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reality check Manav Mander Tribune News Service
Ludhiana, November 13 For the rural population, there are 33 primary health care centres and 11 community health care centres. Rural dispensaries come are under the Zila Parishad. However their condition is the same as in Ludhiana. These have been running without medicines for the past two years. While the population of the city has been increasing fast, the number of dispensaries has remained 29 for the past about 20 years. “In view of the population of the city, more dispensaries should be set up. Ludhiana is growing very fast. A large numbers of migrants also live here,” said Dr Anil Verma, District Epidemiologist. At most government dispensaries, patients are either attended to by para medical staff or they have to visit the Civil Hospital. “Doctors hardly show up at the dispensaries. In their absence, I handle patients of simple ailments like fever, headache, cough and cold. The doctor of the dispensary does private practice, due to which he hardly shows up here. Since I cannot handle complex cases, I refer them to the Civil Hospital,” said an auxiliary nurse midwife (ANM) at one of the dispensaries. Things are worst at the rural dispensaries. They have not received medicines for the past two years. Earlier, dispensaries in the rural areas were run by the Health Department. In 2006, they were shifted to the Rural Development and Panchayat Department. There are 100 dispensaries being run in the rural parts of Ludhiana, which face a shortage of doctors, medicines and pharmacists. “It has been two years since we last received medicines. There are a total 100 dispensaries. Apart from unavailability of medicines, there is a shortage of doctors as well as pharmacists. Vacant posts of the doctor are never filled. The Rural Development and Panchayat Department seems to be the least concerned about their uplift,” said Dr Harsh, a rural medical officer. When the dispensaries were shifted to the Rural Development and Panchayat Department in 2006, the government had promised to provide medicines worth Rs 7,500 every month to each dispensary. Initially, the dispensaries were being supplied 60 types of medicines, including analgesics, antibiotics and iron supplements. Now, these have been running without medicines for the past two years. The MBBS doctors working at these dispensaries are upset that block development and panchayat officers have been authorised to check the rural dispensaries. “Earlier, only officials from the Department of Health and Family Welfare had the powers to conduct checks on rural medical officers (RMOs) but now block development and panchayat officers do the job, which is not acceptable to us,” said another rural medical officer. Besides, many rural dispensaries are running without pharmacists. Auxiliary nurse midwives (ANMs) and health workers, appointed under the family planning schemes, double up as pharmacists. There are 107 health pharmacists working at rural dispensaries in Ludhiana district. These pharmacists claim they have been getting very low salaries for the past several years. They said despite getting assurances by the state government, their demands were not fulfilled. They have demanded regular appointment under the government with all other benefits on a par with the paramedical staff of the Health Department.
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Ill-equipped traffic police battle violations
Ludhiana, November 13 According to information, the city police have only 10 alcohol meters to keep a check on drunken drivers. A senior traffic police officer said in view of the population of the city, the police needed more alcohol meters. Richa Agnihotari, ACP (Traffic), said: “We have 10 alcohol meters in the traffic wing. We issue 15 or 20 challans for drunken driving daily. But, I feel if the government provides alcohol meters to all police stations, then it will help the police in curbing the menace more effectively”. The police have only two speed guns to check the speed of vehicles. They borrowed one speed gun from the Mohali police yesterday for a month. According to the police officials, they need more speed guns to keep a check on speeding. A number of residents have lost their lives in accidents due to speeding in the city. Judicial Magistrate challaned
The police issued 293 challans on Thursday. The issued 79 challans for speeding, 61 for not wearing helmets and 48 for not wearing seat belt. During a special naka in the Sarabha Nagar area, 30 vehicles were challaned and three were impounded till 9:30pm. A person, who claimed to be a judicial magistrate, was also challaned for not produce necessary documents. |
Man gets 15-yr jail in drug case
