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3 sentenced to life in jail
Mohali, October 29 Holding the trio guilty, the court of Mohali Additional District and Sessions Judge Jaswinder Shemar sent them to jail for life and also imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 on each of them. Dr Kaura (45), owner of Oxford Hospital in Sector 19, Chandigarh, was found murdered in his Tata Aria car, parked on the Dera Bassi-Habatpur road on December 21, 2011. Dr Kaura had gone missing from his Sector 19 residence on December 19, 2011. A Mohali police team, comprising Bhupinder Singh Sidhu, the then Superintendent of Police (Detective), and Inspector Gurcharan Singh, the then CIA in charge, had cracked the case within nine days by arresting Vishal Vij, a former junior engineer in the PGI, Chandigarh, Honey Sharma and her husband Deepak Sharma, both residents of Sector 17, Panchkula, on December 30, 2011. The police had registered a case under Sections 302, 307 and 34 of the IPC at the Dera Bassi police station in this connection. Case history
During the police investigation, it had come out that Dr Kaura, a rich and famous cardiologist of the region, was killed for money. The accused, Vishal Vij, had connived with a couple, Deepak Sharma and his wife Honey Sharma, to extract money from the doctor by way of blackmail. Under a plan hatched in October 2011, Honey Sharma started calling up Dr Kaura and befriended him. She hid her identity by changing her name to Jyotika Singh and started meeting him. Initially, the accused had planned to blackmail Dr Kaura through Honey Sharma. Later, they planned to kidnap him for ransom. On the fateful day, Jyotika, who was dropped at Dr Kaura’s hospital in Sector 19 by her husband, had taken the victim to her Panchkula residence where Vishal and Deepak were already present. In a bid to overpower the doctor, they gagged him with a cello tape, but inadvertently gave him an overdose of a drug, resulting in his death.
Dr Kaura’s belongings recovered from accused
The Mohali police recovered Dr Kaura’s belongings, including an iPod, a Rado watch and a gold ring, besides cash from the possession of the accused. The police also recovered two stolen cars from the accused’s possession. Vishal had stolen an Activa scooter of a PGI employee, Surekha Sharma, whose ID card was used by Deepak to get a mobile phone connection for Honey, alias, Jyotika Singh, to make calls to Dr Kaura.
Doctor died of drug overdose
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UT detects evasion of Rs 75 lakh market fee
Rajmeet Singh Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 29 The issue of evasion of the fee by commission agents in the apple market and stringent checking following directions issued by the Secretary of the Agriculture Marketing Board, Mohammed Shayin, has already become a bone of contention between the commission agents and UT officials. A detailed inspection of the records of the arrivals and auctioned consignments of apple, by SDM (East) Danish Ashraf between July 31 and September 30 this year has revealed that 10 commission agents had evaded the fee on 3,69,618 boxes of apple. During the sample period, a total of 10 lakh boxes of apple had arrived in the market and only 6. 50 lakh were shown to have been sold. Since the inspection pertains to 10 of the total 55 agents, the records of the other agents are also being checked. On the basis of the report, recently submitted to the Secretary of the Marketing Board, orders have been issued to serve show-cause notices on the erring commission agents. Digvijay Kapoor, president of the Arhtiya Association, said the Administration wanted to spoil the business of the apple traders. An issue was being created out of a non-issue. Trucks carrying apple for sale in other states are often parked in the transport area. It does not mean that this apple is auctioned in the Sector 26 market. Apple traders claim that regular checks were being conducted by the market committee and there was no chance of any evasion. In his report, the SDM has stated that the record of the gate pass register as well as the auction record revealed that while some apple boxes were shown as unsold, the rate of the auctioned apples had not been recorded in most cases. This year, teams were deputed under SDMs to conduct checking. Officials of the Civil Defence and enforcement inspectors were part of the teams. Shayin said due to stringent checking by officials from departments other than the market committee, the revenue from the apple mandi had doubled. Commission agents had been holding protests against the checking, he said.
