Chandigarh, July 25
High drama was witnessed after the murder in the hospital when the victim’s family created a hue and cry and accused the UT police of shielding the constable, who had threatened his wife with the pistol many a time in the past too. Infuriated relatives tried to break into the ward where the constable, Anand Kumar, was being operated upon when a huge posse of police was called in for security and the relatives were stopped from barging into the ward.

Dimple’s relatives said they had met the UT SSP only three days ago to complain about the constable, who used to threaten her with a pistol, but no heed was paid to their complaint and it was simply referred to the women cell.

“Constable Anand threatened Dimple with his pistol on June 4. We had given a written complaint to the police and the women cell. I, along with Dimple, met the SSP on July 23 and requested the officer to take back the pistol from the constable as he used to threaten her, but to no avail. As he was a policeman, no one listened to our complaint. The SSP merely referred our complaint to the women cell,” said Sushila, Dimple’s sister-in-law, who also works with the hospital.

As tempers ran high after the murder, the emergency services at the hospital were affected and the hospital’s security had to restrict the entry to the emergency as the family created a furore inside. A huge posse of police was pressed into service for security arrangements.

The victim’s family said Dimple was a sober girl and the constable used to harass her.

He used to threaten her with pistol, but cops paid no heed: KinfROM PAGE 1shot himself in the shoulder and has survived. He has no right to live,” said Dimple’s father Maam Chand, who retired as a PGI employee.The postmortem of the victim was conducted in the evening and the family members raised slogans against the UT police. They said they had also complained at the police post in Sector 24, but the in charge of the post paid no heed.

Chandigarh, July 25
Newly elected Member of Parliament (MP) Kirron Kher has sought red beacon, hooter and parking sticker for her car.Kirron Kher had written a letter to the UT Deputy Commissioner, seeking these facilities. The office of the Deputy Commissioner has forwarded the case to the Municipal Corporation for parking sticker and the UT traffic police for permission to use red beacon and hooter. A senior official of the UT Administration said they had received the request from the MP. But as per a Supreme Court order, an MP was not entitled to red beacon and hooter. On the basis of the Supreme Court ruling they would propose to turn down the MP’s request for red beacon and a hooter. The final decision on the request was yet to be taken, he said. On December 10, the Supreme Court had banned the use of red beacon with flashers on all vehicles, except for those used by high dignitaries holding constitutional posts.In March this year, the UT Administration had issued a notification, according to which, the UT Adviser, the Home Secretary, the Finance Secretary, the Mayor and the IGP are authorised to use red beacon. The MP’s name is not mentioned in the list.Despite repeated attempts, MP Kirron Kher could not be contacted for her comment.According to the notification, “Officials who are responsible for maintenance of law and order and require unhindered access to the road for performance of their duties i.e. the Deputy Commissioner, the Additional Deputy Commissioner and sub-divisional magistrates are to be allowed the use of blue beacon on their official vehicles.” “All police vehicles assigned duties of emergency/quick response, escorts, pilots and law and order, as well as police vehicles requiring unhindered access to the road for performance of their duty, including vehicles of the traffic police, PCR (police control room) and ambulances are also allowed to use a blue beacon,” the notification states.It states, “Repair vans of the Electricity Department, which are responsible for maintenance of the automatic traffic control lights and the electricity supply to the three major hospitals — the PGI, the GMSH-16 and the GMCH-32 — and fire tenders are allowed to use orange beacon.”

Red beacony UT Advisery Home Secretaryy Finance Secretaryy Mayory IGP

Orange beacony Fire tendersy Electricity Department’s repair vans

Blue beacony Deputy Commissionery Additional Deputy Commissionery Sub-divisional magistratesy Duty Magistrate for law and ordery Ambulancesy Escorts and pilot vehicles

Chandigarh, July 25
The UT Estate Office has started the email facility for building plans for applicants. All applicants who are applying for revised building plan and other works in the estate office are required to give their mobile numbers and email ID so that they may be informed regarding the status of their work in the Estate Office telephonically or through email.

