jalandhar, August 10
Within barely five days of its opening, Meritorious School in the city has been marred by controversy. If sources are to be believed, the much-hyped project of the state government didn’t even have its own water supply source and is overriding on the adjoining tube well of the Sports department installed to supply water to the lone swimming pool in the city. As a result, the supply to the swimming pool has now been seized and the pool is now left at the mercy of rain to get fresh water now with rainfall.

“We are so harassed from the day the school started. The school authorities have intentionally damaged pipes of the water supply coming to us by crossing heavy trucks loaded with construction material of Meritorious School so that we could not receive water from the tube-well. Later, very conveniently they connected the tube well to the water supply system of the school and is doing the entire water supply from the same tube-well only,” said Om Parkash, swimming coach. He also said that since it was the only swimming pool open to the general public, it caterd to around 12 lakh residents in the city.

Reliable sources alleged that the Sports Department sanctioned a grant of Rs 11.52 lakh to the Health Department to construct a tube-well for the swimming pool in 2012. Later, the Health Department got the tube-well constructed at a cost of Rs 8 lakh only. “Since beginning, the tube-well was marred by controversy. The Health Department, to cut the cost, installed the tube-well on the same place where two tube-wells were earlier running for the past 45 years. The water level was very low, but to cut the cost, the Health Department installed it at the same place,” alleged Om Parkash. Later, the pool authorities had to install a submersible pump to get adequate supply of water, but now the water supply to the pool again seized after the commencement of Meritorious School on August 5.

Massa Singh, principal of Meritorious School, confirmed that the school was indeed getting water from the lone tube-well installed inside the Sports College Complex. “I am not aware about much detail, but we are getting the entire supply from the same tube well only. Presently, we do not have a separate water supply source of our own,” confirmed Massa Singh.

The Union Government had sanctioned a whopping grant of Rs 24 crore to construct and run Meritorious School at Jalandhar. But with the district administration failing to provide even the basic water supply facility in one of the prestigious projects of the country definitely raises fingers of suspicion at the intention and interest of those associated with the project. 

Phagwara, August 10
Eight migrant labourers from Bihar, including five children, sustained injuries when the cart in which they were returning home was hit by the speeding blue beacon car of an Assistant Commandant of 75 Battalion PAP Gurmeij Singh.

The official was himself driving the car near “Apahaj Ghar” on the Phagwara-Hoshiarpur road late last night night. The official was returning to his residence after attending a function held at a hotel.

Five of the injured belonged to a family.

The eight injured were identified as Nikku Devi, Niklesh, Manisha, Gobind, Rahul, Pooja, Deepak and Shiv who were brought to Phagwara Civil Hospital by SHO City Balbir Singh in his own vehicle, as no ambulance arrived at the place despite despite repeated phone calls.

Jalandhar, August 10
In what comes as a lot of inspiration for special children determined to make a mark in their lives despite the odds, a city based student has been commended by the Union Government for his academic excellence and study record.

Taking note of the outstanding academic record of city based student Arav Kalra, Smriti Zubin Irani, Minister for Human Resource Development has issued a letter commending Arav for his achievements.

Studying at the local Eklavya School since class IInd, Arav is a special needs child whose grit has kept his academic record high.

Son of city based doctor – radiologist Dr Ashish and working mother Poonam Kalra, Arav who is studying in the XIth standard at the school presently, achieved a CGPA of 8.0 in his 10th standard CBSE Board exam. His subjects were English, Hindi, social studies, computers and music.

The letter from Irani has praised Arav for his “….courage, strength and hard work……displaying that with sheer will power and effort one can achieve great success.”

The Union government has also recognised the principal Dimpal Sharma and five educators - Bhawna Bhatt, Sunita Khanna, Parminder K Jheeta, Anil Kumar and Navneet K Bhatia - of Eklavya School for their contribution to the field of education by the HRD minister.

Seema Handa, director of the school, said, “We feel highly honoured by the award and the school’s emphasis and approach to lend proper care to all its students has been identified. Arav is a very lively and positive child with an excellent sense of humour. While he performed really well in his exams, he is known for his knack at making people laugh and poetry. He is an active participant of many school contests as well. His case is a cherished one and his determination is an inspiration to other children.”

