Panchkula, October 18
The Panchkula and Kalka constituencies will get their new Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs) tomorrow after the results of polling are declared in Sector 14 here.

The counting will start at 8 am. While the polling result of Panchkula constituency will be declared at Bel Colony in Sector 14, where as that of the Kalka constituency will be out at the centre of the Government College for Girls, adjacent to the Panchkula centre.

Special security arrangements have been made at both the centres and certain routes to these centers have been blocked.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Rahul Sharma said, “A total of seven nakas have been laid around the centres. We have two ACP-level officers at each centre and three inspector-level officers each to moniter the situation at these places.”

The DCP also said that to step up security, certain routes that are leading to the counting centres have been diverted towards Sector 12.

A tough fight is likely to be between INLD candidate Kulbhushan Goyal and BJP candidate Gian Chand Gupta. Goyal and Gupta will divide their community votes and the urban votes as well. Meanwhile in Kalka, a tough fight is likely among INLD candidate Pradeep Chaudhary, BJP candidate Latika Sharma and Congress candidate Manvir Gill. .

Zirakpur, October 18
An armed gang of auto thieves targeted a Kanpur-based businessman and snatched a Fortuner vehicle from him at gunpoint from near Lucky Dhaba on the Zirakpur-Patiala Highway on Friday night. The snatcher also opened fire at the victim before fleeing from the scene.

*n October 12: Four armed miscreants forcibly took away an Indica car from Kamaljeet Singh, a resident of Phase VI, Mohali, near the Kalibari light point. Kamaljeet Singh was on his way back from Delhi to Mohali with his neighbour when the incident took place.

* September 19: Four assailants targeted a doctor couple at night and took away their Honda City car. The carjackers also opened fire to scare the onlookers. Dr Gaganjit Singh and his wife Dr Shruti, were on their way to Ludhiana and the incident occurred at around 10.45 pm near a gurdwara, located on the road separating Phase V and Phase VII, Mohali. 

Chandigarh, October 18
It’s not just the vehicle thefts, but the Chandigarh police have even failed in recovering the vehicles stolen from the city.

As many as 4,697 vehicles have been stolen in the last five years, out of which the police managed to recover 1,413 vehicles only.

The statistics of the National Crime Record Bureau reveal that the police had recovered not more than 30 per cent of the vehicles stolen in 2009 to 2013.

Interestingly, this year till October 12, total 626 two and four-wheelers have already been stolen from the city jurisdiction.

Nikhil Jadaik, a resident of Sector 15, criticising the Police Department said the rising number of vehicle thefts in the city, especially the two-wheelers had led to the worries of the residents. “The police should come-up with some plan that could deter the thieves from lifting vehicles from the city,” he added.

The vehicles stolen from the city includes two-wheelers and a wide range of cars and SUVs.

Chandigarh DIG AS Cheema said the police had been continuously making efforts to stop theft of vehicles. “The Chandigarh police have been busting gangs of vehicle lifters time-to-time and recovering vehicles from them. However, the thieves rarely disclose about the vehicles stolen by them in the past, which leads to lower recovery rate,” the DIG said.

The DIG said at the same time the Police Department demand from the vehicle owners to install modern security devices in the vehicle to safeguard their vehicle.

Manipal Singh, a Sector 21 resident, stated that, “The UT police should have high-resolution CCTV cameras installed at exit points to capture the images of the people driving out of the city which can help in nailing thieves and recovery of vehicles.”

Meanwhile, Andaman and Nicobar Islands tops the recovery rate chart with 65.78 per cent and city ranks fourth among UTs with 30.4 per cent recovery rate.

Chandigarh, October 18
The Chandigarh Commission for Protection of Child Rights is launching a special drive to track missing children of Chandigarh in the neighbouring states.

The commission has also convened a meeting under the chairmanship of prof Devi Sirohi and Tilak Raj, secretary of the commission, next week, in this regard.

In the meeting, the commission, police personnel, NGOs and social workers will chalk out a plan as to how to go in for the drive. — TNS

Chandigarh, October 18
Kirron Kher, Member of Parliament, Chandigarh, today launched a signature campaign at Sukhna Lake to keep the city clean and green.

Mayor Harphool, MC Commissioner VP Singh and Joint Commissioner Rajiv Gupta also signed on the Swachh Bharat Campaign Boards.