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Post-Modi visit, roads shed cosmetic make-up
Panchkula, October 29 The roads near the Shalimar ground in Sector 5, where the ceremony was held on Sunday, were recarpeted on Saturday to ensure a smooth drive for VVIPs. Besides the roads, the entire ground was spruced up. Three days later, a patch of the road has come off near Tau Devi Lal Stadium, which was also spruced up, as earlier the ceremony was to take place there. Later, the venue was shifted to the Shalimar ground. While an amount of around Rs 5 lakh was spent on recarpeting the roads near the Shalimar ground, nearly Rs 10 lakh was spent on recarpeting roads in and around Tau Devi Lal Stadium in Sector 3. The roads near the petrol pump in Sector 5 and opposite the mall were recarpeted. HUDA Executive Engineer Preet Mohan said, “I will get the roads inspected tomorrow. How can the recarpeted layer come off so soon?” Residents were happy after the administration ordered recarpeting of the roads as they had been urging the authorities to repair these for long. “One wonders what kind of material was used that came off so soon. It appears that the recarpeting was done only for the PM,” said Preeti Chadha, who had come to the petrol pump. Lakhs spent on recarpeting work
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2 youths acquitted of attempt-to-murder charge
Chandigarh, October 29 The court of Additional District and Sessions Judge Ranjit Kumar Jain acquitted BTech student Inderjeet and his accomplice Navdeep, a private company employee, of the charges of attempt to murder. However, the court convicted both accused of voluntarily causing hurt under Section 323 of the IPC. In addition, the accused, Navdeep, has been convicted of rash and negligent driving under Sections 279 and 337 of the IPC while Inderjeet has been acquitted of rash and negligent driving. The court has imposed a fine of Rs 5,000 on Navdeep and Rs 2,000 on Inderjeet. Both youths have been released on a probation period of one year. The incident occurred on New Year’s Eve on December 31, 2013, when the woman constable of the UT police, Sonia Dhankar, was returning home with another woman constable, Poonam, after duty. According to the prosecution case, the incident occurred at 2.15 am at Mani Majra when constable Poonam and constable Sonia Dhankar were returning home after duty. Sonia, who was driving an Activa scooter, had just dropped Poonam near the gurdwara in Mani Majra when a speeding Zen car (CH 03 L 2156) hit her scooter from the rear side. Constable Sonia lost balance. The car driver tried to flee, but Sonia came on the road to foil his bid. Navdeep, a Mani Majra resident who was driving the car, accelerated due to which Sonia fell on the bonnet of the car and was dragged for around 200 metres. She held on to the wipers of the car tightly even though the driver kept applying brakes in between in a bid to make her fall on the road. Inderjeet had then pulled Sonia in an attempt to push her to the ground and also slapped her. Sonia then caught hold of Inderjeet when Poonam also rushed to help her. As they caught hold of the accused Inderjeet, the other accused, Navdeep, fled with the car and was later arrested. A medical examination of the youths had revealed that both of them were in an inebriated condition. The defence counsel stated before the court that the accused had no intention to kill the constables and thus the charges of attempt to murder were baseless and fell flat in court. The nature of injuries of the victim, Sonia, also did not corroborate the murder charges. The UT police had rewarded constable Sonia Dhanker and constable Poonam for their bravery after the incident.
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BTech student ends her life
Panchkula, October 29 The Station House Officer of the Sector 20 police station, Inspector Surinder Singh, said, “The victim was pursuing BTech in bio-technology. We saw her marksheets of 2011, 2012 and 2013, which showed that she had got grace marks. Her parents told us that she kept saying that she couldn’t do anything in life.” In the morning, when her parents got up, they saw her hanging from the grille of the window with a dupatta,” said the official. Rishu was taken to the General Hospital, Sector 6, where she was declared brought dead. The victim’s elder brother lives in Canada while she was residing here with her parents.
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PGI study finds nursing students stressed
Chandigarh, October 29 The study, gauging the stress levels among 221 students of nursing, found that none of them was free from stress, though the levels varied. The purpose of the study, “Perceived level of stress, stressors and coping behaviours in nursing students”, published in the Indian Journal of Positive Psychology, was to investigate the perception level of stress and sources of stress among undergraduate nursing students. Coping behaviours of these students were also explored. The study was carried out by Dr Sandhya Ghai, Principal, NINE, and her team — Dr Monika Dutta and Dr Aarti Garg.
Methodology
A cross-sectional descriptive design was adopted in this study. The sample size consisted of 221 nursing students. Data was obtained using a questionnaire, including a socio-demographic profile sheet, perceived stress scale and a stressor check list.
Results
The study revealed that no student was free from stress; only the degree of stress varied from individual to individual. A majority of the students had low and moderate level of stress. Only 5 (2.3 per cent) students had a severe level of stress. The maximum mean stress score was for second and third-year students of BSc (Nursing), a four-year course.
