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5 cops chargesheeted
Chandigarh, February 21 The five constables, who were dismissed immediately after the case broke on December 19 last year, are in judicial custody at present. The chargesheet has been filed against constables Akshay, Sunil, Jagtar, Himmat Singh and Anil. According to the chargesheet, constables Akshay and Sunil raped the girl while the remaining three threatened and molested her. The 17-year-old victim, a resident of Khuda Lahora village, is a Class X student in a government school. Sources said the CFSL report in the case was awaited and had not been attached to the chargesheet. The sources said on the basis of the victim's statements and the evidence on record, it came to light that two constables had raped her repeatedly while the other three were part of the conspiracy and molested her. The case was registered on December 19, 2013, when the girl, who was harassed by the five constables, was on the way to commit suicide when she narrated the incident to her brother. Her brother informed the area councillor, who informed the police following which the action was taken. According to the complaint, it all started one-and-a-half-months ago prior to the registration of the case when the girl had to dial the 100 number owing to a dispute at her Khuda Lahora residence. As the police reached the spot, constable Akshay, who also resides in the same locality, and constable Sunil were there in the PCR vehicle. Constable Akshay called her the next day and offered to meet her. After becoming friends, he began to exploit her physically. Constable Sunil also joined in and raped her, she alleged. Soon, three other constables used to meet her and often molested her and sexually harassed her. She stated in the complaint that the accused used to force her into taking contraceptive pills and raped her repeatedly in their accommodation. The next date of hearing in the case is February 28 when arguments for framing of charges will begin in the court.
2 charged with rape, three with criminal conspiracy
Two of the five constables who were booked have been charged with rape while the remaining three have been charged with criminal conspiracy, threatening and molesting the minor girl. |
Rose Fest gets off to a colourful start
Chandigarh, February 21 UT Administrator Shivraj V Patil inaugurated the festival. The Administrator released a "rose folder" on the occasion. There was something or the other for people from all walks of life. While the flower hat competition attracted youngsters, who were seen getting their pictures clicked wearing hats decorated with flowers, music lovers were seen thronging the corner that had various brass and pipe bands playing soothing music. As the day progressed, the cultural programme at the main stage attracted a large crowd. Folk dances of various states and distinctive regional art forms depicted the "unity in diversity" culture of the country. The preliminary rounds of Miss and Mr Rose competition were held in the evening followed by a "hasya kavi sammelan". The three-day event will have various competitions such as an on-the-spot painting competition, flower arrangements, cut flowers, flowers grown in pots and a kite-flying competition. Fun games and food stalls at Leisure Valley
Adding to the attraction were fun games and food stalls at the Leisure Valley, hosted by CITCO. "CITCO Da Vehra" had a variety of mouthwatering dishes, which were being served to visitors. Besides, food stalls by various organisations also offered delicious food.
Food stall of Snehalaya
A stall of food items cooked by inmates of Snehalaya was also set up on the occasion. Rajmah-chawal and channa-bhatura were served to visitors.
