Ludhiana, February 23
With most long-route trains running full, thousands of people, especially the sizeable migrant population settled here, are finding it difficult to travel to their native places for the coming festival of Holi.

Right now, most trains to major cities in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have “no room” (when waiting list is also exhausted).

Railway officials admitted in several trains such as 18110 Muri Express, 13308 Ganga-Sutlej Express, 12492 Maur-Dhawaj Express and 13050 Howrah Express, there is “no room”. These trains pass through major towns in UP and Bihar.

For trains to Katihar, Darbhanga, Saharsa, Patna, Gorakhpur, Allahabad, Ranchi and Dhanbad, the waiting lists in the sleeper class have crossed the 300 mark, and chances of the tickets getting confirmed were dismal.

It was officially stated that the waiting list for a journey to be undertaken around March 14 and 15 (two or three days ahead of Holi) from the city to Katihar in 15708 Amrapali Express had reached the 350 mark. There were more than 300 names on the waiting list for a journey to Darbhanga in 14674 Shaheed Express.

Similarly, for travelling to Patna around those dates, the waiting list for 12318 Akal Takht Express has more than 550 names and that for 12332 Himgiri Express has more than 220 names.

“No room” flashes on the screen while booking tickets online for 13050 Howrah Express.

Feeling to have been left in the lurch, people, who want to celebrate the festival of colours at their native places, are now looking to the Northern Railway authorities to run special trains.

“The railway authorities should announce special trains to all major towns of UP and Bihar well in time so that people can make their travel plans and get reservation,” said Prem Parkash Mandal, a contractor.

Senior officials at the Divisional Headquarters of the Northern Railway in Ferozepur said a proposal for running several festival trains had been sent to the Railway Headquarters in New Delhi to cope with the rush of passengers ahead of Holi.

“We shall make an official announcement as and when the exact schedule of these trains is approved,” said an official.

Ludhiana, February 23
While the police maintained injuries inflicted on Gulzar Singh Chaudhary (60) of Ali Majra village, near Rajpura, were not life threatening and the latter was suspected to have died due to cardiac arrest, sources in the Civil Hospital revealed the victim had died due to a fatal head injury.

Sources in the autopsy unit of the Civil Hospital said besides multiple injuries, the victim had suffered a critical head injury, which led to his death.

His viscera would be sent to a special laboratory.

Yesterday, a three-member board of Dr Pradeep Kumar, Dr Sudesh Kumari, Dr Davinder Kumar conducted a postmortem examination of the body following allegations that Gulzar, the victim, was a buffalo thief and he died due to cardiac arrest.

Gulzar's relatives claimed the police were cooking up the cardiac arrest theory to help the policemen involved in the case.

Senior Medical Officer (SMO) RK Karkara said he could not see the report as it was a holiday today.

A case under sections 302, 365, 363, 148 and 149 of the IPC has been registered against six persons, including Head Constable Perminder Singh, Home Guards jawan Deepak Kumar, Bhupinder Singh, alias Soma, Ashu and Gahley.

While Deepak, Ghaley and Ashu have been nabbed, efforts are on to arrest the prime accused, Parminder Singh and Bhupinder Singh Soma. 

Police is shielding accused, say kin

Gulzar's relatives claimed the police were cooking up the cardiac arrest theory to help the policemen involved in the case. 

Ludhiana, February 23
Life has really been cruel to 66-year-old Kuldeep Kaur, widow of an Army officer. She is not only looking after her deserted daughter, but also running from pillar to post to arrange money for the treatment of her 5-year-old granddaughter, who is suffering from blood cancer.

"In the past three months, I have spent nearly Rs 3.5 lakh on the treatment of my granddaughter Ranmeet Kaur. I have almost exhausted all my savings. I desperately need money to continue her treatment," said Kuldeep Kaur.

The family learnt about the girl’s ailment three months ago. "My granddaughter fell during an athletics meet held at her school and suffered a fracture. She had a high fever and her platelets dropped substantially," said Kuldeep Kaur.

Ranmeet Kaur was admitted to the Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH). When the fever did not reduce, Ranmeet's bone marrow sample was sent to a special laboratory. "The news that Ranmeet was suffering from blood cancer devastated our lives completely. Since then we have been spending money on her treatment," said Kuldeep Kaur, a resident of Maharaj Nagar.