On the occasion, Kirron Kher said MC was making every possible effort to make Chandigarh a clean and green city. She appreciated the efforts of the Municipal Corporation which is not only organising the cleanliness drives but also arranging awareness campaigns and workshops etc to increase the contribution of people towards the environment. She appealed all the citizens to join hands with the Municipal Corporation for keeping the city clean. 

Chandigarh, October 18
To tackle any untoward incident on Diwali night, the Chandigarh Fire Department will station mini-fire tenders in congested areas of the City Beautiful. Also, the department has decided to keep fire tenders at markets witnessing heavy footfall and residential areas having godowns.

All the local seven fire stations have been asked to remain on high alert on the Diwali night. Holidays of the fire-fighting staff have been cancelled till October 23.

Sunil Bhatia, Additional Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, and Chief Fire Officer, said the plan has been chalked out and the standard procedure will be adopted to ensure safety of people and material.

“The holidays of the staff members have been cancelled till Diwali. Keeping in mind the nature of urgency, we are trying to put everything under a plan. This time, there would be more number of cracker shops, for which we have come with special arrangements, including stationing mini-fire tenders. Our vehicles, including fire tenders, mini-vehicles and mini-trucks, will be serving the city,” said ML Sharma, Station Fire Officer, Sector 17, Chandigarh.

Also, one fire tender each will be stationed in markets of Sectors 19, 15, 22, 26 and 40, and areas of Hallo Majra and Burail on the festival of lights so that the golden hour is not lost in travelling in case of a fire mishap.

“We have targeted certain areas to keep a round the clock vigilance. Fire tenders will serve these areas and the staff members will also visit sensitive spots to check any violations. Special arrangements have been made for congested areas like Burail and Hallo Majra,” said Sharma.

With the UT Administration permitting sale of crackers in various sectors, the Department of Civil Defence-cum-Disaster Management has issued special guidelines to the licence holders. "We are organising special interaction with shop owners possessing licence to sell crackers so as to make them aware of the safety aspects. As per the orders, immediate action could be taken against the license holder caught flouting the safety norms," said instructor Sanjeev Kohli.

Mohali, October 18
The district administration has earmarked only three sites in  Mohali town where crackers can be sold this Diwali.

Further, only three days (October 21 to 23) have been specified for the sale of crackers.

Shopkeepers in the Mohali sub-division will have to take permission from the SDM to put up stalls of crackers at the earmarked sites.

SDM Lakhmir Singh said here today that strict action would be taken against shopkeepers found selling crackers without permission and that too, in congested areas. Moreover, only those crackers could be sold which met the parameters laid down by the Supreme Court, he added.

The SDM said the sites earmarked for the sale of crackers in Mohali were near the Bassi cinema in Phase II; the vacant ground near the YPS chowk in Phase VIII; and the Apni Mandi area in Phase XI.

The fourth site (outside the town) was a vacant space opposite Government Senior Secondary School, Banur. — OC

Panchkula, October 18
The Food and Supply Department, Panchkula, today raided several renowned sweets shops in the district and seized samples.

District food and supply officer Subash said, “We seized samples from Anupam Sweets in Sector 11, Mohini Sweets in Sector 6 and Zaika Sweets in Sector 9 besides Harmilap Sweets in Barwala and Bikaner Mishtan Bhandar in Kalka.”

The samples have been sent for testing to a food laboratory in Karnal. The report would be out in 14 days.

Sources said in view of the festive season, raids would be conducted at restaurants and sweets shops daily.

Chandigarh, October 18
While plastic surgeons in the country are being flooded with demand for cosmetic surgeries, people from rural areas and smaller towns are not behind in going under the knife to improve their looks.

Going by what some of world’s best plastic surgeons shared, as they gathered at the PGIMER to attend the 49th annual conference of Association of Plastic Surgeons of India, men have outnumbered women in their readiness to improve appearance through surgery.

“We are flooded with requests for hair transplant, rhinoplasty (enhancing nose), breast reduction (in men) and enlargement (in women). The demand from those coming from interiors of Punjab and other states has increased manifold,” said Dr Ramesh Sharma, Head, Department of Plastic Surgery, PGIMER, and president, Association of Plastic Surgeons of India.