What the Principal says
“We suggested different coping methods for each category of stress among students. While using safety equipment to prevent hospital-acquired infections was one prime solution, for handling other forms of stress, we enlisted short-term instead of long-term goals, regular breaks from work and defining line between personal and professional lives as solutions. The fear of catching infections is always common among the staff as they are exposed to chronic patients,” said Dr Sandhya Ghai, Principal, NINE.
Cinema education for positive approach
A parallel study by NINE, PGI, found that 62 per cent of the nursing students felt that incorporating cinema education in mainstream psychiatry curriculum could help them retain positive approach while handling patients of mental illness. The study, “Psychiatry movie club: An innovative way to teach psychiatry”, was conducted by Nitasha Sharma, Sunita Sharma and Dr Sandhya Ghai.
Incidents of suicide by nurses at PGI
Stressors
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Beant Singh’s assassination case Akash Ghai Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 29 This is the second time in last one year that Lakha got furlough leave. Earlier, Lakha was released on December 27 last year following strong protest by Bhai Gurbaksh Singh Khalsa, who remained on 42-day long hunger strike in front of Gurdwara Amb Sahib at Phase 8 in Mohali. Today, Lakha’s sister Sukhwinder Kaur along with her husband Jang Singh and children reached at Burail Jail to receive her brother. “He was scheduled to release on parole yesterday but the jail authorities in Chandigarh asked for photostat copies of bail bonds, furnished by me in the office of District Magistrate, Ludhiana, at the eleventh hour. Today, we brought the required documents,” said Jang Singh, brother-in-law of Lakha alleging that the jail authorities were harassing them unnecessarily. During the parole, Lakha would stay with her sister’s family at Green Avenue in Ludhiana, added Jang Singh, who has furnished two bail bonds, worth Rs one lakh each in connection with Lakha’s release on parole. Notably, Lakha along with Shamsher Singh and Gurmeet Singh are convicts in Beant Singh assassination case and have been putting the jail for past around 19 years. They were awarded the life term by Chandigarh Court on July 31, 2007. Shamsher and Lakhwinder were arrested by Chandigarh Police in 1995. According to the parole conditions of his warrant for temporary release under Section 3 and 4 of the Punjab Good Conduct Prisoners (Temporary Release) Act 1962, Lakha should not visit any place not specified in the release warrant without obtaining the prior permission of the District Magistrate during the parole period. He also has to mark his presence before the Station House Officer of the respective police station of the area.
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Welfare society told to refund Rs 8.25 lakh, pay compensation
Mohali, October 29 Complainant Kawaljit Kaur had stated that the membership of the society was granted to her for a 150 sq yd plot in Sector 111-112, Mohali, and the price of the plot was Rs 16.50 lakh. On the receipt of demand notices, the complainant deposited a total of Rs 8.35 lakh. However, a share certificate was not issued to her. The complainant came to know that the society did not have a developer’s licence and GMADA had also cancelled the promoter’s licence. The complainant sought a refund of the deposited amount and even got served a legal notice but without any reply. She said non-refund of the amount was an act of deficiency in service and unfair trade practice on part of the opposite parties (representing the society) in the case. She sought directions to the opposite parties to refund her Rs 8.35 lakh with interest; to pay her Rs 1 lakh for mental harassment; and Rs 30,000 as cost of litigation. However, the opposite parties denied the allegation of deficiency in service. On the basis of evidence, the forum said the opposite parties had got all sanctions much later in time. They got the money from the complainant and, without giving any intimation to the complainant about the status of the project regarding periodical progress in this regard, had been demanding further amounts on various occasions. A letter dated October 3, 2013, per se showed that the promoter licence of the society had been reinstated by the authorities on May 27, 2013, meaning thereby that there was something amiss on part of the opposite parties that their promoter licence was to be got reinstated. The forum also found discrepancies in the stand of the opposite parties. The opposite parties had got the licence reinstated on May 27, 2013, and within a short span of one year claimed to have developed the area and provided all amenities to make the allotment of plots within 50 days from the date of filing of the present written statement in the complaint on June 27, 2014. The forum stated that such a tall claim was next to impossible to achieve. Under the circumstances, it said the complainant was within her right to seek a refund and deserved to be compensated.
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Mohali, October 29 Number of persons selling old furniture, quilts, construction material had made encroachments in the area along the main roads. Many warnings given to them had failed to yield the desired results. Bhag Singh, junior engineer, said it took about two hours to get the area vacated. Some persons had fled after getting to know about the demolition drive. No resentment was witnessed by the demolition team, he added. — OC
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Office-bearers elected
Chandigarh, October 29 Rajinder Singh Badheri has been elected as the president, SM Bhatia as the vice-president, Vineet Arora as the secretary and PC Sharma as the treasurer. Navdeep Kaur and Manjit Kaur have been elected committee members.