Ranmeet's mother claimed that she had sought help from her husband, against whom she had filed a divorce suit, but he refused.

Dr Shruti Kakkar from the DMCH confirmed the girl was undergoing treatment. The family could be contacted on mobile No. 9988006562. 

Ludhiana, February 23
A major tragedy was averted when an SUV rammed into the barrier of a level crossing on the Pakhowal Road here. While the gate man was removing the broken barrier from the track, the SUV driver fled from the spot.

According to Station Superintendent RK Sharma, the incident took place at around 5.30 pm when the gate man was in the process of lifting the barrier at the B-3 level crossing on the Ludhiana-Ferozepur section after a trolley of track inspectors had passed. The SUV driver made a hurried attempt to cross the barrier and hit the horizontal iron bar. It broke away and fell near the track.

Sharma said had the mishap happened during the passage of a goods or passenger train, the consequences would have been disastrous.

He said the case has been reported to the GRP and the RPF who have registered a case under appropriate sections of the IPC and Railway Act for reckless driving and causing damage to the railway property.

Gautam Mahajan, a Model Town-based industrialist, said in 2003, he had exported cycle parts to a Kenya-based company. Gautam alleged that the bank employees made a fake letter of credit (LC) and usurped Rs 50 lakh.

He said he had faced lot of harassment and had to make 25 trips to Kenya in connection with the case. — TNS

Ludhiana, February 23
The cast and crew of the upcoming Punjabi movie ‘Proud to be Sikh’ was here for a promotional event. Actors Amrit Pal Singh Billa, Harvinder Singh, Rakinder Kaur, director Satdeep Singh and producer Dr Rupinder Singh were present on the occasion.

Director Satdeep Singh said the movie had the message of universal brotherhood, which is the foundation of Sikhism.

He said it was a story of a college professor who went abroad during riots and was shocked at the behaviour of young Sikhs who had forgotten Sikh values. He struggled to bring them back to the roots and made them realise the great human values of Sikhism.

He said the songs of the movie were in hip-hop style but their message was rooted in quintessential Sikh values. Satdeep said the music was composed by V-grooves. The movie is scheduled to be released on April 4. Most of the movie was shot in and around Ludhiana, he said. 

Ludhiana, February 23
During a talk organised by Brahma Kumaris Vishwa Shanti Sadan today, Brahma Kumari Shivani said parents must ensure their children share everything with them so as to reduce the communication gap in their relationtionship. Parents shouldn't rebuff children for anything negative they do and rather guide and counsel them, she said.

She gave a different concept of women’s empowerment during the talk. Rather than concentrating on career and economic independence, she talked about the spiritual and psychological aspects of the issue. She said, being a pivot of a family, a woman had immense power to spiritually transform herself and her family.

She said women must be cautious of television serials and the values they promote. Though people generally say that the negative elements shown on television already exist in society, she was of the view that these were limited to a few homes and showing them in serials could play a big role in vitiating the homely atmosphere in whole society.

Talking about a better familial atmosphere at home, she said silence during a conjugal spat could do great harm, so reverting to normal talk soon helps creating a positive and happy environment at home.

Shivani said women have to empower themselves by protecting themselves from negative emotions and by changing their attitude towards different situations.

She said at least once in the morning and before going to sleep, the first and the last thought must be the remembrance of God to purify and empower the soul.

She said women must make at least one meal for the family as food prepared with love and spiritual thoughts nourishes the mind.

She was of the view that by controlling the mind and the way women react to other’s opinions, they can feel more powerful, transform their families positively, along with pursuing individual goals. 

Ludhiana, February 23
Guru Nanak International Public School, Model Town, organised an orientation programme for the parents of newcomers in Nursery and LKG classes, here today.

The programme began with a welcome note by the Principal, Gurmant Kaur Gill, who emphasized on the need for the overall development of a child's personality. She also assured the parents that this institution would prove to be the best educational platform for their wards.

The counsellor and co-ordinator of pre-primary classes, Abhineet Kaur Sarna, highlighted the pivotal role played by the parents in the upbringing of their children. This was followed by an interactive session. The panel answered the queries of the parents. 