“What is more surprising is the in-depth knowledge about complex cosmetic surgeries that these patients ask for. They do not mind shelling out thousands for it and are also confident about the surgeries,” Dr Sharma said while talking on the sidelines of the third day of the four-day conference today.

“Of the total 300 patients we see everyday in the OPD, nearly 30 per cent constitute those who come for rhinoplasty,” Dr Sharma said.

About the theme of the conference, “Demystifying plastic surgery”, Dr Sharma added that there was a general perception that plastic surgery was synonymous to cosmetic surgery giving an elitist hue to the specialty.

“This is at best a half-truth as majority of patients treated by plastic surgeons in the Indian subcontinent usually suffer from congenital deformities or sequelae of trauma and burns. The plastic surgeons operate on all parts of the body from head to toe. It has got various sub-specialties, including craniofacial surgery, hand and microvascular surgery. The plastic surgeons are actively involved in management of patients with maxillofacial trauma, limb trauma and victims of burn injuries,” he said.

Dr Warren Schubert, president, Association of Plastic Surgeons of America, was present at the event.

Chandigarh, October 18
Sahayta Charitable Welfare Society in collaboration with Rotary Mid Town celebrated Pink October as Breast and Cervix Cancer Awareness Month by organising the Chandigarh Pink City Walk from Circus Ground to Plaza in Sector 17 followed by a breast cancer awareness programme here today.

Theatre personality Neelam Man Singh presided over the awareness programme. A large number of survivors, including renowned dancer Shobha Koser, senior doctors from PGI and Government Hospital, Sector 32, officers of UT Administration, Chief Architect, Chandigarh, along with principals and students of various colleges and schools, NCC cadets, rotarians, members of Chandigarh Senior Citizens Association, advocates, officers of National and Oriental Insurance Companies took part in the rally.

A nukkad natak was also staged. Meanwhile, a doctor’s corner was also set up to answer queries. The theme for this year is ‘Breast Self Examination-a Step towards Surviving Cancer’ and ‘Early Detection is your Best Protection’. — TNS

Chandigarh, October 18
The states pavilions are drawing huge crowd at the CII Fair as was evident from the rush on the second day of the fair today.

One corner of the CII Social Expo remained flooded with buyers almost the whole day. Workers from the Meher Baba Charitable Trust, Bassi Pathana, District Fatehgarh Sahib are selling crafted Punjabi Phulkari items like ‘bags’, like-pillow covers, designer stoles, bedsheets, clutches, cushion covers, customised Punjabi suits and ‘kurtis’ and table covers and at the stall.

The stall also has a special range of Bagh Dupatta, which has 68 colours in it. Priced at Rs 6,200, they have already sold 45 pieces of the same. The artisans have challenged that nobody can identify these 68 colours and if anybody does that he or she will get huge discount.

Vatika Specialised School for Deaf & Dumb, Sector 19, Chandigarh, has been offered a complementary stall. The stall is showcasing products made by specialchildren like Diwali greeting cards, table mats etc. — TNS

Chandigarh, October 18
The Rotract Club, Chandigarh, will organise a 3-day workshop ‘Salsa Fest 2014’ to support the flood victims of J&K. 

Chandigarh, October 18
To lighten up the lives of visually impaired children this Diwali, Cubs Club, a city-based NGO comprising 15 working mothers, has slated an initiative to hold a camp where club members and other volunteers will pledge their eyes for donation.

The camp will be held at Punjab Kala Bhawan on October 19. Dr R Kumar, a former senior eye specialist from PGI, will give a presentation on eye donation.

Giving details about the camp, Meenu Prashar, founder of the NGO, said, “Our aim is to teach children that happiness is not in getting expensive gifts but in making someone else smile. Hence, we are organising an eye donation camp and a Diwali craft workshop. The uniqueness of the workshop is that the parents of children taking part in it would pledge their eyes for donation.”

Prashar added that already 30 persons, including 15 members of the NGO, had registered for the noble cause and over 50 students have registered for the workshop.

Prashar, an architect by profession, added, “At the workshop, children will be decorating candles that have been prepared by students of Institute for the Blind, Sector 26.”

“The idea behind the workshop is that more the people pledge to donate eyes, more the visually impaired children get a hope to see every colour of celebration of this festival of lights,” she said.