The applicants are also advised not to violate the building by-laws and misuse the buildings to avoid high penalty and harassment. Assistant Estate Officer Balbir Singh Dhol said regarding misuse and building violation cases, the owners/occupiers were required to submit in writing that they have removed the building violation/misuse of the building immediately after the receipt of show-cause notice from the Estate Officer.

The applicants have to state that there was no misuse or building violation as stated in the show-cause notice, so that it might be verified by the office and same could be dropped. In non-receipt of such response, it would be presumed that building violation/misuse continues and penalty till its removal would be charged. Fresh directions has been issued by UT Finance Secretary Sarvjit Singh.

Chandigarh, July 25
Firing incident at the Government Multi-Speciality Hospital, Sector 16, here this morning created chaos-like situation in the emergency ward and confusion among patients and their attendants.A number of patients and their attendants, who were roaming outside the emergency ward, were in a dilemma as to why the emergency ward had been cordoned off by the police. 

The attendants were worried whether the doctors will attend to patients today.The security staff deployed at the emergency ward had a tough time handling the crowd which turned up for check up of patients and people who after getting the news reached the hospital to look about the safety of their near and dear ones.A number of patients and their attendants were seen having heated arguments with security staff for not allowing them to enter the emergency ward for more than two hours.Kanta Devi, who came out from the emergency ward to get reports of her ailing sister, was not allowed to enter the emergency ward, where her sister was admitted, by the security after the incident.Woman returns without consulting doctorThe mother of a 15-year-old boy, who is mentally challenged, came for a routine check-up at the hospital. 

She faced problem to control his son in the crowd as security staff did not allow her to enter the ward. She had to return home without consulting the doctor.Kin call patients to know about their well-beingAfter the information about the firing incident spread in the city, patients and their attendants got several phone calls from their family members about their well-being. The family members asked them to return home rather than staying at the hospital.

Chandigarh, July 25
The Teej celebrations planned by the Municipal Corporation (MC), Chandigarh, at a cost of around Rs 9.73 lakh would include Rs 1 lakh to be spent on phulkari and sweets as gift for councillors. The 13 female councillors and the wives of 22 male councillors will be getting the gifts during Teej.The estimated budget for the Teej celebrations was approved in the special meeting of the Finance and Contract Committee (F&CC).SAD councillor Malkiat Singh, who is also a member of the F&CC, opposed the decision during the meeting of the committee.

“I don’t think there is a need for spending such a huge amount on gifts for the councillors. It is a waste of public money,” said the SAD councillor.A BJP councillor on condition of anonymity said if the MC wanted to give phulkari as gift then they should have given it to the female councillors only.“I think this would have helped in cost cutting the expenditure for gifts,” councillor added.The MC would be celebrating Teej on August 3 at the Shivalik Garden in Manimajra.

Interestingly, out of the total budget, around Rs 82,000 will be spent on the refreshments, besides around Rs 18,000 on packed lunch for officers and staff of the MC on duty on that particular day.The MC would be spending another Rs 1 lakh on the decoration of stage and garden.Sachin Sharma, chairman of an NGO, Youth Innovative Society, said spending such a huge amount on gifts was a total wastage of money.“I think the same can be utilised for city’s development,” he added.

Mohali, July 25
Protesting ETT teachers were today prevented by the police from proceeding towards Fortis Hospital here where Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had come to attend a function.

The protesters wanted to meet the Punjab Chief Minister, who came to inaugurate Fortis Cancer Institute, to press him to concede their demands. However, the police stopped them near the PUDA Chowk, where they later staged a dharna.

Later, SDM Lakhmir Singh allowed a five-member delegation of the ETT teachers to speak to the Chief Minister. It is reported that the Chief Minister suggested that a panel meeting could be held in the presence of the Education Minister and the Panchayat Minister to consider the demands.

The ETT teachers have been staging a protest against the government in front of the offices of the Punjab Director-General School Education, and the DPI in Phase VIII here.

Their demands include shifting of the ETT teachers coming under zila parishads to the Education Department.

Meanwhile, the indefinite fast by Jaswinder Singh Sidhu, president of the ETT Teachers Union, Punjab, continued.