Ludhiana, November 13 As per the details available, 25 kg of opium was recovered from Kuldeep on March 9, 2013. A case under the NDPS Act was registered against him at the Basti Jodhewal police station on March 8, 2013. According to the prosecution, a police party, headed by Anti-Narcotics Cell in-charge Sub-Inspector Harbans Singh, flagged down Kuldeep, who was on a scooter, on the Noorwala road. On search, a bag containing 25 kg of opium was recovered from his possession. However, Kuldeep had claimed that he was falsely implicated. But convinced with the submissions of Additonal Public Prosecutor Amrik Singh Buttar, the court found him guilty and awarded the sentence accordingly. |
Driver decamps with Rs 6.1 lakh of firm
Ludhiana, November 13 The complainant, Sanjay Jain of the Civil lines area told the police that he was a manager with an industrial unit. The firm provided him with a car and a driver. Sanjay said yesterday, when he, along with his driver, visited the AC market, near Mata Rani Chowk, for the collection of money, he parked his car outside the market. “I went to meet clients and collected payments for the goods delivered. I came back after about half an hour. I found that my car was not there. I searched for the driver and the car. Then I visited the driver’s residence and found that the car was parked outside his house at Ganesh Nagar,” he added. “I had left a bag in the car. I searched for my bag, which contained Rs 6.1 lakh, but couldn’t find it. Vinod was not at his home,” he added. The Division No. 1 police has registered a case against the driver under section 381 of the IPC. The police have registered a case on a complaint of Sanjay Jain. |
A childhood lost in labour
Ludhiana, November 13 Many other children like him continue to work under duress and hostile conditions. Although Children’s Day brings smiles on the cute faces, for the underprivileged children, it is just another hard day. Laws are in place and children are even “rescued” from the shackles of child labour, but the child labour prevails, almost everywhere, in some form or the other. Whether it’s little girls tending to the babies of the “rich, elite-class mothers” or the children toiling in hostile working conditions, it just goes on. Many residents say there can be no use engaging in the futile activity of rescuing children until action is taken against people who employ children. “The district administration officials often try to grab headlines by the so-called rescue of children from the clutches of child labour but no FIRs are generally lodged against the owners of the places where these children are employed,” said Harjit Singh, a resident. “There cannot be a solution to this problem until there is a fear among people employing children below 14 that they will be brought to book,” said another resident. “Until there are stringent rules and punishment for engaging children in labour, there can’t be any improvement,” said another resident. |
Two cops hurt as protesters hurl stones
Khanna, November 13 The protesters, reportedly from Valmiki Mohalla, also broke the windowpanes of some vehicles stranded on the highway due to traffic blockade. SP (D) Satinder Pal Singh said they were undertaking an anti-drug drive wherein they were conducting searches. After completing their search operation in the Meat Market and Bazigar Basti of Khanna, the police parties moved to Valmiki Mohalla. The SP said during the search, they came to know that some people of the area had blocked the National Highway and damaged the public property and vehicles. He claimed that they rushed to the spot, pacified the protesters and told them to lift the blockade. In the meantime, some protesters started pelting stones on the police. The SP claimed that the police had to resort to mild lathi-charge to chase away the protesters. He added that after a struggle of half an hour, they managed to clear the National Highway. Meanwhile, Madan Lal Balu, a leader of the community, alleged that the police had adopted pick and choose policy and were targeting their community. They were harassing them in the name of search operation. Former municipal councillor Somesh Batta alleged that the police were knowingly harassing the residents on the pretext of the anti-drug drive. He said they would meet the higher authorities against the police action. However, the SP said they were acting on the directions of the higher authorities and the state government to keep a watch on drug trade. He said the police would register cases against the law breakers for injuring policemen and an appropriate action would be initiated against anti-social elements. Later, the police organised a flag march in the city to instill a sense of security among the residents. |
Tributes paid to WWI Sikh martyrs