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Mohali , October 29 She said a rapid response team was sent to the village which collected blood samples from 50 houses from the locality in question. Water samples were also collected from the area. — OC
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Check entry of stray cattle in parks, officials told
Chandigarh, October 29 The directions were passed today in the committee’s meeting, which was held under the chairmanship of Mukesh Bassi and attended by other members of the committee, including Subhash Chawla, Raj Bala Malik, Maj DS Sandhu, Asha Kumari Jaswal and officials concerned of the Municipal Corporation. The committee accorded approval to agenda items that pruning of trees would be done in all city roads, markets and wherever required. The committee accorded approval to various important development agendas, including providing and fixing of RCC tree guard in various V-3, V-4 & V-5 roads of Sector 39 and 40 at an estimated cost of Rs 3.48 lakh. The committee also approved grassing and other horticulture works of green belts in Sector 21-C and D at an estimated cost of Rs 7.27 lakh.
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Honour for PGI professor
Chandigarh, October 29 He has also been awarded the BR Vacher Oration Award by the Indian Society of Pedodontics and Preventive Dentistry (ISPPD) at Lucknow. — TNS
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Challans issued to 119 violators
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 29 The enforcement team removed encroachments from the Sector 19 market, Sector 18 electronic market, Sector 20 Labour Chowk, Sector 21 and Sector 32 markets. During the drive, various unauthorised items, including iron racks, ladies suits/garments, readymade garments, gas cylinder, bag, jack, rehris, reams and different types of pharies, were removed and seized from the municipal land.
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Demolition of Sector 18 building Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 29 As the case came up for resumed hearing, the court was told that the site had been provided in Sector 18 itself. Taking a note of the assertion, the Punjab and Haryana High Court disposed of the matter. In an affidavit filed before the High Court, Shayin had earlier claimed that the record was in safe custody and due procedure was followed in the matter. Shayin, on the previous date of hearing, had assured the court that office space would be provided to the Union of India itself and “whatever records/assets of the petitioner were found at the site would be handed over to the petitioner by today evening”. Acting on a petition filed by the Union of India against the Chandigarh Administration and other respondents, the High Court on Thursday directed him to be present in the court in person this morning. The directions came after senior advocate Chetan Mittal and Puneet Gupta told the Bench that plot number three in Sector 18, Chandigarh, was allocated by the Chandigarh Administration to Union of India, Ministry of Communication and IT, in 1973. The Union of India was having the office of the Ministry of Communication and IT in the premises after it was leased out by the UT Administration. It approached the Advisor for the allotment of alternative space or to re-allot them the same space after reconstruction as the state governments of Punjab, Haryana and UT Administration had agreed to demolish the existing structure. The Advisor also wrote a letter saying action in the matter should not be taken unless satisfactory arrangements approved by him have been made. But the Deputy Commissioner demolished the entire building.
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Iodine Deficiency Disorder Day observed
Chandigarh, October 29
At the national level, more than 200 million people are at the risk of IDD, while the number of persons suffering from goitre is above 70 million. “Approximately 2.2 million children are born cretins (child born with physical and mental retardation) and 6.6 million have some kind of neurological deficit,” he said. Dr Gagneja also appreciated the efforts carried out by the department and wished that the prevalence rate of IDD falls below 5 per cent - the target set by the Union Government. The awareness campaign will continue for one month.
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Haphazard parking obstructs way of emergency vehicles at GMSH-16
Chandigarh, October 29
The vehicles are parked in a haphazard manner despite parking contractor charging money for allowing entry. The increasing rush of patients, both in the emergency as well as the OPD, has led to a perpetual chaos every morning at the hospital. Sunder Singh, a patient’s attendant, said: “The situation was not as bad a few years ago. If the emergency remains blocked like this, do you expect a chronic patient to walk from the gate up to the emergency?” Sources said unlike in other hospitals in the city, the GMSH-16 does not have designated parking lots and these were never a part of the plan. “We have received certain complaints against the parking contractor and inquiry was marked in the matter. We are trying to have streamlined system to ensure that patients do not suffer,” said Dr Satbir, acting medical superintendent.