Chandigarh, July 25
The Entrepreneurship Development Centre (EDC), is buzzing with activity.

Initiated by the Startup Accelerator Chamber of Commerce (SACC), in collaboration with the Department of IT of the UT Administration, the Startup Weekend will see young minds from the region try their hands at entrepreneurship.

Adviser to the UT Administrator, KK Sharma, inaugurated the Startup Weekend which saw participation from 80 professionals, software engineers, designers, developers and students.

He said the EDC facility would be available to encourage young entrepreneurs and if the charges need to be revised, the Administration would be willing to change the policy.

UIET students, Vikram Jain and Pranshu Sharma, want to create a web portal ‘acchha tutor’ to rate the teachers and tutors through peer evaluation, so that students may contact the right subject expert.

Pushkar Gupta and Saurabh Bhatia from Jalandhar want to help the masses get the right colour and garment by uploading the picture and getting brand options available on various retail websites.

Kunal Hardik wants to help students get classroom notes from other students and make them available on the internet.

Prerna Puri Wasu, Secretary, IT, said, “Such an initiative will give a chance to young minds to share their ideas and make the lives of people much more convenient.”

Manipal Dhariwal, President, SACC, said, “The final presentation will be made by the participants on Sunday, out of which, the three best entries shall be selected and rewarded with support to set up their own enterprises, which includes free advertising from Google.”

Chandigarh, July 25
India is the longest surviving low-income democracy in history and Jawaharlal Nehru played a great role in strengthening democracy.

This was stated by noted international political scientist and Sol Goldman Professor of International Studies and the Social Sciences at the Brown University, USA, Prof Ashutosh Varshney, here today.

He was delivering the first colloquium lecture of this session at Panjab University (PU) today.

“Contemporary democratic theory believes that democracies can be established at low-levels of income, but they survive only at high-levels of income,” he added.

Panjab University Vice Chancellor, Prof Arun Kumar Grover, presided over the colloquium today.

A large number of teachers, researchers and students were also in attendance.

Referring to the study of Adam Przeworski, covering a dataset of 141 countries between 1950 and 1990, Prof Varshney said, “Income is the best predictor of democracy. It has correctly predicted the type of regime in 77.5 per cent of the cases but only in 22.5 per cent, it did not. India falls in the latter 22.5 per cent set, where it has defied.”

Highlighting the role played by Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, Prof Varshney said, “Gandhi was the Father of the Nation and the country’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru was the father of India’s democracy.”

Prof Varshney also deliberated on why has democracy in India, still a lower-middle income country, lasted for so long; why India has not become Pakistan or Indonesia and why has democracy survived in India.

Contemporary democratic theory believes that democracies can be established at low levels of income, but they survive only at high levels of income. Income is the best predictor of democracy. — 

— Prof Ashutosh Varshney, political scientist

Panchkula, July 25
The voice of protest against the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leaders camping at the historic Sikh shrine of Nada Sahib is getting louder ahead of the SAD core committee meeting that will be held in Amritsar tomorrow.

For the first time after the Haryana Government passed the Haryana Sikh Gurdwara (Management) Bill, 2014, following which the SGPC and the SAD asked their activists to camp at different gurdwaras across the state, residents of seven villages assembled outside the Nada Sahib gurdwara and staged a protest against the deployment of task force at the shrine here today.

The villagers were led by Haryana Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (HSGMC) members comprising Rattan Singh, former head of Nada Sahib gurdwara, Balwant Singh, president Pinjore Gurdwara Management Committee, Gurcharan Singh, president Ramgarh Gurdwara Management Committee, Mohinder Singh, Kalyan Singh, Swaran Singh and other Sikh leaders associated with the HSGMC.

They lodged their protest against the SGPC and the SAD leadership for trying to create disturbance.

Talking to The Tribune, Rattan Singh said: “Tension prevailed in villages around the Nada Sahib gurdwara for the past over a week. The task force members, who have come from Punjab, roam around in the areas raising aggressive slogans, which is creating fear among locals.”

