Chandigarh, May 8
In yet another incident highlighting poor policing and lax security at the UT District Courts in Sector 43, one of the convicts in the case, Sukhjit Singh Sooch, who was out on bail and whose Scorpio was used in the crime, managed to give the police and the court authorities the slip and was found missing from the court after the orders of conviction were pronounced by the Judge.

Late at night at 11.30 pm, he surrendered before Inspector Amanjot Singh after consulting his counsel Terminder Singh.

"I was upset as I am innocent. My car was found at the scene of the crime; my friend had taken it. I was not even present at the spot and the police are showing me as a killer. Today, I did not enter the courtroom. I went out of the court building as I was depressed and was thinking of committing suicide. Then I thought of my three-year-old daughter and changed my mind. Now, I am ready to face the law and will move the High Court against the order," Sukhjit told Chandigarh Tribune.

Sukhjit, an NRI, had returned from Calgary in Canada in 2012 before the murder and had received bail from the High Court last year.

He interacted with mediapersons in the court earlier in the day and had come with some of his friends to the court in the morning, but went missing soon after the judge ordered that all accused be taken into custody. The UT police remained ignorant and realised that the convict had fled when it was too late.

Six of the eight accused were out on bail, while two — Gautam and Anand — were in police custody.

High drama was witnessed when the court staff and the police present in the court of ADJ KK Kareer began looking for the accused, but he was "mysteriously" found missing from the court.

The keys of the accused's car were with his friends and these were shown to the Judge by the counsel assuring that he could not have gone far. The police swung into action and began a hunt for the convict, but to no avail. His defence counsel stated that they were trying their best to locate the convict.

The convict had remained at large for three days after the murder too and was the last one to be arrested in 2012.

Chandigarh, May 8
As the court pronounced the orders convicting the accused, none of the family members of the victim were present in the court today. "We know God is with us and are satisfied with the order. What would have I achieved by coming to the court today? Can the court bring my son back? My blood would have boiled on seeing the accused, I could not have faced the killers of my son," said Harminder's mother Harmesh Kaur, a resident of Sector 55. "I lost my husband last year as he was very tense after our son's murder. The incident shattered our family. My younger son and I are the only ones left now while we were a happy family of four two years ago. Nothing is left for me now," she said.

Harminder's father Charan Singh had died of cardiac arrest last year as he used to be constantly under stress after attending court hearings, she said.

"My son was just 28 years old; he was a God-fearing person and had high goals. I was shattered after the accused got bail last year, but always prayed to God. Justice has prevailed; I am satisfied after the order," said Harmesh Kaur.

Chandigarh, May 8
The UT Administration and the municipal corporation have decided to go soft on encroachers in the city, especially in the markets. Following a letter received from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to include the imprisonment clause for encroachers in their proposal, UT and MC officials today held a meeting, chaired by UT Adviser KK Sharma, which decided against a jail term for encroachers.

Recently, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had rapped the Administration and the MC for apparently displaying "a complete lack of will to do anything" on encroachments. Thereafter, the Administration had sent a proposal to the MHA to enhance the fine for encroachers in the city from the existing Rs 500 to Rs 10,000.

The MHA had sent back the proposal to the Administration, asking it to include the details of penalties and the imprisonment clause in the proposal.

The letter sent by the MHA states, "The proposal of the UT Administration has been examined in consultation with the Ministry of Urban Development. The UT Administration is requested to revise the proposal by incorporating the following provisions and re-submit it to the ministry."

"Since the proposal for the enhancement of fine/penalty has been initiated with a view to acting as a deterrent for offenders, it is felt that the amount of penalty be further enhanced to a maximum of Rs 10,000, starting from a minimum of Rs 1,000," the letter states.

The MHA had also questioned the UT and the MC for not including the imprisonment clause in the proposal. "Though the nature of penalty provides for fine or imprisonment, there is no mention of imprisonment in the proposal. It will be advisable to specify the details of imprisonment and penalties in the relevant provisions. This will also help obviate the discretionary powers vested in the enforcing agencies," the MHA said.