Ludhiana, November 13 Charanjit Singh Atwal, speaker, Punjab Legislative Assembly, presided over the event as the chief guest. Illustrious Sikh historians and scholars such as Bhupinder Singh Holland and Anurag Singh were the speakers on the occasion. Principal Dr Narinder Sandhu said the event had been organised to save a significant chapter of the Sikh history from falling into the abyss of forgetfulness. Bhupinder Singh Holland, author of the book titled ‘Sikhs in World War I’, talked about the first landing of the 15 LDH Regiment at Marseilles, France, on Sept ember 26, 1914, and the incessant struggle of Sikh soldiers that ensued. He emphasised on the need to disseminate knowledge about the sacrifices of Sikh martyrs who had so far been subalternised in the mainstream history and also shared images and video clips concerning the soldiers with the students. Anurag Singh acknowledged the endeavours of Bhupinder Singh Holland who has left no stone unturned in unraveling the history of Sikh soldiers and said the European countries could not repay the Sikh race for what they had done for them. Charanjit Singh Atwal observed that the Sikh community was known for its valour and fearlessness and the World War I was one such prominent event in which the Sikhs laid down their lives for the well-being of others. Ranjodh Singh, president, Ramgarhia Educational Council, said it was important to remember the heroic deeds of our forefathers but also to remind others that Sikhs were the guardians of humanity and they do not relent to sacrifice their lives for the same. Jagtar Singh, general secretary, Ramgarhia Educational Council, said if we want to conserve the dignified history of Sikh race, we must keep reminding our forthcoming generations about the sacrifices and bravery of their predecessors. |
Students apprised of financial market trends
Ludhiana, November 13 Harish began with an ice-breaking session on portfolio management and asset allocation which inspired the students to inculcate the habit of saving and investment at a very early age. He inspired the students about the changing trends in financial market and the need to make modifications to different investment instruments. “The need of the hour is to conceptualise strategies to know the Indian economic behaviour and future aspects of the Indian Industry. Valuable information was imparted on various career avenues that are available for students in the financial sector. Queries of the students were taken up satisfactorily. |
Bal
Swachhta Mission Tribune News Service
Ludhiana, November 13 The week-long campaign will be launched on Children’s Day (Bal Divas) and its main aim is to motivate children in keeping themselves, their homes, schools and surroundings clean. Gulati issued these directions during the monthly review meeting of officials from all government departments held at Bachat Bhawan here today. He said the drive was the next phase of the Swachh Bharat Mission launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 2. Gulati said the campaign would be a nationwide sanitation initiative focusing mainly on children. The ADC said there would be six main themes for the Bal Swachhta Mission, including clean schools and aanganwadis, clean surroundings, clean self, clean food, clean drinking water and clean toilets. During the meeting, Gulati also directed the officials that all projects initiated for the welfare of residents should be completed on time and that he would not tolerate any delay. He also directed the District Agriculture Officer to educate the farmers for not burning paddy straw by organising camps in different villages of the district. |
Youths eulogise Pandit Nehru’s vision, stature
Ludhiana, November 13 “Politics these days is about politics and not about leadership, vision and statesmanship, that Pandit Nehru gave to the country,” says Arshdeep, a college student, adding, “Pandit Nehru ensured the country overcame teething troubles after the Independence.” Some youngsters feel that the voice of India is now lost, despite its rising economic clout. This is where Pandit Nehru’s importance in history remains high for the country. “Although Indian leadership now kowtows to the West and other countries, Nehru’s leadership of non-alignment was inspirational,” says Ritika, a political science student. “The country needs leaders like Nehru, who not only put the country on the path to equitable progress but also provide leadership at the international level,” she added. The present politicians should have built on the legacy of vision and statesmanship, said another student. |
Chacha Nehru stranger to many school students