A member of the National Commission for Safai Karamcharis was in the city to address the problems of safai sewaks. He held a meeting with the officials at Bachat Bhawan but they were busy making arrangements for Narender Modi’s rally at Jagraon. When asked if he was satisfied with the facilities being given to safai-karamcharis, the member said he was disappointed with the way the state government was treating them. More than the real problem, he kept on asking the mediapersons to mention about Deputy Commissioner’s absence from the meeting in the report. “I have been appointed by the Centre but your DC seems to be too busy in making arrangements for Narendra Modi, Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister,” he said. When somebody pointed out that another IAS officer was present in the meeting on behalf of the DC, he asked, “That is ok, but why the Deputy Commissioner is not here?” An official in the meeting remarked, “Perhaps the member is missing the DC too much. He seems to be more bothered about the DC than addressing the real problem.”

Brazen violation

If the name plates affixed over the number plate of the vehicle proclaiming the owner to be some office-bearer of a political party, an NGO, so called anti-corruption groups, or even a liquor contractor or a sarpanch, are any indication, then it seems that every third vehicle on the city road belongs to a (self-proclaimed) ‘VIP’. Affixing any such identification plate over the number plate is an offence under the provisions of the Motor Vehicle Act is another story. On its part, the city traffic police, it seems, has its hands full with the plethora of traffic problems and increasing inclination among the city residents to violate traffic rules wherever they can. That could be the only reason that all such vehicles where identification plates to proclaim one’s profession, designation or status, are fixed over the number plates are having a ‘free run’ on the city roads.

Repetitive speeches

As the Lok Sabha elections are approaching, different political parties have started holding rallies. Some political leaders address the gatherings with a lot of enthusiasm but many a times they repeat their speeches. The smart audience immediately gets to know that they have not worked hard on their speech. During a rally, one such audience said, “Such leaders should deliver fresh speech. It reflects as how much concerned such leaders are with our issues. Or they should announce that now they are going to repeat their ‘golden words’.

The ad-verse effect

With political fever gripping the city, the Modi rally has overtaken all the advertisement unipoles as well. The other day, passing through the Jagraon bridge, the unipole showed the word ‘Ireo’ shining through another banner pasted above it. An onlooker said this was a symbolic unipole. As the situation can be interpreted in both ways, he said. It may depict that political parties weighing over businesses and companies or it may also show support to political parties by companies from the backdoor. In simpler terms, he grinned that it could even depict that how political parties are making a mess of the city by defacing it by pasting their hoardings indiscriminately all over in the wake of elections.

Rural charm

Ludhiana, February 23
A painting workshop was organised by ARS Group at MS Randhawa Art Gallery, Punjabi Bhawan, today. Thirty amateur artists, including teachers and fine arts students took part in the event.

The artists worked on various themes. Lakhbir Kaur depicted freedom through a painting depicting birds moving out of cage. Jaspreet Singh made a painting titled ‘upsurge’, depicting colours of emotion. A teacher at a school Richa Khanna made a painting depicting the theme ‘no ego in true love’.

Artist Meenu Mahajan made an abstract painting on the theme- people descend to the world separately, but then start living together experiencing different facets and emotions of life all together. Mark Victor made a painting a dove moving towards the sun. “This dove depicts the spirit of my mother who departed last year,” he said. KL Rishi made a painting of a heavenly beauty. Another artist made a painting showing representation of Lord Krishna. Nikita Shori, a fine arts student, showed a divine flame representing Lord Shiva in her painting. Another artist made a painting depicting Lord Ganesha. Prabhjot Kaur depicted hope with a candle and different colours of flowers and butterflies in her life. Tajinder Kaur showed different aspects of life with an abstract painting depicting the shadow of sadness and events in an otherwise cheerful life.

Shruti Goyal made an abstract painting using different media. Jasleen Kaur made a painting of a building. Navneet Kaur, Balwant Kaur, Roopam, Jagdeep Kaur, Ramandeep apart from other artists also took part in the event. Parveen Kumar, a fine arts lecturer at Government College for Girls, said painting workshops bring artists together to work and learn from one another. He said the works would be exhibited till February 27 at the art gallery.

Ludhiana, February 23
Four students of the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) have made the varsity proud by winning a bronze medal at the National Inter-University Youth Festival at Kurukshetra University in Haryana. The fest was organised from February 18 to 22. This is for the first time that a team from PAU has won a medal in a fine arts event at the national level.

The students took part in the installation event of the fine art category and represented the north zone.