Arav’s file and details had been regularly been sent to the CBSE by the school.

Talking to The Tribune, Arav said he was thrilled with the achievement and planned to pursue business studied in the future and to run the family business.

“I am intrigued by music and want to pursue it as a hobby always, but would go for business studies in academics. Painting and experimenting with colours is also a great passion of mine. The appreciation means a lot to me and inspires me to do even better,” he said.

Arav’s mother Poonam Kalra said, “Arav’s hardwork and struggle have paid off and the moment he received the letter was thrilling for us. It has strengthened his resolve to make it big in life all the more. I also thank the students of the school. I believe we the parents and the school teachers worked as a team for Arav, but in the end its his excellence which has made him go the extra mile.”

Individual Education Plan

Eklavya School runs the ‘Individual Education Plan’ (IEP) followed for each student. Each special needs student is withdrawn for one hour every day from the mainstream classroom for one-on-one support as required. Various need-based accommodations such as reduced syllabus, only objective-type questions, only oral testing, use of Dictaphone, use of calculators for Maths, use of Computers, extra time, substitute writer, special teaching aids, railings in assembly grounds, ramp, classes on ground floor etc are avaialble for students. Regular upgrades of staff members – to ensure better and higher qualification - also take place. Recently, a group of educators, from the school cleared two courses. Certificate in Guidance by IGNOU and Foundation Course In Education of Learning Disabled by the RCI.

Jalandhar, August 10
Notwithstanding repeated calls by Deputy Commissioner KK Yadav or the continuous visits of tehsildar to colleges to provide free admission to students covered by the Post Matric Scholarship scheme, Lyallpur Khalsa College has allegedly denied admission – reportedly because her papers were incomplete - to student Mamta Rani.

Unwilling to completely miss out on admissions this year, the student says she has finally opted for admission in Lovely Professional University - which has granted her free admission as per the Post Matric Scholarship Scheme.

Even after the SDM II, who is also the district nodal officer for the provision of post-matric scholarship scheme, said legal action would be initiated against colleges which don’t tow the line of the issue, Mamta had to secure admission elsewhere in the end.

On Thursday, the student also submitted a complaint to the DC, asking for action against the said college.

Mamta had sought admission in the B.Ed counselling done by Patiala University, through which she got seat in the Lyallpur Khalsa College for Women.

But on seeking admission in the college on July 25, she alleged that the principal denied her admission. While she alleged the principal had asked her Rs 30,000 on the first day she visited the college, on being unable to pay the said amount, she sought the help of the district administration.

On July 28 and 30 and August 1, she met the Deputy Commissioner and after the DC issued instructions to the college to admit students as per the scheme, she was told to seek admission in the college again.

On the DC’s instructions, she later went to the college principal on August 2, 4 and 5, but she was still not given admission.

During this time, tehsildar II accompanied the student to the college, but despite repeated visits, the student says finally she was bowing out because the deadline of the admissions has arrived and she fears she won’t make it to any institute.

Talking to The Tribune Mamta said, “On my recent visit to the college I was told the photocopy of the result document to be submitted to the college by me was not there with them. While I had submitted the copy along with my other documents, the college said they hadn’t received it. On that day, I did not have the said document with me. The administration members accompanying me were also told that the lapse was on my part. Finally, I opted for admission at LPUbecause lingering more days would mean losing out on admissions altogether.”

Mamta has demanded action against the college authorities for alleged harassment meted out to her in the letter she wrote to the Deputy Commissioner on the issue this Thursday.

Meanwhile, SDM II Varinder Pal Bajwa said, “Some of the documents of the said girl haven’t been submitted due to which the college couldn’t give her admission. Still our men will give me a report on whether there have been any lapses by the college. If that is the case, we will take the requisite action.”

Jalandhar, August 10
Proving his mettle once again, shuttler Jeevesh Khanna has brought laurels to Jalandhar by winning the under-13 singles and doubles sub-junior Punjab Badminton Championship, held in Moga from August 6 to 10.

With the superb victory registered at the championship, Jeevesh has now qualified for the national badminton championship scheduled to be held at Rohtak (Haryana) in September this year. Meanwhile, what is double delight for Jalandhar is that another city boy Sowmin Wasan, who lost to Jeevesh in the singles final, has also qualified for the nationals. In the doubles final, Jeevesh and Sowmin teamed up to defeat Garvpreet Singh and Karan Mehra of Amritsar, which paved Sowmin’s way for nationals as well.