Folk dance competition
Six teams participated in the folk dance competition. Sarvjit Singh, Finance Secretary, UT, was the chief guest during the competition. Government High School, Khuda Lahora, won the competition, Government High School, Daddu Majra, was second, while Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 32, was adjudged third. Schedule for Day 2 at Rose Garden
Musical evening at Leisure Valley
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Uphill outing turns fatal
Panchkula, February 21 The victims, Maninder, Harshdeep, Dalwinder and Balwinder, were taken to the General Hospital, Sector 6, Panchkula, where Maninder was declared brought dead. Dalwinder was referred to the PGI, while Balwinder and Harshdeep have been admitted to the General Hospital. The impact of the accident was so strong that the car overturned and got badly damaged. The police said Harshdeep was behind the wheels at the time of the accident. A passerby saw the overturned car and informed the police, who rescued the victims from the crushed car. According to the police, Maninder's father works with the Marketing Board, Punjab. The condition of Balwinder and Harshdeep is said to be stable, while Dalwinder is admitted to the Advanced Trauma Centre at the PGI. He has suffered serious injuries on his leg. "Maninder's father said he was informed by his son that he was going with his friends for an outing to Kasauli. The youths did not notice the divider and rammed into it," said a police official. A case has been registered. |
Complaints of substandard food on board Shatabdi
Chandigarh, February 21 During this period, five complaints of substandard food being served on board the Shatabdi have been received by the authorities. There have also been complaints of food not being served on time. On February 5, harried passengers pulled the emergency alarm chain on the New Delhi-Chandigarh Shatabdi after they were not served food. The train stopped on the outskirts of the Chandigarh railway station and was allowed to move only after the passengers were served food. Sources said the contractor had been changed and his staff were unaware about the meal distribution system, which caused the delay in serving the food. Officials admit that complaints were trickling in even after close monitoring by the railway authorities. Ambala Division Senior Divisional Commercial Manager Gulshan said they had received complaints and the matter was resolved by issuing the necessary instructions to the contractor. Another complaint received by the authorities of Ambala Division was about the unhygienic condition of the pantry on board the afternoon Shatabdi. A team was sent for inspection which testified that it was in bad shape. The team suggested that a fine should be imposed on the contractor. Protest report
Taking cognisance of the protest by Kalka-New Delhi Shatabdi vendors yesterday, which caused a delay in the departure of the train, Ambala Division has sent a detailed report to the Northern Headquarters about it, which will decide the action to be taken in the matter.
Two suspended, SHO sent to Lines
The Railway Protection Force (RPF) has suspended two RPF employees and sent the SHO concerned, Balkar, to the Lines for failing to handle the situation at the Kalka railway station properly. Those suspended are Assistant Sub-Inspector Babu Lal and ASI Ratan. Sources said an inquiry was conducted by the RPF on Friday. |
Empty flower beds greet visitors to Rose Fest
Chandigarh, February 21 The flowers beds that were found almost empty included aswini, gemini, botero, lady, gladiator, grand opera, Eiffel Tower, red hot, golden, sun set, red flesh, tiki, konfetti roses and marco polo. Sidharth Thakur, one of the visitors to the Rose Festival, said it was surprising to find that a majority of the flower beds had less flowers and many were empty. Ashish Dogra, another visitor, said: “The major attraction of the festival is flowers. It seems the MC’s Horticulture Department was focused towards organising the function rather than ensuring that the flowers are blooming”.
“The Rose Festival is about blooming roses, which are missing this year from the festival,” he said. Rose Garden is spread over 40 acres and has around 13,500 flower-beds. The MC was handed over the maintenance of the garden around three years ago. This is the third time the MC is organising the Rose Festival. Earlier, the UT Administration used to host it. Sources said the lack of proper manuring had resulted in flowers getting withered and empty flower beds. Area councillor Pardeep Chhabra, agreeing with the fact that a large number of flower beds were found either empty or with a few number of flowers, said: “It is not compulsory to hold the Rose Festival at the end of February only. If the flowers are not ready by February-end, then the festival can be held in some other month so that the visitors get to see all varieties of roses.” Municipal Corporation chief engineering SS Bidda said only a few flower beds were empty.
Stalls videographed at Leisure Valley
Chandigarh: The Vigilance Cell of the UT police conducted a videography of some of the stalls at the Leisure Valley following a tip-off on gambling. The police also checked the allocation record related to the Chandigarh Tourism Department. Sleuths of the Vigilance Cell videographed the stalls offering the service of fun games and giant swings. — TNS |
AAP spreads wings in City Beautiful
Rajinder Nagarkoti Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, February 21 With the joining of prominent persons, such as Savita Bhatti, Gul Panag’s father Lt Gen HS Panag (retd), Milkha Singh’s wife Nirmal Kaur and industrialist MPS Chawla, the party is attracting known faces from different fields. AAP volunteer Gurjusjit Singh said not only prominent faces, but people from villages and colonies were also joining the party. Munish Kumar Raizada, a Chicago-based doctor, who is campaigning for AAP in various parts of the city, said, “Be it rickshaw-pullers, youngsters or senior citizens, people want to bring an end to the corrupt political system.” Party’s founder Arvind Kejriwal had recently included sitting MP Pawan Kumar Bansal’s name in the list of “corrupt politicians”. With the aim to boost the morale of local volunteers, the party leaders have announced that a strong candidate will be fielded from the city for the upcoming elections. The party recently interviewed seven people from city to finalise the candidate. Sources said the main challenge before the party would be to ensure its members work as a team rather than working in different groups. Congress workers flay TN Chief Minister
Workers of the local Congress unit today protested against Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa at Sector 35. They condemned her decision to free the accused in Rajiv Gandhi's assassination. At another event, the workers distributed milk bottles to schoolchildren and sportspersons to counter BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narender Modi’s “Chai par Charcha” campaign. The party workers said more than tea, young India needed nutritious milk.