The students who won bronze medal include Harman Singh Sangha, a 3rd year student of BTech (agricultural engineering); Anmol Toor, a 3rd year student of BSc home science (hons); Lovepreet Kaur, a 1st year student of BSc home science (fashion designing) and Aatma Singh, a final year student of BSc home science (hons).

Dr Maan Singh Toor, contingent in-charge and president of Fine Art and Photography Club, PAU, said the team from Lovely Professional University, Jalandhar, won the gold medal. “Our team did not comprise of students from fine arts field, still they managed to win a bronze medal. It is purely due to their dedication and hard work,” informed Dr Toor.

Ludhiana, February 23
Hero group promoted BML Munjal University organised its first ever parent-faculty workshop to familiarise parents about the right courses and career options available for their children at BCM School in Ludhiana today.

Parents of students studying in Class XII and MBA aspirants attended the session. Queries and steps related to the admission process were explained by the faculty and representatives of the university. They also helped the parents with their queries on how the university was structured and what students can expect leading up to the stages for the admission process.

During the event Akshay Munjal, director, BML Munjal University, said, "We will be organising similar events across cities to guide parents and students about the right courses and innovative learning that BMU will offer.”

Ludhiana, February 23
Students from Delhi University and Punjab Agricultural University today staged a street play inside the PAU campus. The main aim was to promote street plays without commercial purpose. Three students from DU visited the PAU campus and performed a street play at Students’ Home Compound of the varsity.

Ravi Kapoor, a student of second year, Bachelor of Business Studies, Delhi University, informed that they were part of Manthan, country’s largest street play festival. Jaspreet Singh from PAU Young Writers Association said today’s street play depicted the remorse situation of farmers in India which was a combination of both their good times as well as testing times. — TNS

Ludhiana, February 23
With the authorities looking the other way, encroachments galore in the city. Be it at posh areas such as Sarabha Nagar, BRS Nagar and Model Town or the interior parts of the city, including Bhadaur House, Chaura Bazar, Saban Bazar and Talaab Bazaar, roadside encroachments are burgeoning everywhere.

All this, despite the civic body repeatedly claiming that encroachments are being removed on a regular basis. Outside AC Market at Bhadaur House, the situation worsens as the shopkeepers load and unload their material on the main road, causing inconvenience to commuters. The roads and the market corridors are encroached upon, but the authorities fail to take any action.

An official of the tehbazari wing, which is responsible for removing these violations, said: "From where should we start? The entire city is encroached upon by violators. Rehris and fahris are set up outside the shops, and the shopkeepers get monthly rent from the defaulters. Whenever the MC acts tough and conducts drives on receiving complaints, political pressure is put on us to release the impounded rehris and other material. As if this was not enough, many officials with vested interests allow defaulters to flout norms.”

Shopkeepers, encouraged by the leniency shown by the authorities, start encroaching upon more and more of the public property. Even if at some areas, a few encroachments are removed, these come up again as the civic body hardly keeps any check.

Construction material constricts roads

As if the roadside encroachments were not enough, people constructing their houses or business establishments aggravate the problem by dumping all the construction material on roads and streets. This material, including gravel and sand, scattered in the middle of the roads not just inconveniences the commuters and pedestrians, but also invites accidents. Such construction material dumped on roads can be seen at Ghumar Mandi, BRS Nagar, Model Town and Sarabha Nagar, forcing commuters to take alternative routes. Those on two-wheelers are the worst affected as their vehicles skid, especially when there is a poor visibility.

While the public suffers, various departments of the MC, who should be fining the defaulters, just pass the buck.

Kamaljit Kaur, former Assistant Town Planner who recently got transferred, said at the time of approving a building plan, malba fee and malba security fee is charged.

"At that time, the applicants are told to dump the construction material along the wall and that it should not cause inconvenience to the public,” said the official.

When asked as to who takes action against the defaulters if such material causes nuisance, she said it was the duty of the tehbazari wing.

The tehbazari wing, however, which is responsible for removing all the temporary encroachments from roads, seems to be waiting for "formal" complaints to be lodged before taking any action. 

(Clockwise) A congested market at Gandhi Nagar; and no check on encroachments outside shops at Chaura Bazar in Ludhiana. Tribune photographs Construction material dumped on a road obstructs the movement of traffic and pedestrians in Ludhiana. Tribune photo: Himanshu Mahajan

Ludhiana, February 23
The second phase of National Pulse Polio Programme, 2014, began in the city today. Drops were administered to over 1.56 lakh children up to the age of five years in the district.