It is worth mentioning that Jeevesh, a student of class VII of Apeejay School, has already to his credit several achievements (see box). Speaking to The Tribune, an elated Jeevesh said he owed his success to his family and coach Sachin Ratti. “Because of the rigorous six-hour practice schedule daily at the Hansraj Stadium, the school has exempted me from attending classes till the national championship. It is my mother Rubina Khanna, who teaches me school work at home in order to make sure that I perform well academically as well,” he said. Jeevesh further said that he feels himself lucky for getting support from the entire family to pursue his passion. Badminton is an expensive support and without support of family, it is not possible to pursue the game, he said.

Notably, Jeevesh’s grandfather Irwin Khanna is former state champion and had remained the captain of the GNDU badminton team. Irwin’s younger brother Rakesh Khanna is also seven-time state badminton champion. Jeevesh’s father Puneet Khanna is current veteran state champion, whereas his uncle Ritin Khanna is three-time state champion. “Taking inspiration from my family, I started playing badminton at the age of eight in year 2010,” he said. Interestingly, Jeevesh’s role model is no one from India but world number one Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia. “Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal also inspires me a lot,” he said. 

Achievements of Jeevesh Khanna

* Won under-10 Punjab Badminton Championship in year 2011

* Winner of Li-Ning Open in Under-13 singles and doubles in year 2012

* Won Punjab Championship in Under-13 doubles with Jalandhar’s Parth Soni in year 2013

* Represented Punjab at Nationals at Cuttack (Odisha) in year 2013

* Won singles and doubles in Under-13 category in Punjab Badminton Championship 2014 at Moga

* Will now represent Punjab at Nationals to be held at Rohtak in September

Jalandhar, August 10
The carelessness of the city schools in adhering to the directions of the Supreme Court on the safety standards of buses continues to threaten the lives of schoolchildren.

The Jalandhar Police Commissionerate and the district administration, instead of taking action against the schools flouting norms, have confined themselves to holding meetings and inconclusive talks with the school management.

It is an irony that every time a mishap involving a school bus takes place, the police become active and start issuing challans. But in reality, the police drive sustains only for a short duration.

Three mishaps involving school buses have been witnessed in the last few days. In one such mishap, a four-year-old school kid died while a dozen others sustained injuries. Many had a miraculous escape.

It has been ten days when four-year-old Aarush, son of an industrialist Chandan Arora and a student of Innocent Hearts School, died in a school bus mishap. The incident took place on August 1 near Patel Chowk. Aarush fell off the moving bus and his head was crushed under the rear tyre of the bus.

The incident had occurred because of the clear negligence of the bus driver who kept driving at a high speed without paying heed to the child who fell off the vehicle. The bus conductor's role was also questionable as he had kept the door open. Had the bus door been closed, Aarush would not have fallen off the moving bus.

Though the police registered a case of negligence against the bus driver and the conductor, the police have not been moving further in taking action against the school management. Notably, after the accident, the police had also confirmed that the school bus did not have a speed governor. It was being plied without valid documents and a valid permit. But till date, the police are shying away from taking action and is only making tall claims that action would be taken against the school management. Even the bereaved father of Aarush had approached the city police several times, but he said he was being given only hollow assurances and the police was not taking concrete action against the school management.

New police commissioner assures action

The outgoing police commissioner Kunwar Vijap Partap Singh had assured action against the school. Now the new police commissioner Yurinder Singh has also assured of action. "We have held a meeting with the schools, transport authorities and the district administration, in which a concrete plan of action was prepared to tackle the problem. The schools have been categorically told to adhere to the Supreme Court's guidelines failing which action will follow," he added.

About the delay in taking action against the management of Innocent Hearts School, which allowed a bus to ferry children without a speed governor and without any valid document, Police Commissioner Yurinder Singh said he was aware of the incident and an investigation was on. If found guilty, action would be taken against the school management, he assured.

Two more school bus mishaps haunt parents

After the mishap that snuffed out the life of Aarush, two more school bus mishaps shook the parents. On August 5, the bus of Cambridge International School was stuck in rain water beneath the Domoria bridge. Instead of choosing the safer 'overbridge' route, the bus driver chose to go through the underpass.