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BJP, AAP workers stage protest
Tribune News Service
Zirakpur, October 29 Almost 25 leaders including Narinder Kumar Goyal, president, BJP Mandal, and AAP activists from Zirakpur lodged their objections over the delimitation process followed by the authorities. The protesters assembled at the ground floor of the MC building soon after the officials of the Zirakpur Municipal Council displayed the blue print (ward wise map) of the municipality, this afternoon. The irate protesters alleged that area MLA NK Sharma has manipulated the delimitation process in favour of the SAD candidates contesting the MC elections. Sharma, however, clarified that the delimitation as done by the department of local government Punjab as per the rules and any one can file objections, if any, in next seven days.
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Gardeners’ training programme launched
Chandigarh, October 29 The training will be conducted by horticulturist Dr Satish Narula. It is being sponsored by Rotary Chandigarh Mid Town. Welcoming the chief guest, Tajinder Singh, assistant engineer (Horticulture), said the training would aim at improve gardening skills of existing workforce through a hands-on scientific approach.
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HUDA official’s car attached
Panchkula, October 29 In July this year, the HUDA failed to pay an enhanced compensation of Rs 40 lakh to Sushil Singhal, following which the EO Gurmeet Singh’s car was attached. But the same was released, after HUDA paid 35 per cent of the amount. Sushil Singhal, had a plot in Nada village, Panchkula, which was acquired by HUDA 18 years back. She had filed a case against HUDA for enhancement of the compensation to which the court agreed and ordered the HUDA to pay the enhanced value in October 2012 but till July 2014 HUDA kept on delaying the payment. Finally, the court ordered the attachment of the vehicles and bank accounts. HUDA officials asked for 1 week to make the payments but failed to do so. “The case again came up for hearing in the court where HUDA was directed to pay the rest of the amount but they didn’t pay. As a result the car of CCF (Chief Controller Finance) was attached today,” said Praveen, son of Sushil Singhal. This is not for the first time that the HUDA has faced attachment of vehicles. In February 2013, a court had attached the official cars of the then HUDA Chief Administrator, DPS Nagal, the then Panchkula HUDA Administrator (additional charge), Surjit Singh, and the then HUDA Estate Officer, Ashwini Sharma, for failing to comply with the court orders in a case pertaining to allotment of booth in Sector 15. Later, the officials complied with the directions and got their vehicles released.
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Losing weight through unnatural ways can’t prevent stroke: Experts
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 29 “The modern Indian urban mother might be overtly worried about the health of her child and the well-being of her family but she is among the most ignored persons in her house. Juggling her career and domestic responsibilities, she fails to take time off for her health check-up. The results may be disastrous, said Dr Dheeraj Khurana, Additional Professor, Department of Neurology. Dr Vivek Lal, Professor, Neurology, pointed out, “Many women undergo liposuction to lose weight. But many a times, stroke has been observed in them also. The best way to lose weight is through regular exercising. It helps prevents stroke as well.” “Nursing homes need to be faster in sending patients immediately to stroke centres. In India, 25 per cent stroke cases are diagnosed in persons below 40 years of age. We must start cholesterol check-up at 15 year of age. Walk for 30 minutes at least once a day,” says Dr JS Chopra, former Head, Department of Neurology, PGIMER. There is a gender gap in stroke education, say PGI experts. Even with regards to post-stroke care, the neglect of female patients has been seen in areas like care, feeds and OPD visits, which is far less than males who sustain stroke. Stroke is largely preventable through lifestyle management. To beat stroke, women need sex-specific information, preventative practices and acute and long-term care and support. Women with depression have a higher risk of suffering a stroke. Research has shown that women caregivers of spouses who have suffered trauma such as stroke tend to report a fall in mental health after becoming caregivers, said experts while addressing mediapersons here today. SOS 2014 was launched with the mission of informing women on various aspects of stroke, the risk that they are subjected to and preventive measures against it. This would be achieved by massive participation of patients, their families and healthy women in this campaign. Special information kiosks have been set up on the PGI campus (OPD area and Nehru Hospital). Similar activities were carried out in the Panjab University today and will be taken up in various women colleges of the city on Thursday. Activities today Interactive sessions focussing on stroke health will be held at Government College for Girls in Sectors 42 and Sector 11, Government College of Commerce, Sector 42, Khalsa College, Sector 26, and DAV College, Sector 10
Activities today
Interactive sessions focussing on stroke health will be held at Government College for Girls in Sectors 42 and Sector 11, Government College of Commerce, Sector 42, Khalsa College, Sector 26, and DAV College, Sector 10
Facts about stroke
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Ban on diesel autos in UT from November 1 Auto-rickshaw operators to stay off road, block entry of CTU buses in Mohali and Panchkula Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 29 The action is being taken in protest against the move of the UT transport department to ban the entry of diesel autos in Chandigarh from November 1. The chairman of the Joint Action Committee, Kamal Kant, said they were being forced to take the extreme step as the UT Administration was bent on depriving them of their source of livelihood. The auto operators will also keep their vehicles off road. In absence of buses and autos, those commuting to and from Chandigarh could face harassment as authorities have not made any arrangements for them. Bhawana Garg, Secretary, Transport, said the decision to ban entry of autos exists on paper even today and they have not got any respite from any court. A final decision on the issue is expected tomorrow. Around 10,000 diesel-run autos ply in the city and most of them are registered with the Punjab Transport Department in Mohali. Nearly 3,000 LPG autos are registered with the STA, Chandigarh. The transport authorities of Punjab and Haryana have already been intimated about the UT Administration’s decision as allowing diesel-run autos was in the violation of the inter-state agreement inked between Punjab and Chandigarh. The operators of diesel-run autos have already been given two-month time to convert to cleaner fuel or their entry in the UT will be banned. A large number of diesel-run auto-rickshaws registered with the Registering Authority/DTO, Mohali, have been illegally plying between Mohali and Chandigarh. It has also been observed that diesel-run autos tend to carry eight to10 passengers against the permitted capacity of four.