BSP campaigns at PU
Bahujan Samaj Party’s candidate Jannat Jahan today campaigned from door to door at the residential area of Panjab University. Jannat said if elected, she would take steps for ensuring women’s safety in the city. She said arrangements would be made to ensure that woman feel secure even at night.
First-time voters: City fourth among UTs
In terms of maximum first-time voters, aged between 18 and 19 years, the City Beautiful is ranked fourth among the seven union territories. The data released by the Election Commission of India states that Chandigarh has a total of 18,170 voters in the age group of 18 to 19 years, of which 11,593 are male. Delhi has 2.26 lakh voters in the same age group, followed by Puducherry with 29,187 and Dadra and Nagar Haveli with 18,655 voters. As per the UT Election Department, there are 5.8 lakh voters in the city: 3.1 lakh male and 2.6 lakh female. |
Bi-weekly chugs off to Thiruvananthapuram
Chandigarh, February 21 The bi-weekly train was today flagged off by the Mayor, HC Kalyan, from the Chandigarh railway station in presence of over 200 people. The train number 12218 will depart from Chandigarh every Wednesday and Friday at 8.55 am and reach Kochuveli station at 2.45 am two days hence. On the return journey, the train number 12217 will depart for the city every Monday and Saturday at 9.15 am and reach here at 3.45 am on Wednesday and Monday respectively. The proposal to increase the frequency of the train was approved in the last Railway Budget, which was tabled by former minister Pawan Kumar Bansal. The Chandigarh Malayalee Association put up special banners thanking the local MP, who was not present on the occasion. Association’s secretary CR Benny said besides tourism, the train service would help in promoting trade between both the places. |
Probe marked against board secretary
Panchkula, February 21 A probe into the matter would be conducted by Sessions Judge (retd) Aarti Bhasin. The allegations made by the complainant, who did not name himself, alleged that Dahiya gets his personal work done from officials and also threatens employees of market committees. The complaint was addressed to the Chief Administrator. The secretary of Haryana Marketing Board, Virender Dahiya, said, “I myself request officers to conduct the enquiry. Usually anonymous complaints go down the plughole, but as I am clean I want this enquiry to be conducted.” |
Chandigarh, February 21 Dr Amod Gupta’s retirement is scheduled for next year. Till then, he will continue as the Dean. Dr Gupta completed his three-year tenure as the Dean today. He was recently awarded Padma Bhushan for his exceptional contribution in the field of ophthalmology. He is currently the head of the Advanced Eye Centre. — TNS |
Mohali civic body nets Rs 82 lakh
Our Correspondent
Mohali, February 21 The highest bid was received for the parking lot at Phase VII, while the lowest was offered for the Phase IX market area. Commissioner of the corporation Uma Shankar Gupta said, “Against the reserve price of Rs 7 lakh, the bidder has offered Rs 26 lakh for the parking lot in Phase VII. The situation was just the opposite in Phase IX, where the contractor placed a bid for Rs 5 lakh against the reserve price of Rs 2 lakh.” Gupta said the civic body was expecting revenue of about Rs 55 lakh, but it managed to earn Rs 82 lakh. Markets at Phases X (four parking lots), IX (four lots), VII (three lots), III-B2 (three lots) and V (five lots) will have paid-parking areas. Gupta said two contractors have been given the responsibility of carrying out the work of paid parking. The MC Commissioner said agreements with the contractors would be signed next week and they would be given 15 days to equip themselves for the work. The civic body has already started marking parking lots and the work of premix carpeting would be finished before handing over the same to the contractors, said the MC Commissioner. The market area of Phase V requires a premix carpet, while the condition of others areas is comparatively better, said the Municipal Corporation Commissioner, Uma Shankar Gupta. |
Mohali, February 21 The SMO in charge of the hospital, Andesh Kang, said a session was also organised by Dr Pawanpreet Kaur to create awareness about oral health. The latter along with Dr Simrat Sidhu and Dr Mandeep Mann rendered outdoor and surgical services to 916 patients. The department distributed 41 dentures, performed 115 extractions, 125 permanent fillings, 80 scaling, 100 temporary fillings and 24 RCTs. — OC |