Ludhiana, November 13 When asked why the day is celebrated, some children said it was Chacha Nehru’s birthday. “Why was he called ‘Chacha’?”. Pat came the reply from a Class VI student, “Because his name was Chacha Nehru.” Some children could not tell who Chacha Nehru was. Many did not know why Nehru’s birth anniversary is celebrated as Children’s Day. “We dance on this day,” said a Class V student, while another said his parents dressed him as Chacha Nehru to take part in an event at his school, but he did not know why it was done. Most schools hold activities and organise contests like fancy dress and poem recitation. However, students were not told anything about the life of Pandit Nehru, said Ravneet, a parent. The importance of Children’s Day should be told to children as it is their day, said another parent. |
Income Tax Dept holds surveys
Ludhiana, November 13 The surveys were conducted on the directions of HS Sohi, Director, Investigations, and under the supervision of joint director Sanjeev Kaushal. Surveys were held at offices of Ganga Acro Group, yarn manufacturers, located in Doraha, Industrial Area-A, Civil Lines, and Purana Bazar. The other survey was conducted at Paras Spices Group, Moga. The surveys began in the morning and were on till the filing of the report. |
CII, police spread awareness on traffic rules, road safety
Ludhiana, November 13 Dr Richa Agnihotri, Assistant Commissioner of Police (Traffic), who pasted reflector stickers on bicycles of workers, said, “Obeying traffic rules and consciousness about the road safety helps in saving not only the person’s life but others’ lives too. Many fatal mishaps occur on foggy days, especially at Focal Point and industrial areas.” Ajay Nayar, chairman, CII, Ludhiana Zone, said, “The CII, Ludhiana, took the initiative a couple of years ago with the support of the Ludhiana Police Department and now it is one of our important annual events. In a city like Ludhiana, where factory workers and migrant population contribute to a good percentage of total population, it is important that they should be sensitised to traffic rules and road safety. We believe that this kind of initiative will definitely help in lowering the number of accidents, particularly during winters.” “The CII will also start an awareness campaign on providing first aid to accident victims. As a part of the campaign, banners and boards will be placed at prime locations in the city,” added Nayar. |
Police-public meeting held
Ludhiana, November 13 The representatives of various associations of shopkeepers, the area councillor and prominent persons attended the meeting. Assistant Commissioner of Police Dhruv Dahiya listened to the problems of shopkeepers and assured early redressal to the problems. Surinder Mohan, SHO, Police Station Division No. 1, said, “The representatives of various shopkeepers associations from Akalgarh Market, Electronic Market and Chaura Bazaar were present in the meeting. The major issues of the area were encroachments and traffic in the congested markets.” |
PPCB, Industry to jointly tackle pollution
Ludhiana, November 13 The 15-member committee has been assigned the task of implementing the recommendations of Punjab Governance Reforms Commission (PGRC). According to an official spokesperson, the Secretary, Science, Technology and Environment, Punjab, and the PPCB Member Secretary will be the chairman and convener of the committee, respectively. The general manager, Guru Hargobind Thermal Plant, Lehra Mohabbat, the executive director, Punjab State Council for Science and Technology, SP Oswal of Vardhman Industries, Ludhiana, Rajinder Pal Singh of Turbo Scaffolding, Dhandari Kalan, Ludhiana, Anil Kumar of Shreyansh Paper Mills Ltd, Ahmedgarh, Rajat Sood of Oriental Dyeing, Ludhiana, Vikram Vehmbi of National Electroplaters, Ludhiana, Vinod Vashist of Steel Re-rolling Mills, Khanna, IS Paul of Drish Shoes Pvt Ltd, Jalandhar, a representative of Jagatjit Industries Ltd, Hamira, and VK Goyal of Saluja Exports Ltd, Rahon, are among the members of the committee. The newly formed committee would regularly deliberate on advising different industries to install best available and techno-economical technologies to contribute towards preserving the environment. |
Ludhiana, November 13 Member of Parliament Ravneet Bittu, who participated in the protest march, flayed the Centre for increasing the prices of medicines for treatment of diseases like cancer. Party workers threatened to launch a large-scale agitation against the hike. — TNS |
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pau