Ground reality

Encroachments in corridors of city markets are a major problem with the MC turning a blind eye to the violations. The corridors in a majority of the markets have been encroached upon by vendors and shopkeepers for displaying their goods, hardly leaving any space for visitors to walk. The corridors and pavements in the markets of Sectors 15, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 27, 28, 30, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 44, 45 and 46 have been encroached upon by shopkeepers, leading to congestion.

Though the MC is flooded with complaints of encroachments from residents of various sectors, it has failed to act.

Staff crunch at MC

The MC Additional Commissioner had told the Punjab and Haryana High Court that the MC had two posts of inspector and 20 of sub-inspector, of which 17 were for field duties. It also had 79 workers or labourers to assist the sub-inspectors in removing encroachments.

MC Commissioner’s take The MHA had sought comments on the provision for a jail term for offenders. However, at a meeting held on Thursday, it was decided that the UT and the MC will push for fine only and not a jail term, as it is not covered under the MC Act. — Vivek Partap Singh, MC Commissioner

Chandigarh, May 8
Over the past seven years, the UT Excise Department “systematically” allowed liquor manufacturers an upper hand in annually increasing the ex-distillery price (EDP) of different brands of liquor by over 45 per cent.

This resulted in the prices of different brands of liquor rising over the years. All the while, the same brands of liquor were being sold at comparatively lesser rates in the neighbouring states of Punjab and Haryana.

The issue surfaced after the UT top brass asked excise officials to bring down the EDP of liquor. “It needs to probed who all connived with the manufacturers to allow an increase in the ex-distillery price,” an official said on condition of anonymity.

UT officials never adopted the Delhi model where manufacturers are asked to give an affidavit stating that they are supplying the liquor at the lowest price.

Incidentally, a number of popular brands of the IMFL are being bottled at two plants in Chandigarh.

Sources said the practice of allowing a "manipulated hike" in the EDP was allowed during the tenure of a Punjab-cadre Assistant Excise and Taxation Commissioner.

As a result, the process of fixing the EDP is being "dictated" by liquor manufacturers and the process continues even after the vends are auctioned.

The same happened in June last year. As the EDP was not fixed on time, wholesalers started selling liquor without paying the 12.5 per cent value added tax (VAT) to the UT Excise and Taxation Department.

The reason was that manufacturers and wholesalers had not been able to reach an agreement with the department on fixing liquor prices in the city.

What is ex-distillery price

It is the price at which manufacturers sell liquor to retailers without levying any taxes

Chandigarh, May 8
The menace of stray dogs prevails on the premises of the local municipal corporation (MC) as well. The civic body is dealing with the menace in the city. Vikram (29), who works as a driver, was attacked by stray dogs inside the MC building. He said as soon as he stepped out of car in the parking area inside the MC building last evening, a pack of stray dogs attacked him.

Recently, many city residents have been attacked by stray dogs. Varinder Kohli (24), a domestic help in Sector 9 here, had been bitten by stray dogs twice during the last month. His marriage, which was scheduled for the next week, has been postponed for the next month. Varinder’s employer Neena Talwar said the authorities should protect animals but not at the cost of human lives.

Authorities should strictly deal with stray cattle menace as well, she suggested.

At civil dispensary in Sector 19 here, the only anti-rabies clinic in the city, around 45 cases of dog bite were reported today as well.

Balwinder Singh, who was vaccinated at the clinic today, said stray dogs in Sector 34 near the State Library attacked him.

Chandigarh, May 8
Teams of the UT Estate Office (EO), led by Inspector Parveen Mittal and Anil Narad, today sealed two booths at Krishna Market in Sector 41 here. In both the cases, the allottees had died and the properties were in illegal possession. Sources said the EO would seal four more booths in the coming days.

During a verification drive conducted recently, the EO had detected 59 cases where the ownership of booth was doubtful. The physical verification of the ownership of 289 booths was done in a day-long exercise.

Chandigarh, May 8
Even three days after a woman was allegedly raped in Hotel Shivalik View, Sector 17 here, the UT police have failed to arrest the accused, a former District Health Officer (DHO).

