portability (MNP) scheme has hit Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) hard in the district as scores of customers have ported out of the BSNL while a few have ported in it.

An application filed by an RTI activist, Naresh Johar, said 24,065 subscribers ported out of it while only 5,094 subscribers ported in the BSNL since the portability scheme was introduced in January 2011.

He said the BSNL being the oldest telecom company had wide and well-established network.

But it failed to live up to the expectations of its customers.

“There are a large number of employees from the Central and state government departments who can be easily brought under the BSNL network,” he said.

Officials of the BSNL said various steps to retain the subscribers had been taken. Efforts were on to improve the services by checking mobile towers on a regular basis. Many lucrative offers were also being introduced from time to time for the customers.

In the district, Punjab State Power Corporation Limited and the State Bank of Patiala have bulk connections of the BSNL for their staff.

Amritsar, February 6
The city police have initiated steps to suspend head constable Kanwaljit Singh, who was allegedly booked by the women cell for allegedly raping a woman on pretext of sending her to Singapore.

Jatinder Singh Aulakh, Police Commissioner said he would be suspended. Kanwaljit is reportedly reader of an ADCP rank official. The victim in her complaint had stated to the police that the accused continued to rape her for several months. The accused had even made a movie of the crime and blackmailed her into having sex with him, the victim alleged. The police said raids were being conducted to nab the accused who had gone underground after the registration of case against him. — TNS

Amritsar, February 6
A 14-year-old girl identified as Chanpreet Kaur, reportedly died after she accidentally fell into a open drain here last evening. The girl, a resident of Guru Ramdass Nagar, along with her friend Baljit Kaur, was returning home on a bicycle.

As per information, the road was dug up as the work of covering the Ganda Nullah was underway in the area. While passing from near the drain, she lost balance and fell into the drain while her companion fell on the roadside. Passers-by who gathered on the spot tried to locate the victim. But they failed to rescue her due to darkness. Her body was later fished out. — TNS

Amritsar, February 6
In yet another controversy for the BJP leader and Cabinet Minister Anil Joshi, the Congress candidate from Amritsar North constituency, Karamjit Singh Rintu, has accused him of using his clout to get fake votes registered.

In a press conference here today, Rintu said private investigation into the electoral lists of the 50 booths in the constituency had revealed that thousands of votes were either fake or the voters had double votes.

Rintu said on January 1, 2008, the constituency had 1,36,003 voters and the number increased to 1,63,009 on January 30, 2012. "Most of these votes were fake and were registered to benefit sitting MLA Anil Joshi," he said.

Anil Joshi was elected as an MLA from Amritsar North constituency for the second consecutive term in 2012. Rintu had filed a complaint in this regard with the Chief Electoral Officer, Punjab, before the 2012 elections.

"Even as we got the reply that it was not possible to delete the votes while the election process was going on, no action was taken against the officials and MLA who was at the core of this fraud," said Rintu.

Rintu said he would file a fresh complaint with the Chief Electoral Officer and Speaker of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha.

Anil Joshi is already in the dock for double registration of votes of his family members in Tarn Taran and Amritsar districts. The Election Commission of India had recently directed the Chief Electoral Officer, Punjab, to initiate criminal proceedings against Joshi in this regard.

Amritsar, January 6
Disappointed over the inaction of the police in arresting the alleged accused who had demolished the rooms belonging to landless labourers at Gagomahal village earlier this month, a delegation of Pendu Mazdoor Union, Kisan Mazdoor Union and Kirti Kisan Union today met Deputy Commissioner Ravi Bhagat and Senior Superintendent of Police Gurpreet Singh.

They demanded the immediate arrest of the accused farmers. They alleged that the Police Department was deliberately delaying their arrest.

Dharminder Ajnala of the Kisan Mazdoor Union said armed farmers headed by Kulwant Singh and his son Nishan Singh demolished eight rooms belonging to landless labourers, took away the rubble and uprooted trees at Gagomahal village. The incident occurred on February 1.

He said the accused fired around 150 to 200 gun shots in the air to intimidate the labourers who belong to the Dalit community. He alleged the culprits also passed casteist remarks.