notes Ludhiana: Dr KG Ragothama, associate director, International Programmes in Agriculture, Purdue University, USA, visited the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) on Thursday to deliberate on the scope of strengthening collaboration between the two institutes. His visit also aimed at holding talks on the establishment of the ‘PAU-Purdue University Joint Research Centre’, which has recently been initiated after the agreement, signed between the PAU and the College of Agriculture, Purdue University, in August this year. In addition, Dr Ragothama held a meeting with the Vice-Chancellor of the university, Dr Baldev Singh Dhillon, and other senior officers. He also visited Dr GS Khush Laboratories, School of Agricultural Biotechnology (SAB), PAU. Meanwhile, Dr Dhillon said the mutual cooperation between the PAU and Purdue University would go a long way in imparting skill training and producing effective manpower in various disciplines of agricultural sciences. PAU registrar Dr PK Khanna said the university had identified three prime focus areas, including exchange of student and faculty, and collaborative research for fortifying this partnership. The university will work out strategies to promote this bilateral cooperation, he said. Dr Balwinder Singh, Director of Research, highlighted the ongoing research programmes of the PAU. For joint venture, he evinced interest in the areas of plant breeding, biotechnology and other mutually beneficial areas. — TNS |
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schools Ludhiana: This year, Police DAV Public School, Ludhiana, has dedicated the Children’s Day to generate awareness amongst students and their parents towards the importance of blood donation in saving precious lives. The objective of the two-day activity is to sensitise the students regarding the transfusion of blood, which helps in saving millions of lives all over the world. Principal Dr Anu Verma accompanied by the students met the Commissioner of Police Parmod Ban, IPS, here today, who gave a formal start to the signature campaign initiated in the school. DCP Nitamberi Jagdale, IPS, extended her full support to the campaign. The celebrations will culminate on Friday with a cultural programme, in which the schoolteachers will enact a play for the students to spread the message of importance of blood donation. Besides, the students will be participating in poster making and slogan writing activities in favour of blood donation. Traffic Rules Day
Young minds are quick learners and to improve their knowledge about traffic rules, a session on the same was conducted at Childhood Kindergarten Playway School, Punjab Mata Nagar, on Thursday. The purpose of the lesson was to teach students about the traffic lights and the importance of following traffic rules to and from school. Also, they were taught a poem on traffic lights. The students were asked to make various notes for their parents with messages such as 'drive slowly' and 'don't use mobiles while driving', etc. Poster-making contest A poster-making competition was organized at Green Land Senior Secondary Public School, Jalandhar Bypass. This was done to commemorate the celebrations of Children's Day. Nearly 100 students took part in the competition titled - 'Bachon Dikhao Apne Rang', organized by ZEE TV (Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh). The students of classes VIII to XII took up the theme of 'Swachh Bharat Campaign' to paint their imaginations. A different fervor and a rare aesthetic sense were perceived in their zealous attempts. They painted the slogans: Cleanliness is next to Godliness, Think Globally, act locally and Make Environment, a Green Peace. Mohak of Class IX Keats bagged the first prize, second prize was won by Ritesh Verma of XII Com B and Purvi Arora of IX Milton stood third. Sports meet
Sports Meet 2014 commenced at Sri Guru Hargobind Public School, Thakkarwal, here on Thursday. Chairman Major GS Ahluwalia, director Manjit Singh Walia and Principal DK Sharma inaugurated the meet by lighting the lamp. On the first day of the meet, different events, including front race, back race, jump race, fun race, cycle race, tug of war and Kho-Kho were held. — TNS |
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ludhiana
scan Diabetes Free World clinic organised an activity to check blood glucose of bicyclists and others on the Kakowal road. Nearly 120 cyclists, motorcyclists and homemakers were tested for blood glucose levels. While all cyclists, except two, were non-diabetic, 17 from the second group were found running higher blood glucose levels. Diet charts were given and further strategy required was explained to the needy ones. Dr Surinder Gupta explained the visible benefits of aerobic cycling exercise on blood glucose metabolism. Movie screened
Cinépolis organised a special free screening of the movie ‘Happy New Year’ for children in association with NGOs ‘Ashirwad and Muskan’ as a part of its global initiative – “Let’s all go to Cinépolis”. This CSR event undertaken by Cinépolis gave the children not only a chance to watch movie but also to have a complete cinematic experience. Dengue cases