Dr Lalit Vermani is accused of giving sedative-laced juice to the 30-year-old woman and raping her in the hotel on Sunday.

The police said senior officials had scrutinised the CCTV footage procured from the hotel. The footage shows the accused and the complainant entering the hotel.

Police sources said several important evidences in the matter were removed even before a police party reached the hotel room. The bed sheet, pillow covers and the glass were changed, added the sources.

Meanwhile, a police official said the accused was still at large and raids were on to arrest him.

The police were questioning with the waiter, who had served the sedative-laced juice to the victim and also other staff members of the hotel.

The accused doctor, an MBBS, had taken premature retirement in 2006 and ran a clinic in Sector 2, Panchkula. Dr Vermani was booked on Monday for allegedly raping his patient on the pretext of providing her a job.

Panchkula, May 8
The special investigation team (SIT) constituted to probe the mysterious death of advocate Saman Dhankar visited the accident site in Morni near here today.

Accompanied by the deceased’s parents, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Jagtar Singh along with mechanical, forensic and technical experts collected blood samples from the ill-fated car. They also examined the site on the Morni road from where the car had fallen into a deep gorge.

ACP Jagtar Singh said the forensic experts had also collected samples to examine if the car was hit by some other vehicle or the accident occurred due to some mechanical fault.

“We have also deployed cyber crime experts on the job to trace the details of the mobile calls made by the deceased and the girl to ascertain whether there was any third person involved in the incident,” he added.

Chandigarh, May 8
A sudden change in weather due to dust storm late in the evening today led to fall in the minimum temperature in the city. Power supply to some sectors was disrupted due to the storm.

The city recorded the minimum temperature of 23.6 degree Celsius, which is two notches below the normal, today while the maximum stood at 38.6 degree Celsius, a notch above the normal.

A Met official said the change in weather in the region was due to western disturbances. The official said the city was likely to witness rain on May 11, which would further bring down the day and night temperatures.

As per the forecast, there will be mainly clear sky with the maximum temperature of 39 degree Celsius and the minimum of 24 degree Celsius tomorrow. — TNS

Panchkula, May 8
Goods worth lakhs of rupees were reduced to ashes in a major fire that broke out at a bakery and sweets shop at Sector 11 here last night. The cause of the fire is reported to be an electrical short circuit. However, the exact loss of the property could not be ascertained at the initial stage.

The police said some security guards of the neighbouring shops noticed smoke billowing out of the showroom. They immediately informed the fire brigade and the police about the incident.

The eyewitnesses also informed Boby Singh and Jaspal Singh, alias Jassi, owners of Govindam Sweets and Singh Sons Bakery Shop, about the fire.

“After receiving information, fire brigade officials rushed fire tenders to the site. The firemen, after taking the keys from showroom workers staying at the top floor of the business establishment, opened the main gate and doused the flames,” said Sukhwinder Singh, in charge of the Sector 10 police station.

“Firefighters had a tough time dousing the flames. By the time they managed to bring the flames under control, goods, including furniture, eatables and machinery, were reduced to ashes,” said Bobby Singh.

Talking to mediapersons, Boby Singh said his younger brother, Jassi, left the showroom at 12 AM. Someone called him at 1 am and told him about the incident.

Singh claimed to have complained to electricity department officials about sparking in electricity cables inside the showroom a number of times, but to no avail.

The department had pressed a team of forensic experts, led by Riti Saini, to find out the exact cause of the fire.

Kuldeep Chitkara, president of the Beopar Mandal, also reached the spot. He said if the forensic report confirmed short circuit as the cause of the fire, they would demand compensation from the Electricity Department.

Chandigarh, May 8
Successful results have started emerging with the beginning of the online service of organ donation by the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) as the number of donors has increased manifold.

As per the data of the PGIMER, 60,000 donors from the region have pledged to donate their eyes and 3,500 donors have pledged to donate their organs till now.

Dr Vipin Kumar Kaushal, assistant professor, Department of Hospital Administration, PGI, said: “The department receives a number of calls from people requesting it to send donor forms through postal service or email as they are not able to come to the PGI”.

He said patients from Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh getting treatment at the PGI have pledged to donate their organs.