Meenu Prashar and Rinne De founded the NGO on the Mother’s Day in 2011 to make children more aware of their social responsibilities.

Panchkula, October 18
Tragedy awaits the city’s main market of Sector 7, as food joints are keeping LPG cylinders out in the open.

This despite the fact that the market is the most crowded on festive occasions and a mishap can occur in the absence of fire safety measures.

Mayor Upinder Ahluwalia has given directions to the Fire Department to station fire tenders at all the important places during the festive season and remain alert but all seems to be in vain.

The Mayor has written a letter to the Haryana Urban Development Authority to take action against the shopkeepers who have placed cylinders in the verandah outside their units.

“It is highly risky. What if a cylinder bursts? So I have written to the HUDA to take an immediate action against those flouting fire safety norms,” said Ahluwalia.

Shikha Sharma, a visitor to the market, said, “At least the cylinders can be kept at a safe place or at the rear of the shops. This market is the most crowded and a cylinder burst can prove tragic.” She added, “We feel unsafe while visiting the market.”

While there is no fire safety arrangement in the market, the Fire Department has not even made an effort to check such markets despite fire incidents in the past.

There are only eight fire tenders in the district with a population of 3.5 lakh.

During Diwali, 45 cases of burns were received at the city hospitals. Three families had also landed at the General Hospital after a cylinder burst in Sector 19.

Chandigarh, October 18
In order to develop and align talent pool for the industry, the UT Administration is all set to extend the Chandigarh Training on Soft Skills Programme (C-TOSS) in 86 government schools, which would cater to nearly 25,000 students.

Officials from the department said the project would cost Rs 2 crore, and the funds for it would be allocated by the IT Department.

The authorities added that since there was a need to develop soft skills among government school students, the project was being integrated in the curriculum. The project was launched initially in 2004 in six government schools.

Sources said the project would be delivered through the Regional Institute for English (RIE). The syllabus would be designed by the Society for Promotion of IT Chandigarh (SPIC) along with specially designed activities, which will focus on the skills of speaking, interview, group discussion, everyday communication, declamation and recitation.

Moreover, they added that the course content duration would be 75 hours for one section of each Classes of IX, X and XI. Also, the trainers would use bilingual approach and would integrate technology in the classroom.

UT Finance Secretary Sarvjit Singh said: “The programme would help the students to further enhance their soft skills, which, in turn, would help them to explore more opportunities and avenues.”

One of the officials said in addition to the modules and materials prepared by SPIC, more worksheets would be added and towards the end of the course an assessment would also be carried out.

The programme implementing agency would be required to submit the evaluation report for each class section of all students covered during the course, said officials.

“The trainers engaged for the project would first have to undergo a two-week training before the commencement of the programme and further, there would be a weekly training of two-three hours for them,” said an official.

Panchkula, October 18
Diane Brewer, principal, and Daniel Hollis, a teacher, of Baring Primary School, London, visited a school in Panchkula in order to experience the education scenario in schools here.

As part of a reciprocal staff exchange programme with The Gurukul, Sector 20, the guests from London, who have visited India for the first time, have been observing classes and interacting with students.

Right from attending the morning assembly and witnessing special assembly on Diwali, judging an inter- house skit competition on Dasehra to making rangoli with The Gurukulites, it’s been an engaging week for them.

Talking to Chandigarh Tribune, Brewer said: “The best part about schools here is that they have assemblies all together which we don’t have. We have only classroom assemblies. I believe these assemblies give students a sense of unity.”

The icing on the cake was an educational trip to the Science City, Kapurthala, which was immensely appreciated by them for its learning quotient.

While interacting with the students over the week, Brewer and Hollis told them that the students in London were no different from those in India and despite the cultural difference, the innocence, agility and inquisitiveness of the children remain the same across the globe.

Brewer said: “We have experienced a wealth of Indian culture and traditions and feel privileged to be working in such a positive international partnership with the school.”

Earlier this year, The Gurukul’s Principal Harsimran Kaur and another teacher had visited Baring School, London, and brought back new teaching learning practices. Under the Connecting Classrooms programme of the British Council, various collaborative projects were taken up by both schools in the past year.

Brewer and Hollis also enjoyed viewing the voting process on October 15.