Due to heavy rain, the underpass was filled with 4 to 5 feet of rainwater and the bus got stuck there. The engine of the vehicle did not start despite efforts and the eight children sitting in the bus panicked, seeing themselves stranded in the flooded underpass. After half an hour, the bus driver and the conductor started moving the children out of water by lifting them on their shoulders. Similarly, on August 9, 16 students of Janata Model Senior Secondary School in Bholath were injured, while six sustained fractures after the bus they were travelling in turned turtle at Bhagwanpur village near Bholath in Kapurthala.

Kapurthala police outdo Jalandhar police

In the mishap involving the bus of the Janata Model School, 16 children sustained injuries while two were seriously injured. The Kapurthala police outdid the Jalandhar police by registering a case against the school owner along with the driver of the bus. SSP, Kapurthala, Dhanpreet Kaur, confirmed that on the complaint of parents, the school owner was booked under the relevant sections of IPC along with the driver of the bus. If during the investigations, the role of the school owner is confirmed, he has to face legal action as per the law.

Bereaved father of Aarush still awaits FIR against school

Terming the attitude of Jalandhar police as lethargic bordering on carelessness, Aarush's father Chandan Arora, who has been running from pillar to post seeking action against the management of Innocent Hearts School, said even nine days after the mishap, the police is still vacillating in taking action against the school management.

"I have lost my child and I know he cannot come back. But it is shameful that the police are dilly-dallying in taking action against the school management, which didn't follow the Supreme Court's directions on school buses," Chandan Arora told Jalandhar Tribune. He said although he had lost his child, he would not let other children become the victims of such mishaps in future.

Few schools arrived for meeting called by admn

Chandan Arora, the father of Aarush said all efforts made by the police and the district administration to make the schools aware of the Supreme Court's direction on school buses had gone down the drain because only a dozen school representatives arrived for the meeting called by the administration to discuss the issue. "The city has around 586 schools of which only a dozen came to attend the meeting. In such a situation, how can the administration make schools aware of safety issues," he said and asked why the DC was not taking action against schools who didn't send their representatives to attend the important meeting.

* School buses should be painted yellow.

* "School bus" must be written on the back and front of the bus. If it is a hired bus, "On school duty" should be clearly indicated.

* The bus should have a first-aid box.

* The bus should be fitted with a speed governor of a specified standard.

*The windows of the bus should be fitted with horizontal grills.

* There should be a fire extinguisher in the bus.

* The school name and telephone number must be written on the bus.

* The doors of the bus should be fitted with reliable locks.

* To keep the school bags safely, there should be a space fitted under the seats.

* There must be a qualified attendant in the bus to attend to children.

* Any parent/guardian or a teacher may also travel in the bus to ensure the safety norms.

* The driver should have at least 5-year experience of driving heavy vehicles.

* A driver who has been issued challans more than twice in a year for offences like red light jumping, violation of lane discipline or allowing unauthorised person to drive, cannot be employed.

* A driver who has been challaned even once for the offence of overspeeding, drunken driving and dangerous driving, etc., cannot be employed.

* As per Section 2(47) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, an educational institution bus is a transport vehicle and therefore requires a permit to ply on the road. Being a transport vehicle it would also need to undergo mandatory fitness test every year, without which the permit cannot be renewed.

Jalandhar, August 10
It is an endless wait for 14-year-old Aashi and seven-year-old Prachi Arora whose four-year-old brother Aarush Arora left them just four days ahead of Raksha Bandhan.

Aarush died after falling from his school bus. They both know in their hearts that he will never come back but still look hopefully at the main door waiting for some miracle to happen. But with the rakhis that Aaarush bought just a day before the fateful day stuck close to their hearts and with tears in their eyes, the two sisters are left with no other option but to tie them to the photograph of their only brother who left them suddenly after being an integral part of their lives all this while

"He promised to take care of us throughout our lives. Why did he leave us so suddenly? This was the first time when he bought rakhis of his own choice. Since he was a great fan of Chota Bheem, he bought rakhis with his stickers on them. We were so happy to see him excited. We never knew that this happiness is just momentary, that it will be followed by an appalling darkness of a lifetime," said a grief stricken Aashi Arora, presently studying in Class X. She also revealed that though Aarush is not there with them now, he will always be an integral part of their life. "He has given us so much of love and good memories, this life will not be enough to forget him," said Aashi.