Chandigarh, May 8
The district administration has chalked out an elaborate security plan to prevent any untoward incident during its demolition dive to be conducted in Sector 52 here on May 10.

Recently, the district magistrate had served a 21-day eviction notice on residents of Kuldeep Colony, Mazdoor Colony and Pandit Colony, all located in Sector 52, near Kajehri village.

UT officials said as many as 10 earth removers and three JCBs have been requisitioned. A large police force has also been requisitioned to carry out the drive.

Today, Deputy Commissioner Mohammed Shayin and UT SSP Sukhchain Singh Gill visited the colonies and told the residents to evict the illegal premises.

Panchkula, May 8
The protesting Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) MLA from Kalka, Pradeep Chaudhary, along with his supporters and party workers today blocked the busy Panchkula-Yamunanagar highway for over 20 minutes putting scores of motorists to hardship.

Accompanied by members of the women wing of the INLD, the agitators burnt an effigy of the district administration and raised anti-establishment slogans to press their demands, including action against polluting poultry farms in the area that has aggravated the problem of houseflies. They also sought uninterrupted power and water supply in the area.

The protesters said the housefly menace was causing health hazards to residents of several villages in the Barwala and Raipur Rani areas.

Protesters spread carpets on the highway and staged a dharna for over 20 minutes. As the protest led to traffic jam, the police swung into action and senior traffic police officials reached the spot. The dharna was lifted after the MLA told the agitators that they would block the highway tomorrow if the district administration failed to fulfill their demands by 11 am on Friday.

Meanwhile, a team of the district administration today conducted a surprise inspection on seven poultry farms in the Barwala area and found one of them violating the norms.

Naib tehsildar Suresh Chaudhary said Chetna Poultry Farm located in Mauja Ajitpur village was found in a pathetic state. A report in this regard was sent to the authorities concerned.

The inspecting team comprised block development officer Dinesh Kumar and veterinarian Dr Rajinder besides the naib tehsildar. They also visited Azad Poultry Farm, Capital Poultry Farm, BG Poultry Farm, Sunrise Poultry Farm and Aggarwal Poultry Farm and directed their owners to maintain cleanliness.

Mohali, May 8
The shooting incident at Phase VI here, in which the police arrested mother-daughter duo (Dolly Rani and Ritu) yesterday, took a new turn when the victim, Kushhal Kapoor, aka Shine, is said to have changed his previous statement made to the police. Now, the victim claimed that the women were not present at the time of the incident.

The police had arrested the duo claiming that the victim had earlier stated that Ritu called him to meet near Kali Mata Temple at Phase VI on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday, where her brother, Sandeep Khurmi, alias Sunny, had opened fire at him in the presence of his sister and mother and two other unidentified accomplices.

Sub-inspector Rajiv Kumar, SHO of the Phase I police station, said a local court today directed the police to send the duo their home after the victim retracted from his earlier statement.

“Earlier, he (Shine) stated that Ritu (with whom Shine was allegedly having an affair) and Dolly were present at the spot when Sunny had opened fire at him. Today, after being discharged from the PGI, he came to us and made another statement, claiming that both women were not present there when the incident took place,” said Rajiv Kumar.

Chandigarh, May 8
Mukat Public School, Rajpura, will host a regional-level science exhibition from May 11 to 13. The school authorities said the objective of the exhibition was to provide a common platform to schools to express and share their creative and innovative ideas.

The best 10 exhibits/schools selected at the regional level would be eligible to participate at the national-level science exhibition.

Principal of the school Gayatri Kaushal said around 350 participants from 90 schools of Chandigarh, Haryana, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh had registered themselves for the exhibition.

Chandigarh, May 8
Seated in one corner of the house, Kavita is lost in thought. A resident of Dhanas Rehabilitation Colony, she had dreams of sending her son, Nikhil, to a school this year.

Despite running from pillar to post to get her son admitted to a nearby government school, her efforts have gone in vain.

Kavita’s story is not the lone of its kind. Several parents at Dhanas Rehabilitation Colony are in a state of quandary as their children have ‘failed’ to secure admission in government schools located nearby.