“We informed the concerned police chowki in-charge and DSP Ajnala but they did not act in time. Certain policemen even helped the accused in taking away the rubble on a tractor trolley,” said Dharminder Ajnala.

The police registered a case under Sections 447, 427, 148 and 149 of the IPC, but that too against unidentified persons. The police did not book them under the Arms Act and the SC/ST Act.

Datar Singh, vice president, Kirti Kisan Union, said around 18 kanals and 12 marlas of common land was reserved for the landless labourers in 2008 for construction of houses.

He said on October 1 last year, accused Nishan Singh and his father Kulwant Singh had tried to usurp the land by demolishing a Valmiki temple. The police remained a mute spectator even then.

The union leaders threatened to gherao the DC office and stage a protest on February 14 if the police failed to take any action.

Amritsar, February 6
More than a dozen persons allegedly attacked a dalit woman and her two sons at Saadhpur village, Chaugawan, falling under the Amritsar Rural Police, about a couple of days ago.

The victim stays in a rented accommodation belonging to Jermanjit Singh Bath, an activist of Joint Platform for Mass Organisation (JPMO), which includes over a dozen farmers, labourers and students unions.

Bath said the incident occurred as he was trying to get the panchayat land, meant for setting up a government dispensary, freed from encroachers.

He alleged that around a dozen miscreants headed by a relative of former sarpanch of the village attacked his residence and injured Ranjit Kaur and her two sons Jatinder Singh and Maninder Singh.

He saved himself by hiding at the house of the village sarpanch. Ranjit Kaur sustained head injury caused by a blunt weapon and is currently under treatment at Tarsikka Hospital. He said the police had failed to arrest the main culprit.

He alleged the police officials were shielding the main culprit as he belonged to the ruling party. He said the police was pressurising the victim to make a compromise with the accused.

SHO, Mattewal police station, Rajbir Singh, however, rebutted the charges and said it was a minor dispute between village youths. The SHO said they went to the hospital for taking the statement of the woman and her sons but they disappeared from there without any intimation.

SMO, Tarsikka Hospital, Dr Satinderjit Singh Bedi, said Ranjit Kaur and her sons did not return after they went for a CT scan at Guru Nanak Dev Hospital. He said they reported the same to the police. 

Amritsar, February 6
The district Health Department inaugurated a dental awareness fortnight at Jallianwala Bagh Martyrs Memorial Civil Hospital here today. It will conclude on February 21.

Presiding over the function, Civil Surgeon Dr Usha Bansal said services such as providing dentures, scaling, polishing and filling would be given free of cost during the fortnight.

District Dental Health Officer Dr Neena said the department would provide 155 free dentures to the patients during the fortnight.

District Immunisation Officer Dr Jaspal Kaur, Senior Medical Officer Dr Hardeep Singh Ghai, SMO Dr Balbir Singh Dhillon, Dr Sukhdev Singh, Dr Sunita Wadawan and Dr Anjana were also present on the occasion.

Amritsar, February 6
Guru Nanak Dev University will organise a one-day national seminar on ‘Contributions of Balraj Sahni to the Punjabi Community’ on February 12 at Guru Nanak Bhawan Auditorium.

About 15 scholars from various parts of the country will present their research papers in the seminar.

Director of the seminar, Dr Darya, said Vice Chancellor Prof AS Brar would inaugurate it while former Professor of Delhi University, Dr Jagbir Singh, would preside over it.

Dean, Academic Affairs, Punjabi University, Patiala, Dr Jaswinder Singh, would be the chief guest while Chairman, Punjabi Studies, Panjab University, Chandigarh, Dr Sukhdev Singh Sirsa, would deliver the keynote address, he said

“The contribution of this famous actor and writer will be discussed at length in this seminar”, said Dr Darya.

Amritsar, February 6
All India Inter-University Judo (Women’s) Championship 2013-14 began here today at the Indoor Multipurpose Gymnasium Hall. This championship is being organised by the physical education department of Guru Nanak Dev University.