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UT nod was for councillors and officials, not their kin
Chandigarh, October 29 This was revealed in the reply submitted by the MC to BJP councillor Satinder Singh, who had, in a two-page questionnaire, sought information on the recent study tour and had asked the respondents to supply documentary evidence, wherever required. The reply is now a part of the agenda for the MC’s monthly house meeting slated for October 31. MC councillors and officials, during their nine-day study tour to Chennai, Port Blair and Kolkata in September, went for sightseeing along with their family members, thereby misusing the public money. The letter dated August 7, which is now part of the MC’s reply, by the UT Administration to the Mayor reads, “Approval of the competent authority is conveyed for conducting the study tour by all the councillors of the MC in two groups, to visit Kolkata, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chennai, Bangalore, Mysore and Coimbatore, subject to the condition that the itinerary will be drawn up in an optional manner”. In its reply, the MC also provided a list of councillors and officials who had gone on the study tour and it mentioned the names of 20 councillors and six officials only. The MC has also prepared a report on the study tour, which will be placed before the house on October 31. While the cost of tour came to be Rs 28 lakh, an advance payment of Rs 20 lakh was made to the travel agency. The tour was for councillors and officials but nine other persons (family members of councillors) also went along. SAD councillor Malkiat Singh, who was also a part of the study tour, had died early this month. His condition had deteriorated during the tour and was admitted to the AIIMS, New Delhi, where he died on October 6.
MC silent on how they finalised agency
Sources said MC officials did not follow the mandatory norms while finalising the travel agency as no tenders were invited. In its reply to BJP councillor Satinder Singh’s query on how the tour and travel agency was finalised, the MC did not give any clear answer. Sources said the mandatory public notice for inviting quotations was also not issued before zeroing in on the Panchkula-based travel agency.
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CCA staff absolved of theft charge
Chandigarh, October 29 The court also awarded a compensation of Rs 1 lakh to Ramesh Kumar, who was then employed as storekeeper at the college, while pulling up the UT police for a shoddy probe. The police claimed that Principal Pardeep Bhagat had got a report registered after some chairs were found missing from the college premises. On February 7, 2012, the police had arrested Kumar “red-handed” while he was taking away the chairs on a cart (rehri) near the college. After the arrest, the police had claimed to have busted a big scam of stealing of the heritage items. The CCA has Pierre Jeanneret-designed furniture, which was earlier disposed of as scrap or dumped in storerooms. Defence counsel HK Arora stated before the court that Ramesh was falsely implicated. “After chairs had gone missing from the store, Kumar was asked by the Principal to shift some chairs when he was arrested. The police did not verify before claiming that the chairs recovered from him were the stolen ones,” he said. — TNS
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Nine-year-old Google girl exhibits her genius
Chandigarh, October 29 While being blindfolded she can trace any person with just the smell of body odour within a range of one km and has complete information about calendars of the last 300 years, periodic tables, and chemistry formulaes. She can read anything blindfolded and can also draw whatever she sees. The youngest neuro–linguistic programming (NLP) practitioner of the country, she said, “I want to take this great system to different schools, institutions and even IITs of the country. I believe that NLP can really help bring out the genius in even ordinary students.” Her father Vinod Phutela, a NLP trainer who has been training his daughter for the last one year, said, “My daughter was able to master her senses within four months of training. Every child in the age group of 5-15 years can master his/her senses and be a Google child if his/her parents and schools provide them with the right training and atmosphere.” Kavita Wadhwa, Principal, Hallmark Public School, said, “This girl might be little but her brain is a huge powerhouse of knowledge. She has a photographic memory and can decipher codes with her unique skills.” Elaborating on the NLP, she said, “It is an approach to communication, personal development, and psychotherapy. There is a connection between the neurological processes (neuro) and language (linguistic), and behavioural patterns learned through experience (programming) and these can be changed to achieve specific goals in life. The NLP brings out positive belief in children.”