Day 2: Shooting of film continues
Chandigarh, February 21 The production house that held the shooting at the centre had taken permission for a get-together. As per rule, no commercial activity can be organised at community centres. Darshan Aulakh, who runs a production house, has sought the permission for February 20 and 21 on the pretext of a ‘get-together’. However, the centre was used to shoot a Punjabi film. The MC has failed to act in the matter as the shooting continued till late this evening. AK Dadwal, MC Official on Special Duty, who is also the in charge of booking of the community centre, said they could not act as everybody was busy with the Rose Festival. “We have decided to seek an explanation from the supervisor of the centre for not informing us about the film shooting,” he said. Arun Sood, BJP councillor, and leader of the Opposition, said MC officials knew about the shooting. “It’s surprising that the MC officials failed to act even after the matter was brought into their knowledge, which shows that they wanted to favour the production house”, he said. Congress councillor Mukesh Bassi said there was no clarity in the MC guidelines on the booking of community centres. “ The activities banned at these centres should be clearly mentioned,” the councillor said. |
National Youth Policy-2014 launched
Chandigarh, February 21 It was launched at the Government College of Education in Sector 20, Chandigarh. The policy was launched by the UT Special Secretary, Finance,-cum-Director, Higher Education, Sandeep Hans, PCS. The function was organised by Nehru Yuva Kendra in collaboration with NSS. During the ceremony, the chief guest emphasised upon the youth policy and its benefits. The National Youth Policy is a comprehensive policy document that states the vision of the Government of India for the youth of the country. It is a guiding document for all the government- concerned departments. After the function, a youth rally was flagged off by Sandeep Hans. The rally was largely attended by students from various institutions. — TNS |
Charanjiv re-elected Beopar Mandal chief
Chandigarh, February 21 Charanjiv Singh defeated his opponent Ravi Kansal with a margin of 209 votes. Out of the total 400 votes, 379 traders exercised their franchise today. Charanjiv got 294 votes, whereas Ravi Kansal got only 85 votes. The voting started at 9am and continued till 3pm. Thereafter, Sat Pal Gupta, chairman of the election committee, announced the name of Charanjiv as the winner. — TNS |
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Declare Punjabi official language of UT: Manch
Chandigarh, February 21 Writers, poets, intellectuals, Punjabi language enthusiasts, prominent persons, panches, sarpanches and office-bearers of the Pendu Sangharsh Committee, Chandigarh, led by Ram Arshi, took part in the protest. Devi Dyal Sharma, general secretary of the manch, asked the Administration to declare Punjabi as the official language. The Punjabi language as compulsory subject should be taught up to Class X in all schools. Arrangement of sufficient number of teachers be made. The manch has threatened to intensify its agitation if the Administration fails to provide official status to Punjabi. Later, a deputation of the manch met the UT Administrator and handed over a memorandum to him in this regard. |
Business News
Tata Docomo announced the launch of new technologically advanced Tata Docomo Exclusive Store in Chandigarh. Located at Sector 9-D, SCO 28, 29 and 30 in Chandigarh, the newly-launched retail store allows visitors to explore the digital future on their own terms and get a first-hand experience. This is Tata Docomo’s 9th exclusive brand retail store in the tricity, taking the total stores count to sixteen.
Floriculture, horticulture exhibitions begin
Chandigarh is hosting the 6th International Horti Expo 2014 and 9th International Flora Expo 2014 at Fair Ground in Sector 34. The exhibition, which started on Friday, will continue till February 22. “The expos have been shifted to Chandigarh, owing to a demand by a large number of suppliers,” said S Jafar Naqvi, president of iFlora, the Indian Flowers and Ornamental Plants Welfare Association.