As many as 56 universities and 400 women players are participating in it. On the first day, the competitions in 44 kg, 48 kg and 52 kg categories were held. This championship would conclude on February 8.

Dean, Academic Affairs, Prof MS Hundal was the chief guest and observer, Prof KA Tarjan, was the guest of honour on this occasion.

Deputy Director, Sports and head of the department, Dr HS Randhawa, welcomed the chief guest and others.

Prof Hundal said the players should play with the spirit of sportsmanship without bothering about the results. “Sports are essential along with studies for the overall development of one’s personality,” he said. 

Amritsar, February 6
After a meeting with officials of the state Health Department, the state Nursing Association has refused to wear uniforms till the time they are given a uniform allowance at par with Central Government employees.

Nursing Association president Raj Bedi Anand said, "The nurses had stopped wearing uniforms in protest against the paltry allowance around 15 years ago. There is no point in wearing the uniforms now, even as the uniform allowance has not been increased."

She said nurses were being paid around Rs 400 as yearly uniform allowance which was low. The association has also expressed its anguish against the deployment of nurses on other duties.

"She said the patient care was suffering as nurses were overburdened with other duties. The members of the association said they were wearing white aprons so that patients and attendants could identify them. The issue regarding nurses not wearing uniforms was recently pointed out by Health Minister Surjit Kumar Jiani. He said all nurses should start wearing uniforms.

Amritsar, February 6
One may fancy eating food prepared by celebrity chefs at high priced restaurants and savour the choicest recipes in the menu. But the best cooked meal always comes from mother’s kitchen. Ask Arundeep Singh, a baker from Amritsar and he will vouch for it.

Adding another feather to his already decorated culinary cap, the 41-year-old baker participated in Sanjeev Kapoor’s cooking reality show, Kitchen Ke Khiladi.

He not only cooked well, but also pipped celebrity chef Ajay Chopra. “My recipe for the show was a three-layered Marzipan cake. It was a very tough competition as I had to put up against a professional chef and the competition ended in a tie. But mine was chosen as the winning recipe in the end,” said Arundeep Singh.

Arundeep is also excited about being credited with the title ‘King of Cakes’ by Sanjeev Kapoor. “Well, when he calls somebody like that, it means the person has got to be special,” he said.

Accompanied by his family to Mumbai for the show, Arundeep had to first clear the auditions in Chandigarh. The level of efficiency and precision required to cook live on television didn’t affect his confidence. “When you have been cooking for your entire life, efficiency is not an issue,” he said.

He is the second resident from the city after Satpal Kaur to be a part of the show. “It’s what Amritsar is known for. Food is a passion for Amritsaris, whether savouring or cooking. I feel proud to have done my bit to prove it yet again,” he said.

His wife Rubina, runs classes of her own and shares his passion for baking.

Amritsar, February 6
Managing their mane is a tough job even for women who are busy multi-tasking with the most difficult jobs in the world. It’s not just the local trends, one has to keep a global trend update and the wish for a makeover is forever there.

Easing it out for Amritsar fashion lovers, VLCC hosted international stylist duo of Vanera Nurakhenova and Ferida Abylbekova for a makeover session. The Dubai-based duo known for giving total makeovers, with a loyal European and Middle-Eastern clientele, not just made the day for more than 15 odd women but also gave easy tips to others.

“Makeover is not just about applying make-up and doing hair innovatively, but it should be in line with a client’s lifestyle needs and personality,” said Vanera.

On their maiden visit to India, the duo, who has been into the beauty industry for 30 years now, shared that looking beautiful was a combined effort of inner and outer self. “I believe that Indian women are easy to work on as they are naturally beautiful, with good skin tone and hair,” said Ferida.

Their brief two-week visit in India will make them travel to metros as well as small towns like Jammu. “Women in small towns are equally fashion conscious and aware as in metros. They are even more groomed than the multi-tasking women of Mumbai or Delhi,” said Ferida.

Spelling out some trends for the season, Ferida said, “Long hair are in, whether with extensions or hair styles. Coloured hair are here to stay, preferably bold hues like reds and pinks. One doesn’t need to go overboard with haircuts. Just a bit of styling does the trick.”