The drive will continue till February 27. More than five lakh children from the city are to be covered during the drive, said Dr Sanjeev Hans, district immunisation officer.

He said 2,426 teams have been constituted for the drive. Also 62 mobile teams, 100 transit teams and 461 supervisors have been appointed to overlook the whole drive, said the officer.

‘Herd immunity’ needed

While routine immunisation takes care of an individual child, to prevent a disease from spreading “herd immunity” is needed. All the children in the age group of zero to five years must get polio drops “to break the transmission”, as the strain (type) of polio keeps changing. 

Ludhiana, February 23
As part of its community services initiatives, the Shaheed Sukhdev branch of Bharat Vikas Parishad organised an artificial-limb distribution camp at Viklang Sahayta Kender, Rishi Nagar, here today.

Eighteen differently abled persons were given artificial limbs during the camp. MLA Surinder Dabar was the chief guest on the occasion. The event was presided over by the state general secretary of the Bharat Vikas Parishad, Ramesh Vij.

Ludhiana, February 23
The sixty-ninth annual conference of the Association of Physicians of India (APICON 2014) concluded here today on the resolution of adopting a patient-friendly approach. The four-day event saw deliberations on a number of issues related to medical research and technical advancements.

On the final day, the promising orators were awarded. Dr DP Basu received the Young Award in cardiology. Dr J Cecily Mary Majella from Chennai and Dr Monika Maheshwari from Ajmer were also honoured. City-based Dr Harpreet Singh was awarded for his presentation.

MJ Shah Award was conferred on Dr Amar Pandit from Mumbai. Dr Tarun Kumar Saxena from Ajmer got Dr JN Berry Memorial Award. Dr Praneet Kahlon from Barnala was awarded for speaking on the risks of coronary artery disease to the rural Punjabi population.

Dr Vithalrao Nadgouda Best All-India Annual Thesis Award went to Dr Rajashri Arunrao Badre and Dr Laxman G Jessani.

Earlier, the day started with a cardiology symposium. Dr Gurpreet S Wander and Dr Shashank R Joshi spoke on the occasion. Dr Sudhakar Mhaskar from Mumbai gave the gathering information about the use of right edible oils for healthy cooking.

Dr Alladi Mohan from Tirupati, Dr Abhay Bhave from Mumbai and Dr Subhash Verma from Chandigarh also talked on various medical issues.

The special oration on diabetes was delivered by Dr SK Wangnoo from Noida.

Need to promote healthy lifestyle, say docs

Lifestyle diseases remained one of the highlights at the conference. Doctors said since a large number of people frequently complained of asthma, diabetes and heart-related diseases, there was a need to increase awareness about healthy lifestyle at the individual and societal level.

Ludhiana, February 23
The first meeting of the state council of the Indian Medical Association (IMA), Punjab, for 2014 was held today. The council unanimously decided that Dr Manoj Sobti will continue as the president. Various issues related to the medical profession, including notices sent to nursing homes by the civic body, were discussed.

Dr Sobti told the gathering that talks on these issues were being held with the government.

Past president Dr GS Gill said the controversial order of the Punjab Pollution Control Board that asked various hospitals in Punjab to tie up with a particular common biomedical waste treatment facility had been withdrawn.

The new team includes Dr Rajender Sharma as senior vice-president, Dr RL Taneja as vice-president, Dr Navjot Dhayia as honorary secretary and Dr KS Arora as finance secretary.

Ludhiana, February 23
The Aam Aadmi Party organised a Jhadoo Chalao Yatra on the final day of its weeklong rally in the city. Starting from Feroze Gandhi Market, the yatra culminated near the railway crossing on Pakhowal Road.

Before setting out for the yatra, AAP's candidate for the Lok Sabha elections from Ludhiana advocate HS Phoolka addressed party volunteers. Referring to preparations for the BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi's rally in Jagraon, Phoolka lambasted the ruling SAD-BJP government for the VIP culture that was inconveniencing the common people.

"Our greatest victory will be when elections are fought without the distribution of drugs and liquor, and people vote based on issues that affect the common man," said Phoolka.

Later, he led the rally, cleaning the roads with a broom, the party's symbol.

Noted actor Mangal Dhillon also joined the rally today. The weeklong rally concluded with AAP volunteers cleaning slums with brooms along Sidhwan Canal. 