Panasonic launches two new feature phones
Panasonic India marked its entry into the feature phone market by launching two new phones—EZ240 and EZ180. Continuing with its focus on the mobility segment and following up on the recent success in the smartphones category, these phones are designed to deliver an affordable mobile experience to its consumers.
India’s first online mathematics contest
Smartur.com, a digital education solutions company, announced its Maths Proficiency Test (MPT) for students of Classes VI to X at the national-level. The test has been designed to give parents and teachers an in-depth understanding of each student’s strengths and weaknesses. The key features of the online tool are instant real-time scoring and ranking, detailed performance reports and suggestions for improvements to parents by emails and preparatory worksheets with detailed solutions and rewards for top rankers. — TNS |
Tricity Scan
City-based astrologer, writer and columnist Madan Gupta Spatu has been facilitated in recognition of his valuable contribution to the fields of astrology, religion, culture and literature, by the Future Point in collaboration with the All-India Astrological Federation of India during a function held at the Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, on Thursday. He has been conferred with the honorary degree of 'Devegya Shiromani' (equivalent to doctorate) for his writings in astrology and literature for the past 41 years. A gold medal, a memento, a citation and a shawl was given to him at the Nakshatra Hall by the two organisations. Workshop
The Chandigarh Judicial Academy organised a workshop on stress management for trainee judicial officers and faculty members on its campus in Sector 43, Chandigarh. Over 65 trainee judicial officers from Haryana participated in the two- hour interactive session conducted by Col Gursewak Singh (retd), a city-based consultant on stress management.
Ailing patient needs help
A 26-year-old patient suffering from renal failure is in need of Rs 4 lakh for her kidney transplant. Vikas, a resident of Ramdarbar, has been struggling to find a donor and also in meeting the daily expenses of dialysis for survival. He is currently seeking treatment from the PGIMER. Those interested in providing help to the patient can contact his mother at 09888034676. — TNS |
Technology key to economic growth, says Governor
Mohali, February 21 Over 400 teams from prominent institutions, including Panjab University, Thapar University, Punjabi University, Delhi University and 50 polytechnic colleges, are participating in the three-day national-level event. More than 50 categories of technical, non-technical and cultural competitions form a part of the event. Shivraj Patil said more emphasis should be laid on generating knowledge instead of borrowing it from books. He said initially borrowing knowledge from books was required, but the aim should be to generate it, which was new. Addressing the gathering after inaugurating the state-level CU Fest-2014, Patil described technology as an important tool for the economic growth. A modern and relevant technological infrastructure enabled the country to generate the utilised knowledge and innovations. He said Chandigarh University had persuaded students to manufacture new kind of vehicles. He said: “Within the next 50 years, we will not use the present kind of vehicles run on petrol and diesel. Future vehicles will be run by solar energy. Therefore, universities should put more emphasis on introducing the concept of modern and latest technology to introduce the concept of solar energy on their campuses”. He showed a keen interest in an exhibition put up on the campus. The Governor conferred the Pride of Punjab Award on three persons for making the Punjabi community proud worldwide and their rich contribution to their respective fields. Those honoured were DP Singh, vice-president, HR, IBM, for his contribution in the field of IT; Vinod Dua in the field of journalism; and Rajendra Gupta, chairman, Trident Group, in the field of entrepreneurship. The Governor also honoured Team Moon Buggy, Chandigarh University, with the International Achievement Award-2014 for bagging the first position in Asia. Team Proton was honoured with the National Achievement Award- 2014 for winning the Best Design Award in the Manual Powered Vehicle category. Rock band Euphoria led by noted singer and actor Palash Sen left the audience spellbound with his numbers. — OC |
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Students prepare bio-diesel from waste cooking oil