Three more patients from Ludhiana tested positive for dengue. A female aged 36 years from Rahon Road, one 40-year-old male from Akash Puri and one 25-year-old male from Chander Nagar are under treatment at Dayanand Medical College and Hospital. Total dengue patients diagnosed in Ludhiana hospitals has now gone to 194 out of which 146 belong to Ludhiana, 42 to other districts and six to other states. Aedes aegypti larvae found
A team of 20 breeding checkers along with insect collectors and multipurpose health supervisor checked the coolers of different areas for breeding of Aedes aegypti (larvae of dengue). This was done under the direction of Civil Surgeon Dr Subhash Batta and under the supervision of District Epidemiologist Dr Anil Verma. One cooler in Chander Nagar along with two coolers, one tank and one container in Laxmi Nagar were found having larvae. The information regarding the same has been passed to MC officials for issuing fines. Memorandum submitted
Ludhiana Brick Kiln Owners Association met Mahesh Khanna, general manager, District Industries Centre, on Thursday and submitted a memorandum regarding some brick kiln owners who are moulding the clay mineral for making bricks without permit and are violating the directions of the Supreme Court. Sarabhjit Singh, general secretary of the association, said the department should take strict action against the violators. Exhibition from December 21
The International Engineering Technology and Sourcing Show (IETSS 2014) will be held from December 21-24. Avtar Singh, president of the Chamber of Industrial and Commercial Undertaking, while addressing a press conference regarding forthcoming exhibition, said they aim to promote ‘Made in Ludhiana’ brand through this exhibition. “Role of automation will also be discussed during the seminar which will be held on the last day of the exhibition,” he said. Notices issued
MLA, Simrajit Singh Bains, in a release issued here on Thursday, said the demand notices had been issued by the Excise and Taxation Department to small shopkeepers. Notices have been sent for submitting sales tax from the year 2006-07 and 2007-08, while according to
the rules, the department cannot ask anyone to submit tax that is from the period of more than three years. — TNS |
Man ends his life, one booked for abetment
Ludhiana, November 13 The police have registered a case of abetment of suicide against the accused, Satnam Singh. According to information, Manider Singh used to work with a multinational firm in the city. He had a property deal with the accused. The police found an SMS in Manider’s mobile wherein Satnam threatened him. His family members said Manider was upset due to some reason but he did not disclose the matter to them. Today, Manider went to a room on the first floor of his house and when he did not return after a while, his father Didar Singh went upstairs and found the body hanging. Gurveer Singh, Station House Officer (SHO), said, “Manider did not have enmity with anyone. Satnam Singh has been harassing him for money for the last some months. He was under the extreme pressure. On the basis of the SMS on Manider’s mobile, we have register a case of abetment to suicide against Satnam Singh.” No arrest has been made so far. The body was handed over to the deceased’s family after post-mortem. |
Junior baseball championship Our Sports Reporter
Ludhiana, November 13 In the final, Kum Kalan boys survived some anxious moments before coming out victorious 4-3 against Guru Nanak International Public School, Ludhiana. In another match for the hard-line cup, GMT Public School fought hard to outplay BCM Senior Secondary School, Focal Point branch, 1-0 to secure the third position. In the semi-finals, Guru Nanak International Public School prevailed over BCM Senior Secondary School, Focal Point, 4-3, and Government Senior Secondary School, Kum Kalan, drubbed GMT Public School 11-1. Sukhdev Singh and Harbir Singh, secretary and organising president of the Ludhiana District Baseball Association, respectively, distributed the prizes. |
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Football: GNPS bag twin titles
Ludhiana, November 13 In the under 14 group, Sacred Heart School, Jagraon, stood second while Sobha Singh Public School, Raikot, finished third. The schools secured similar positions in the under 16 category. Guru Nanak Public School, Mullanpur, bagged the runners-up trophy in the under 19 category and Sacred Heart School, Jagraon finished third in the event. Dr Bhupinder Singh Saran, president, Guru Nanak Education and Social Welfare Trust, gave away prizes to the winners. Charanjit Singh Gahour, secretary of the trust, and Prabhjot Grewal, officiating principal of the host school, were among those present at the prize distribution function. |
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