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Transfer of teachers Mehakdeep Grewal Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 29 The department officials said the orders were issued after carrying out a detailed exercise. During the exercise, it was found that there were many schools with surplus number of teachers. Also, it was revealed that while government schools located within the city had much higher number of teachers than required, the periphery schools faced a huge paucity of teachers. School heads question department’s claims Heads of schools located within the city, however, have questioned the department’s claims. They say their schools, too, are reeling under staff crunch; hence, the delay in implementing the orders. Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 10, principal Harbir Anand said: “Already, eight posts of teacher are lying vacant in our school. If we relieve two more teachers, children’s studies and school’s functioning will be adversely affected. We have brought this to the department’s notice through a written representation.” Acting against the defaulting schools, the department has ordered them to submit a compliance report by Thursday. Director, School Education-I, Chanchal Singh said: “As per the orders, all schools should have relieved the teachers by now. We have asked schools to submit a report stating why they have delayed the implementation of the orders.” According to the orders, 77 JBT/NTT teachers had to be transferred along with 30 mathematics/science, 17 Hindi, three Punjabi and 28 geography/English and SST teachers.
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Youth fest: Singing contests rule Day 2
Chandigarh, October 29 The day that began with a signature campaign for a “drug-free society” continued on a musical note with competitions being held in traditional singing, vaar singing, kali singing, kavishri, group folk dance and giddha. A quiz was also organised. Earleir, college principal Dr BC Josan welcomed the guests, who included Director Higher Education Sandeep Hans. The Vice-Chancellor, during his address, stressed on adequate opportunities to develop skill, competitive spirit and confidence of the youth. He said educational institutes should be an incubation hub for new ideas. Hans, too, emphasised the importance of such events that provide a platform to students to show their talents besides academics.
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Visit to NIPER
Chandigarh: Class X students of Ryan International School visited the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research, Mohali. They interacted with the institute registrar, PJP Singh Waraiach. He shared information about the institute’s establishment, its development and contribution to the global pharmaceutical industry. He also answered students’ questions on emerging medicinal technologies. Fancy dress competition
The junior wing of St Xavier’s Senior Secondary School organised a fancy dress competition for the tiny tots. The children came dressed as animals, flowers, community helpers, etc. Principal Mervin West congratulated the winners. Awareness on drug menace
A special programme on drug menace was organised Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 56, in collaboration with the Chandigarh Social Welfare Board and a city-based NGO. PGI doctors made students aware of the ills of consuming drugs. The function was inaugurated by welfare board chairperson Kamlesh. Girl shines in solo dance
Panchkula: Swati, a Class VIII student, brought laurels to Jainendra Public School by bagging the first position in solo dance competition at Government Girls College, Sector 14. She has entered the state-level competition being organised by Bal Vikas Parishad. Yashpal of Class X got a consolation prize in solo singing. Principal Sudha Babbar congratulated them. Handicraft workshop
Mohali: Teachers of Ryan School organised a workshop on handicraft at Lakhnaur, a village adopted by the school. The teachers taught the village women how to use household material for making different kinds of handicraft items such as doormats, decorative mirrors, wall hangings and fans. They were advised to prepare the items, which will be later put on display for sale. — TNS
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UT teachers list out demands
Chandigarh, October 29 The delegation demanded the promotion of JBT-cadre teachers to master/mistress that has pending for the past 10 years, release of the letter regarding the enhancement of salary of guest teachers that has already been approved by the higher authorities, and release of the updated seniority list of all cadres of teachers, especially lecturers, which is pending for many years. They also demanded promotions of lecturers to the post of principal and TGT to lecturers/headmasters on yearly basis, proper implementation of deputation policy and regularisation of contractual, SSA and computer teachers. The DPI assured the delegation that the promotion list of JBT and letter regarding the enhancement of salary of guest teachers will be released this week.