“The presence of strangers and anti-social elements, who create nuisance after the sunset on the gurdwara premises, has forced women and children to remain indoors,” Rattan said.

He said: “The Sikh shrine is witnessing a sharp decline in the footfall of devotees due to the tension brewing following the deployment of the SGPC men here.”

The leaders have appealed to the Punjab Chief Minister to ask the SGPC to withdraw the task force from the gurdwara to maintain peace.

“We are in touch with Jagdish Singh Jhinda, ad hoc member of the HSGMC, and are briefing him about the activities going on at the Nada Sahib gurdwara,” he said.

Sucha Singh Langha, member of the SGPC core committee has denied the allegation of the deployment of any task force on the gurdwara premises. SGPC members from Taran Tarn, Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Pathankot, Ropar, Mohali and Chandigarh have been assigned duties to be present at the gurdwara to safeguard their religion from the Haryana Government, he said.

Langha also turned down the claims of HSGMC associates that the count of devotees had declined at Nada Sahib.

* Say SGPC, SAD leaders trying to create disturbance in the area.

* Tension in villages around Nada Sahib gurdwara, as task force members roam around in the area raising aggressive slogans, scaring locals.

* The presence of strangers and anti-social elements on the gurdwara premises has forced women and children to stay indoors.

* Sikh shrine witnessing a sharp decline in the footfall of devotees due to the tension brewing following the deployment of the SGPC men.

Chandigarh, July 25
“Chronic constipation is a common problem that we encounter frequently. But if it remains persistent and untreated, it can lead to cancer or hernia,” said Manmohan S Bedi, consultant, GI Surgery, Max Super Speciality Hospital, Mohali, while addressing a health talk on ‘Risk factors for intestinal tumours and cancers’ at the Defence Services Officers’ Institute (DSOI) in Sector 36, here, on Wednesday.

Dr Bedi said it was commonly seen that constipation was usually treated with over-the-counter medications. One should avoid self-medication as a dangerous disease could be missed out due to it, he said. — TNS 

Panchkula, July 25
Coming down heavily on the Congress-led Haryana Government, senior BJP leader Virander Singh Bhau blamed the party for the deteriorating law and order situation in the district.

The recent spate of robbery incidents in Panchkula have not only created an atmosphere of insecurity among residents but also raised a question mark on the functioning of the district police.

Addressing mediapersons, Bhau also accused the local Congress MLA for not taking a serious note of the issue. He has sought a probe into the rising crime rate in the district. Referring to the recent robbery incident at a jewellery shop in the Mansa Devi Complex, he said: “Going by the crime incidents in the district, several high-profile cases in the past five years still remain unsolved.”

He quoted some of the unsolved cases of 2013, including the recent one reported in December in which four robbers donning police uniform looted Rs 1.68 crore and two double-barrelled guns from a company’s security van at gunpoint after throwing chilli powder in the eyes of four persons on the Chandigarh-Baddi national highway. He said miscreants after committing the crime flee to neighbouring states of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh and there was no checks on the state borders. Several gangs are active in the district. However, the police seem to be in a deep slumber and the authorities remain a mute spectator to the issue. 

Chandigarh, July 25
The gruesome murder at the Government Multi Specialty Hospital in Sector 16 has once again brought to light the rising number of crimes committed by men in khaki, especially the UT police constables. The policemen are getting involved in sensational crimes which calls for a serious overhauling in the police recruitment process.Only last year, a fugitive UT police constable Basant had brutally stabbed a UT police Inspector Sucha Singh to death in Sector 17. 

The constable had also committed murders in Haryana before killing the Inspector here.In December last year, five UT police constables were arrested for the rape of a minor girl in Khuda Lahora village.Use of service revolvers by the policemen in crimes is also not uncommon. Also, rising frustration and cases of matrimonial disputes among the police constables is also witnessing a rise.Two years ago, a constable with the police control room (PCR) had committed suicide by coming in front of a train at the Sector 47 railway track.The deceased Manjit Singh was 24 years of age and had recently married after dramatic turn of events.