These residents were assured a better life when they moved from Colony Number 5 to the rehabilitation colony. However, many of them regret their decision now.

While some parents were successful to get their children admitted to government schools in sectors 44, 45, 46, several others continue to queue up at government schools every day.

There are two schools near the rehabilitation colony — Government Senior Secondary School and Government Model School, both located at Dhanas.

The parents alleged that every time they went to meet the school authorities to get their wards admitted, they were ‘turned back’ with a new excuse.

“I cannot send my daughter alone to schools that are situated at far off locations. Who will take the responsibility of her security? The authorities at the nearby schools are not giving her admission,” said Alka, mother of a Class II student.

There are many students in the colony, who have been sitting idle at their homes since the past one month, while their counterparts are attending school.

Echoing a similar view, Vimla, another parent, said, “We have grown-up kids, who are sitting idle at home. What if they indulge in wrong activities? Who will be held responsible for them? Education is their right and the authorities should ensure they have access to it.”

“Why are our children being subjected to such a disparity?” rued another parent.

Ramesh Kumar, a local leader, said, “Residents are facing harassment at the hands of the authorities. We’re ensuring that their problems are addressed but the authorities have turned a blind eye towards them.”

Meanwhile, DC Mohammad Shayin said, “During an adviser-level meeting, it was decided that all children, who had been shifted to the rehabilitation colony, will be accommodated at government schools in Dhanas.” However, despite the decision of the authorities, the children are being denied their basic right.

what parents say
Several parents at Dhanas Rehabilitation Colony alleged that every time they went to meet the school authorities to get their wards admitted, they were turned back with a new excuse.

Chandigarh, May 8
The Student Organisation of Panjab University (SOPU), has announced its new panel for the student council elections to be held in September 2014. The party’s founder and ex-president, Dayal Partap Singh Randhawa announced Amninder Mann of the Law Department as the president and Rupinder Sharma of the Education Department as the chairman.

Harjinder Singh of Panjabi Department has been announced as the general secretary, Raman Sidhu of the Law Department as the party in-charge, Navjot Kaur of Botany Department as vice-president (girls) and Inderpal of the Law Department as the vice president.

Speaking on the occasion, Randhawa said the new team of SOPU would endeavour to bring cultural changes in the university politics.

“The present day scenario at the university is marred by violence. Outsiders have been appointed to various posts, which has created fear in the minds of the regular students, while the real issues of students are being ignored,” he said.

This time, all designation holders of SOPU are students of the university.

SOPU president Amninder Mann said, “The new team will work towards resolving the issues of students. The key agendas that our party will pursue are Central University status, representation of student council in the Senate, no fee hike, construction of reading hall for girl students within the hostel premises, utilisation of council funds for the development of infrastructure and construction of roads on the South campus.”

Chandigarh, May 8
Several new food processing technologies can help in meeting challenges of food security and food safety. This was stated by Prof Vijaya Raghavan, James McGill Professor at the McGill University, Quebec, Canada, today.

Prof Raghavan was delivering Panjab University (PU) colloquium on the topic ‘Innovation towards meeting challenges of food security, food safety and environment nexus.’ The Consul General for Canada in Chandigarh, Ms Rajani Alexander was the guest of honour.

PU Vice-Chancellor Prof Arun K Grover presided over the last colloquium of the academic session 2013-14.

Prof Raghavan said the government should initiate necessary steps through the National Food Security Policies to ensure that food quality and safety considerations formed an integral part of their food security systems.

Chandigarh, May 8
St John’s High School celebrated World Heritage Day by organising an inter-school contest on the campus today. Students from 12 schools participated in the competition. In the first competition, the students depicted the folk art of an Indian state through rangoli.

Some of the states represented were Punjab, Rajasthan, Kerala, Karnataka, West Bengal and Gujarat.

The other theme was on heritage trees, wherein they presented skits on how to conserve trees such as Neem.

The first and the second prize in the Heritage Tree round were bagged by Mount Carmel and Carmel Convent, respectively. In rangoli, St. Kabir Public School and Delhi Public School clinched the two titles. — TNS