While Aashi understands the loss to her and her family, the younger sister Prachi is yet to come to terms with the tragedy. "I know something happened to Aarush but don't know exactly what happened. We never saw him after the time he left the house. Everybody was crying. I didn't like it," said the little girl.

On being asked as to what was it that she missed the most when Aarush was around, she said the toys have never changed their place since the time he left. "He always kept throwing my toys here and there but now they are at the same place where he left them a few days ago," said Prachi.

The grief-stricken parents also shared their memories of last year's celebration in the house. "Aarush was a very lively child.. Even his photograph in the drawing room is so lively that we can actually hear him giggle and call our names. We know that it is a mere illusion, but somehow we don't want to come out of it presently," said Chander Arora, father of Aarush. For the parents, it was indeed a big loss after 12 long years of consistent prayers and visiting various religious shrines across the country.

As far as the two sisters are concerned, no Raksha Bandhan will ever be the same again. 

Jalandhar, August 10
Noted environmentalist Balbir Singh Seechewal along with officials of the district administration wants the residents of Kapurthala to watch the ongoing cleanliness drive at the historic Chhota Drain and suggest ways to improve the place.

An informal meeting has been called on August 12 where the residents of the city will be invited to see the ongoing cleanliness work.

The administration wants the road on the drain side to be developed for taking walks or for other leisure activities.

Kapurthala Deputy Commissioner DS Mangat said, "We would like the residents to see the cleanliness work at Chhota Drain. I want them to participate in the ongoing cleanliness drive."

The DC confirmed that a programme has been scheduled for August 12 where the residents would be asked to suggest ways to improve the place.

Interestingly, the volunteers led by environmentalist Balbir Singh Seechewal had initiated a new project to clean the Kapurthala-based drain known as 'Chhota Drain'.

Decades old, this 12-km drain starts from Kanjli wetland and flows through Kapurthala city and then meets the Kali Bein. The drain is supposed to have been constructed to provide clean water to the residents who have allegedly been ignored by the district administration for decades.

Since the Kali Bein has been declared holy, the polluted water from the Chhota Drain had been ruining the sanctity of the Kali Bein for long.

Seechewal said since the drain will directly benefit the city residents, therefore they must come and provide assistance.

He said the drain was supposed to have been constructed by the royal family of Kapurthala. Such a historical drain had been languishing owing to the lethargic approach of the district administration.

The cleaning project has been on for five days now.

Jalandhar, August 10
After suffering a weak monsoon, the Basmati farmers in the region have another challenge to face. Certain verities of Basmati including 1509 and 1121 have been suffering a fungal disease called 'Foot Rot'.

Owing to weak monsoon, the area under Basmati crop had to increase. Consequently the area under basmati has been increased to 23000 hectare this season. However the farmers have been facing another jolt.

In this disease, the affected plant grows rapidly, and then it starts drying up. The agriculture experts say that there is no treatment for this disease. It is seed-borne disease and the affected plant has to be rooted-out.

Affected farmer from Talwara village, Baldev Singh said that he brought nearly 30 acres of land under basmati crop that include the verities 1121 and 1509 because of weak monsoon. However the agriculture department too recommended him to sow more basmati.

"After few days of transplantation of the 1509 verity started catching the same disease. Subsequently nearly six acres of my crop have been affected from it. I had to uproot the all the six acre and then transplant again. I have suffered the double expenditure including diesel and labour. Apart from 1509, the 1121 verity has also been catching the same disease gradually", he added.

He said that it's very unfortunate that the farmers have been facing another jolt.

Another farmer from Chakchela village, Joga Singh said that he has around 20 acre of land under basmati crop. His crop is too suffering from the same disease. Yet it has not made mush effects to his crop as it made on other farmers.

"I would like to state government to announce some compensation package for the affected farmers to bail them out", he added.

Speaking to the Jalandhar Tribune Dr Naresh Gulati of Agriculture Department Jalandhar said that one of the reasons behind this disease is the pre-sowing.