Chandigarh, October 18
Budding medicos from Gian Sagar Hospital and Medical College, Banur, joined hands with Government Dental College, Jammu and Kashmir, to provide medicare to flood victims in Jammu and Kashmir.

The teams of medicos examined 11,260 patients, besides distributing 14 lakh medicines and 4,500 vaccines among the affected.

Accompanied by the chairman of the hospital, Dr Barjinder Singh, the doctors shared their experiences with the mediapersons during a press conference here today.

Dr Singh said a team of doctors, in collaboration with the Rotary Club, Ropar, conducted medical camps in Chiralipur, Chhatabal, Jawahar Nagar, Bhatwara (Badami Bagh), Azad Basti, Raina Wala, Harnambal, Natipur and Gulshan Nagar.

Besides medicines and vaccines, 4 lakh chlorine tabs, 15,000 masks and 2,500 gloves were also distributed to the flood-hit victims.

The teams handed over relief vaccines, including 500 Hepatitis A vaccines and 1,500 typhoid vaccines, to principal of Government Dental College, Jammu, Dr Riyaz Farooq.

Natasha Chopra (GM Community Outreach) said the team not only administered medicines to the ailing but also provided proper nursing care to them.

Chandigarh, October 18
Panjab University Zonal Youth and Heritage Festival - 2014 (Chandigarh Zone A) continued in full swing at Sri Guru Gobind Singh College, Sector 26, on the second day today.

The college resonated with the music of folk orchestra, folk instrumental, vaar singing, Kavishri. Beats of Jhumar, Luddi, Sammi and Malwai Giddha enthralled the audience. Debates and poem recitations allured the literary audience and those interested in art and craft were fascinated by the beautiful phulkaris, pakhis, rangolis and mehandi.

The chief guest for the musical items’ section Brijesh Kumar was accompanied with the guests of honour, Hardeep Singh and Baba Mundri Lal. Navtej Johar presided over the folk dance event where GS Channi was the guest of honour.

For traditional songs, singer Sukhwinder Brar and SHO S Anokh Singh were the chief guest and the guest of honour, respectively.

Dr Manmohan Singh presided over the debate performances.

All teams from different colleges enthusiastically participated in events and were a great source of delight, entertainment and inspiration to the visitors. A number of heritage exhibition stalls were on display to increase the cultural awareness of the visitors.

The first prize for folk dance was bagged by the PGGC, Sector 11, the second prize went to the host, SGGS College, Sector 26, and the third prize was shared between GGDSD College, Sector 32, and DAV College, Sector 10, Chandigarh.

In rangoli, the Government College of Arts, Sector 10, bagged the first prize and PGG College, Sector 46, came second.

In instumental music (percussion), the PU Campus bagged the first position, PGG College, Sector 46, won the second prize and PGG College, Sector 11, bagged the third prize. In instumental music (non-percussion), the GGDSD bagged the first prize while PGG College, Sector 46, and SGGS College won the second and third positions, respectively.

Chandigarh, October 18
While celebrating the 8th Founder’s Day at a Sector 38 auditorium, the senior wing of Vivek High School, Mohali, mesmerised the audience with their scintillating performance of the play ‘Annie’ here today.

The musical play was adapted from a book by Thomas Meehan and the music was composed by Charles Strouse. Designed, directed and trained by Zubin Mehta, theatre personalities and choir from Classes VIII, IX and X gave a splendid performance.

Beautifully woven, the story revolves around a young and resolute orphan, Annie and her quest for her lost parents and her journey through the highs and the lows of life.

The lead character was played flawlessly by Avantika Lakhwara. The core cast consisted of seven orphans in the story and their cruel matron. Hannigan was played by Muskan Sharma, Oliver Warbucks played by Ranvir Singh and his secretary Grace played by Astha Kapoor.

The play was well supported by nine songs and two dances, choreographed by Poonam Kharb. The music for the choir was guided by Vikramjit Singh Mamik and orchestrated by Lalit Kumar.

Speaking on the occasion, Anuradha Dua, Principal, said: “We have always tried to instill in students the right attitude with an excellent blend of traditional and progressive curriculum and emphasised on essential elements like life skill education, personal skills and practical life experiences right from the beginning. I thank the parents, for keeping the faith and encouraging the school with their continued support as we work towards excellence.”