Ludhiana: An inter-class Maths quiz contest was organised at Green Grove Public School. It was presided over by school president JPS Jolly and Principal S George. Students of classes III to X participated with great enthusiasm and fervour. There were four teams namely Arya Bhatta, Pythogoras, Euclid and Archimedes.

There were also three rounds - the first was based on objective type questions, the 2nd was true/false round and the third was based on statement sums. Even the audience participated in the quiz with much interest. The president appreciated the efforts and talent of the students.

Annual sports meet

Ryan International School, Dugri, celebrated the annual sports meet of senior students. Students from classes III to VIII participated in this meet. District Sports Officer Kartar Singh Sambhay inaugurated the meet. The occasion was intensified with the drumbeat for the march past.

Students of classes III to class VIII performed colourful activities such as aerobics and bhangra. Sports events like 50 mt flat race, 100 mt flat race, 200 mt flat race, relay race, lemon race and long jump were organised. Special games were also organised for parents like 100 mt flat race for fathers and book balancing for mothers. The guest of honour along with the headmistress and parents honoured the winners.—TNS 

Sarabha, February 23
Jaskaran Singh of Patiala emerged as the fastest runner at the Inter-District Punjab State Primary School Sports being held at Shaheed Kartar Singh Sarabha Senior Secondary School here.

Anurag Kumar of Fazilka and Manpreet Singh of Roopnagar bagged the next two positions.

State to be divided into six zones: Official

Deputy Director (physical education) Sarabjit Singh Toor announced that the department had decided to divide the state into six zones from the next academic session. The decision has been taken to motivate students to adopt sports from primary classes.

Bathinda, Patiala, Ludhiana, Ferozepur, Amritsar and Jalandhar have been designated as the prospective zones. The department has also decided to establish a Kabaddi wing for girls at Government Senior Secondary School, Maluka, from the next session.

Toor directed the heads and teachers of various schools to prepare students for participation in trials for admission to sports and athletics wings of respective institutes.

Results

Kho-Kho (Girls): Roopnagar beat Faridkot and Mansa.

Kho-Kho (Boys): Faridkot beat Roopnagar, Bathinda beat Mansa and Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar beat Fatehgarh Sahib.

Kabaddi (Girls): Patiala beat Bathinda, Fatehgarh Sahib beat Mansa and Barnala beat Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar.

Kabaddi (Boys): Ludhiana beat Amritsar, Barnala beat Muktsar and Jalandhar bt Pathankot;

Football: Hoshiarpur beat Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar by 4-1, Ludhiana beat Patiala by 3-1.

Softball for physically challenged students: Manjit Singh of Ludhiana beat Sukhwinder Singh of Ludhiana.

Ludhiana, February 23
GHG Khalsa Institutes, Gurusar Sadhar, organised its 63rd Annual Athletics Meet here today. The mega event was a joint venture of the three sister institutes- GHG Khalsa College, GHG Khalsa College of Education and College of Pharmacy, Gurusar Sadhar.

Dr GS Khush, an eminent rice breeder of international fame and Father of Green Revolution, was the chief guest on the occasion.

The athletics meet began with the flag hoisting ceremony. A graceful and rhythmic march past synchronising with the band was performed by the sportspersons and students of the three colleges. The chief guest took the salute of the march past. Veerpal Kaur, veteran athlete of the degree college, performed the oath-taking ceremony following which the chief guest declared the 63rd Annual Athletics Meet open.

Various field and track events were organised during the sports meet. The best athletes from the three colleges were Pardeep Singh, Gulbagh Singh, Satinderpal Singh, Verpal Kaur, Gurpreet Kaur and Yaddeep Kaur.

Dr SS Deol, principal, GHG Khalsa College, gave a brief account of the sports and academic achievements of the three institutes.

Addressing the gathering, Dr Khush congratulated Manjit Singh Gill, president of the managing committee, for following the footsteps of his father, Bakhtawar Singh Gill, and leading the institutes in the same spirit towards excellence in all the fields. Dr Khush expressed his concern over the extreme corruption in India and appealed to the young generation to vote sensibly and elect good leaders to save the future of the nation.

A brief cultural programme, including items of bhangra, malwai giddha and gatka enthralled the audience. The college governing council honoured the gatka team led by S Jaspal Singh and S Vishal Singh with a cash prize of Rs 10,000.