His wife, also a police constable, had earlier levelled rape and cheating charges against him following which they had reached a compromise and then married.However, the constable Manjit came under the wheels of Jan Shatabdi and killed himself alleging mental torture by his wife and in-laws. 

Chandigarh, July 25
The constable fired as many as seven shots using his service revolver, aKansal resident, Savitri, who had come for treatment of her daughter was shot at. Savitri (36) sustained a bullet injury in her shoulder and her condition is stated to be stable.

“I was diagnosed with typhoid and my mother brought me to the hospital. We were waiting outside the new OPD for the report when suddenly we heard the sound of gunshots and my mother was then shot at,” said 13-year-old Babli, who was visibly traumatised after the incident.Twins bear the bruntWith their mother dead and father jailed for life, the twin children of the couple, Kawya and Kashish (9) are the worst sufferers. Kashish was in school when the incident occurred and kept asking for her mother. Earlier, her brother was taken away by her father and is with their father’s relatives.

Chandigarh, July 25
To discuss the challenges of finance in Indian universities and find innovative ways to meet the financial crunch, the UGC - Academic Staff College of Panjab University (PU), today organised a national meet for the finance officers of various universities.

The finance officers and representatives from Delhi University, Indian Institute of Technology, Ropar and Delhi, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Punjab Technical University, Jalandhar, Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra and Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla, attended the meet.PU Vice-Chancellor Prof Arun K Grover discussed the issue in light of its complications, chaos, confusions and challenges.He said, “The financial issues are to be seen in the light of inflation, expansion, expectation and shrinking government support.”

Chandigarh, July 25
The UT Deputy Excise and Taxation Commissioner (DETC) has ordered closure of 15 vends for two days due to selling of liquor below the minimum retail price and for other violations.A penalty of Rs 7500 had been imposed on another five vends.Sources reveal that on July 23, the DETC, Tanvi Garg, pronounced the orders for closure of 15 vends and penalty for another five vends. 

Nine vends allottee had approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court seeking stay on the DETC order. However, the court today announced to take up the matter on Monday.The DETC order was meant to be implemented on Saturday so that the vendors could not get relief from any court.Meanwhile, the nine allottees has approached the Excise Commissioner in his capacity as the appellant authority against the DETC order.

Chandigarh, July 25
The UT Powermen Union held a rally in support of their long- pending demands at Sector 19 here on Friday. 

The employees protested against the adamant attitude of the administration towards their ‘genuine’ demands such as filling up of over 650 vacant posts in the department, procurement of cables, joints, transformers, meters, tubes, fusewire and other urgent material needed by the department, offer appointment to the next of the kin of the diseased employees on the pattern of the Powercom, removal of pay anomalies and amendments in rules.UT Powermen Union general secretary Gopal Dutt Joshi also criticised the administration for its proposal to ‘corporatise’ the electricity department.

Chandigarh, July 25
The Municipal Corporation (MC), in a special meeting of the Finance and Contract Committee (F&CC), today decided to increase the minimum bidding amount for the exhibition ground in Sector 34 for Diwali mela by 10 per cent. Interestingly, the MC had, in 2013, failed to receive any bid as the minimum bidding amount was high. Sources said a proposal to hike the last year’s bidding amount by 25 per cent was tabled before the committee. However, the members pointed out that since no bidders came to participate in the last auction, following which the committee decided to hike the bidding amount by 10 per cent. Members of the F&CC said they didn’t want to discourage the bidders by increasing the bidding amount by 25 per cent. SAD councillor Malkiat Singh, who is also a 

member of the F&CC, said in 2013, nobody had turned up for the auction of the ground, due to which they went for a marginal hike in the bidding amount this time.In 2012, the minimum bidding amount was Rs 12.62 lakh and the ground was auctioned for Rs 15.64 lakh. The minimum bidding amount for this year has been fixed at Rs 15,62,500.The ground in Sector 34 is auctioned for five days close to Diwali every year.

Chandigarh, July 25
In another revelation, one of the students — accused of thrashing a Class X student of Government Model Senior Secondary School-35 — today alleged that he had been falsely implicated in the case by the victim.