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PUSU up in arms against credit system
Three members of Panjab University Students Union (PUSU) sat on an indefinite hunger strike outside the Vice-Chancellor’s office on Wednesday. The student party was protesting against the credit system in science departments. PUSU member Tajinder Dhiman said: “Our protest is against the credit system. Ending this system will save precious years of students and they will be promoted to the next year. We want more students to join our fight against the system.” The students who sat on the hunger strike are Ramanpreet, Navjot and Chiranshu. A senior member of PUSU, Ishaan Sharma, said, “The strike will continue till our demands are met by the authorities.” Awareness runAs part of the national campaign for achieving “Swachh Bharat”, the University Institute of Legal Studies is organising an awareness run, Cleanathon, on October 30. The run will be flagged off at 7.30 am from the institute and after covering the arts block-I, administrative block, Kastoorba Hall and Ankur School will end at the institute. In all, six winners will be awarded. The registration fee collected from the participating students will be used to put up dustbins on the campus. Conference concludes
A two-day national conference on the recent trends in plant sciences concluded at botany department on Wednesday. Former department chairperson Prof IS Dua delivered a lecture on the role of genes and genetically modified crops. He also highlighted the difference between agriculture in India and other countries, emphasising the role of Dr Norman Borlaug in bringing the green revolution. Vice-Chancellor Prof AK Grover presided over the lecture. Professor awarded
Mycologist IB Prasher, a botany professor at the varsity, has been honoured with the distinguished Birbal Sahni Centenary Medal and Birbal Savitri Sahni International Award. Prof Prasher is the first PU teacher to have received this honour. Vice-Chancellor Prof AK Grover conferred the medal and honour on Prof Prasher in the presence of delegates, resource persons, faculty and students. Birbal Savitri Sahni International Award is conferred for outstanding scientific work which has made an impact in palaebotanical science. — TNS
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Book fair
Chandigarh: The Post Graduate Government College for Girls, Sector 42, hosted a book fair, highlighting the significance of Sanskrit. The event was a part city-based Sanskrit Academy’s two-week campaign to promote the understanding of culture and literal heritage of India among students. Books on various subjects, including ayurveda and yoga, provided the students a glimpse into the rich scientific and cultural heritage of our nation. Cleanliness drive
The National Service Scheme (NSS) unit of the Government College of Commerce and Business Administration, Sector 42, conducted a one-day camp at Khajeri village. Nearly 200 NSS volunteers cleaned the ground in front of Government High School, Khajeri, using equipment provided by the civic body. Later, the volunteers cleaned the village streets and made the residents aware of the importance of keeping their surroundings clean. Quiz on corruption
On the third day of Vigilance Awareness Week, the Post Graduate Government College, Sector 11, library organised a one-hour written quiz on corruption. Dharmesh of BA-III was declared the winner. Kartikay (BA-II) and Davinder Yadav (BA-III) came second and third respectively. Hands-on training
Students attended a two-day workshop on molecular biology techniques and applications at MCM DAV College, Sector 36. The programme, conducted by the food science department in association with a private diagnostic laboratory, comprised lectures, demonstrations and hands-on training. Students pursuing graduation in microbial and food technology worked on DNA and RNA isolation from human blood sample. They were also taught primer designing for polymerase chain reaction and DNA sequencing. — TNS
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Prez to attend PU convocation
Chandigarh, October 29 Prof Grover had earlier requested the President to grace the annual convocation to be held in March 2015. The final confirmation and exact date and timing will be intimated later, read the Rashtrapati Bhawan communication.
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An ‘enriching’ visit to London
Chandigarh, October 29 Anshuman Sethi, a Class VIII student, said: “We were amazed to see the sanitation standards maintained in London schools. Also, students were a disciplined lot and people were very polite.” Aryan, a Class IV student, said their stay at the Ormiston Sudbury Academy helped them learn the importance of punctuality. The school authorities said the visit included learning of language, communication, expression, art and theatrics through drama, dance and music workshops. A creative workshop on “djembe”, a traditional goblet drum of West Africa, was enjoyed by all the students. The students said through “Cambridge Xplore” and “Knight Navigation”, they explored their navigation and map reading and investigating abilities. An academic visit to Globe Theatre and Shakespeare’s village introduced them to the classical linguistic scholastics and its cross-disciplinary educative growth. The programme included a visit to MAD Museum, Harry Potter’s Theme Park and King’s College, Cambridge University.
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