Mohali, February 21 A setup has also been made for testing the bio-diesel, which consists of a single-cylinder four-stroke Kirloskar engine with a rope-type dynamometer. Three types of fuels have been prepared, namely B10, B20 and B30, for different blends of waste cooking oil bio-diesel. The fuels have been tested and compared with diesel fuel. From the experimental data, it was observed that brake thermal efficiency increases when the load is increased for all operations of diesel and WCO bio-diesel blends. This was because of the reduction in heat loss and increase in power with increase in load. Brake thermal efficiencies of all blends of WCO bio-diesel with diesel were close. The brake thermal efficiency of B10 blend was almost similar to conventional diesel fuel. It shows that higher cetane number and inherent presence of oxygen in bio-diesel results in better combustion. The brake thermal efficiency of B20 and B30 blends was 18.31 per cent and 17.94 per cent at full load condition, whereas for B10 the thermal efficiency observed was 18.54 per cent, which was near to diesel at full load conditions. — OC |
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Farewell party
Chandigarh: Junior students of St Joseph’s Senior Secondary School, Sector 44-D, organised a farewell ceremony to bid adieu to the outgoing Class XII students. Bhagwant Singh of Class XII (Science) was declared Mr Josephite, while Ankita bagged the title of Ms Josephite. Computers donated
AKSIPS, Sector 41, along with the Brij Kanwal Foundation (BK Foundation), donated 10 computers to Shri Guru Gobind Singh Senior Secondary School, Sector 35, here. The noble gesture aimed at lending a helping hand to students to equip themselves with the computer education. It was appreciated by the management of Shri Guru Gobind Singh Senior Secondary School, Sector 35. MI Quiz
Panchkula: Students of Classes I and II had their annual MI Quiz in the school auditorium. A few parents were also invited for the occasion. The topics ranged from famous personalities to mental maths and modern gadgets. The students participated with full enthusiasm. Meritorious students felicitated
Around 500 students of The British School, Sector 8, participated in the Achievement Day function with enthusiasm. Meritorious students were felicitated for their achievements of the whole year. Each and every student of the school was awarded with a title of appreciation. Special award ceremony
Bhavan Vidyalaya School, Sector 15, organised a special award ceremony for the outstanding achievements in sports for all games. Principal Shashi Banerjee graced the function and distributed trophies among the students. She congratulated the students and the Sports Department for their wonderful achievements. Foundation Day celebrated
Jainendra Gurukul School, Sector 1, celebrated 86th Foundation Day on the school premises in collaboration with the Forum of Senior Citizens in Education, a non-political and non-commercial voluntary body, here on Friday. An inter-school declamation contest was organised to commemorate the memory of Swami Dhani Ram and Acharya Krishan Chand, who were the founders of the school on this day in 1929. The flag was unfurled by VK Jain, Secretary, Jainendra Gurukul, Panchkula. — TNS |
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PU remembers Dr Bhatnagar
Chandigarh, February 21 PU VC Prof AK Grover congratulated the Bhatnagar awardees, including Professor SV Kessar (Professor Emeritus, Centre of Advanced Studies in Chemistry, PU), Professor IBS Passi (Professor Emeritus, Centre of Advanced Studies in Mathematics, PU), Dr GPS Raghava and Dr Javed N Agrewala (CSIR-IMTECH, Chandigarh), and other dignitaries and guests. Prof Devang V Khakhar recalled the contribution of Dr Bhatnagar for the development of higher education in the country and IITs. He delivered the commemorative lecture on flow, mixing and segregation of granular material. — TNS |
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Founder’s day celebrated
Private players have a significant role in the education and skill development of the younger generation in the state, said Madan Mohan Mittal, Minister of Industry, Commerce and Technical Education, Government of Punjab, during the founder’s day celebration of Desh Bhagat University. Mittal applauded the role of Desh Bhagat educational institutions in providing professional and technical education in the state. RK Verma, Secretary, Department of Technical Education and Industrial Training, was the guest of honour. While addressing the students, he highlighted the importance of the professional and technical education in the fast changing global scenario. Dr Zora Singh, Chancellor of Desh Bhagat University, highlighted the salient features of the university. Students get placements
Three multi-national companies - Crystal Crop Protection Private Limited, IDBI Bank and Magic Holidays - selected and offered lucrative package to MBA final-year students of SAS IIT campus in Mohali. The selected candidates include Amit Badhera, Amit Sharma, Ketan Sharma, Akashdeep, Aamir Baathla, Lakhvir Singh and Ankur. The chairman of the SAS Group of Institutions, Dr JS Dhaliwal, congratulated the selected candidates. — TNS |
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