While refuting the allegations, the accused, a student of Class XII of the humanities stream, GMSSS-35, alleged, “On the day of the incident, the victim and his friends first cornered me during the fifth period in the school and entered into a verbal altercation with me. Later, I reported the matter to my class teacher.”

“After the school hours, when I was heading home, the victim and his friend pulled me out of the school bus and punched me in the eye,” alleged the accused student.

“I have medical reports to prove that I was bashed up on the day of the incident. I did not get into any brawl as being alleged by the victim. Rather, after he and his friend bashed me, they ran towards the market and I returned home,” he alleged.

The accused student also alleged, “Since the past one week, I have been trying to approach the police to tell them the truth but nobody is listening to me. There is need for a fair probe.”

The incident took place on July 17 when the victim, Sachin, a student of Class X of GMSSS, Sector 35, was returning home after the school hours and his seniors allegedly bashed him up.

On the charges levelled by the victim, the police had registered an FIR against two accused students, while the school had expelled both of them.

Meanwhile, the victim’s father, Devinder Singh, said, “The allegations levelled by the accused are completely false. I met senior UT officials today and they assured me that my son would get justice in the case.” 

Chandigarh, July 25
Starting this academic session in Panjab University (PU), there will be no temporary allotment of hostel facility to the freshers.

This decision was taken today after the representatives of the Indian National Students Organisation (INSO) went on a hunger strike in this regard. Following this, the authorities withdrew the policy of temporary allotment of hostels.

Surprisingly, the Indian National Students Organisation has made this demand when on an average, every year, the waiting list is around 700 to 800 for girl students, while it is 500 to 600 for boy students.

A senior official said earlier, around 40 to 50 students were allotted temporary hostel facility on charges of Rs 60 daily. “These students were in the waiting list and were allotted rooms against those seats whose claimants did not turn up after the admission,” he added.

“This provision was made by the authorities for the convenience of students so that they did not have to opt for a paying guest accommodation, when vacant seats were available in the hostels which were not occupied by the allottees due to various reasons,” added the official.

Dean Students Welfare Navdeep Goyal confirmed that they had approved the new policy of not allotting any hostel seat on temporary basis from the academic session.

“Every year, the authorities received a number of calls from students and representatives of political parties for the temporary allotment of seats in the hostel,” he added.

Goyal said the decision would provide relief to the PU authorities from giving temporary allotment of hostel seats to the students.‘will provide relief’

Chandigarh, July 25
Activists of the National Students Union of India (NSUI), today lodged a protest to restart the shuttle bus service in Sector 14 and Sector 25 for the students of Panjab University — to ferry them from their respective departments to their hostels.

The bus service was started in the academic year 2013-14 after much persuasion by the then council president Chandan Rana and NSUI leader Manoj Lubana.

The bus shuttle service proved to be a boon, particularly for the girls students residing in the hostels on the PU campus in Sector 14, but have their departments on the Sector 25 campus or vice versa. As many students did not have their own personal conveyance, the bus service provided relief to them. However, the service is yet to be started.

Following repeated demands of the girl students, NSUI activists organised an agitation in front of the Vice-Chancellor’s office today.

Dr Suman Mor, warden of girls hostel number 7, assured the students that the bus service would be resumed at the earliest.

The students also handed over a memorandum to the warden, which was addressed to the VC.

Chandigarh, July 25
A workshop on portfolio and personality development for senior secondary students and teacher trainees of DECEd (NTT) Institute was organised at DAV Model School, Sector 15-A, today.

Shushank Khandewal and Ankur Kaushik, professors at Pearl Academy, New Delhi, conducted the workshop.

The organisers claimed that the workshop was held to enhance the creative abilities of students. The speakers motivated the students to remain positive and pass on one’s positive energy to others.

Vocational guidance on how to appear in a job interview and how to prepare one’s curriculum vitae was also imparted to the students.

The workshop laid stress on the development of creativity through exploration of various mediums, materials and experimentation.

School principal Dr Rakesh Sachdeva motivated the students to aspire for the best and improve their potential to reach the highest pinnacle of success.