IT Chandigarh

Chandigarh: Acting on a public interest litigation (PIL), the Punjab and Haryana High Court has issued notices to the Chandigarh Administration seeking proper treatment of the surviving freedom fighters.

The petitioner said that the freedom fighters who are in their late eighties and nineties are not provided with free adequate medical facilities in hospitals.

The petitioner referred particularly to two freedom fighters namely 93-year-old Munish Kumar Sharda and 80-year-old Ved Parkash Mehra.

Manish Kumar Sharda is suffering from paralysis and is confined to bed. Sharda said that no officer has ever visited him. While Mehra said that unlike in New Delhi, the Chandigarh administration does not bear expenses for treatment of freedom fighters.

The petitioner further added that it will be a tribute to the freedom fighters if the administration wakes up to its responsibility to extend the facility of free medical treatment to all the surviving freedom fighters.

Source: Express News Service

Chandigarh: The Global Human Rights Council has alleged that certain politicians and police officers are illegally taking the possession of the rivers which fall under the revenue jurisdiction of SAS Nagar, Mohali and Ropar districts. The Council claims to have conducted a preliminary investigation in Kansal, Naya Gaon, Mullanpur, Garibdass, Parol, Charmajra, Teera, Mirpur, Paroziaan, Senk, Khijrabad, Landran, Dhakoran Kalan, Phantwan, Naglian, Takkipura villages and specifically the river near Dera bassi.

“From the preliminary investigation it was concluded that the influential people including politicians, police officers and bureaucrats are taking illegal possession on the natural resources and the land falling under the head of Jumla-Mustarka-Malkan,” said Advocate Arvind Thakur.

The council claims to submit its detailed report within a period of 15 days with authenticated records and pictures.

Source: Express News Service

Chandigarh: The various Nokia repair centres across the city today saw hordes of people struggling to get their batteries changed after the announcement by the company regarding certain defective batteries in use. Ramesh Narang of Exclusive Nokia Sale and Repair Centre at Sector 22 said that more than 700 people have been registered at his centre since morning. “We are only jotting down the phone number and the 26 digit number of the batteries as of now so as to do away with the crowd. In the evening we will process these numbers in the computer to find out if the battery has been made during the period under objection and whether it needs replacement,” said Narang. He said that the customers will be told about the status of their batteries on telephone.

A similar scene ensued at the Nokia Centre, Sector 35 C. However, people who came to get a replacement were in for a shock. “We were told that the batteries would be instantly replaced but these people say it will come through courier,” said a customer.

A Nokia executive said that Nokia has taken precautionary steps and the public need not panic. Customers can use the helpline 0172-30303838 for any query regarding their batteries. Ramesh Narang of Exclusive Nokia Sale and Repair Centre at Sector 22 said that more than 700 people have been registered at his centre since morning. “We are only jotting down the phone number and the 26 digit number of the batteries as of now so as to do away with the crowd. In the evening we will process these numbers in the computer to find out if the battery has been made during the period under objection and whether it needs replacement,” said Narang. He said that the customers will be told about the status of their batteries on telephone.
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Chandigarh: A Nokia- N70 phone put for charging blasted off on Thursday evening in the city. The mobile belonging to Ritu Kakar, a pharmacist with Punjab Government and resident of House no. 657, Sector 38A saw a blast at her residence at around 9.25 pm. According to her son Rohan, “I was away from the phone when it burst. Although the body was all right but a burning smell was emanating from the mobile.”

Rohan told that he had been going to the Nokia Care Centre at Sector 35C to know the make of this battery since the 26 digit number was not visible on it but they did not entertain him. His Father, Rajeev Kakar said, “We are lucky that no one got injured. The Nokia company should do something about this.”

Source: Express News Service

SAS Nagar: The residents of Phase- VIII-B satged a dharna on the road towards the old dumping ground in Mohali on Thursday. The protestors said that they would not let the Mohali MC to dump the city garbage in the dumping ground and added that the council should make arrangements to dump garbage at the place where it is being dumped presently or to find some other place. On the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, the GMADA authorities have given the demarcation of the 13 acre land to the MC for the dumping ground in the place where the garbage was dumped earlier and the MC is already constructing a boundary wall in the area.

The problem started when a vehicle of the Mohali MC dumped garbage in the old dumping ground by mistake. However, the MC officials immediately cleared the garbage from the area and no more garbage was dumped since then but the residents.

Presidents of the residents welfare association, Baldev Singh said that around 140 plots were allotted for residential purpose by the PSIEC in the area but the GMADA after acquiring the land in Sohana village nearby, handed it over to the MC for dumping garbage. He said that as the garbage heap made the residents life miserable, they blocked the road and no vehicle was permitted to go to this dumping ground. The council started dumping the garbage opposite Silverline Factory and the factory owner took the case in court demanding that the dumping ground be shifted from the area because of its promixity to the residential pocket.
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The entire building has been constructed within two months

SAS Nagar: Violating all the laws, the owner of a plot in Phase-VII (h.no. 309) has constructed a three-storeyed building in the rear courtyard, which is meant to be left as an open space. Even the neighbours don’t seem to know who is the owner of that plot. They have only seen the construction going on. The whole building on this 4 marla plot has been constructed in two months time.

The GMADA has issued a notice to the owner of the plot to demolish the structure but it seems to have fallen on deaf ears as the construction is being done on war footing.

Around a week back, when the Newsline team went to the GMADA office to check the building plan, the file was not in the record. The original file of the plot was also not available in the estate office. The record in the building branch revealed that the file has been resent to the officials with a noting of compound interest of Rs 15,000 for some alterations and a notice for illegal construction.

It was revealed that the layout plan was around 20 years old and the construction has not been done according to that plan. A GMADA official said that if the illegally constructed part is not demolished, the GMADA will seize the property.

Source: Express News Service

Chandigarh: The State Agriculture Marketing Board (AMB), Chandigarh, held the pre-bid conference today for the modern terminal project at the UT Secretariat Conference Hall. Secretary, Agriculture Marketing Board and Chandigarh Deputy Commissioner, R K Rao, chaired the meeting. Others present at the meeting included Sub-Divisional Magistrate (Central) and Joint Secretary of the Marketing Board Ankur Garg, chief architect, senior town planner, UT Chandigarh and other officials from the administration.

Officials from leading consultant group for the project, YES Bank Ltd., and representatives from qualified private enterprises also participated in the conference.

The qualified applicants were asked to submit their technical and financial bids latest by September 10. The bids will be evaluated on technical grounds and financial bids of all those scoring the minimum qualifying technical score will be opened. In the financial bids, the applicants are required to quote the percentage of the annual revenues they are willing to share with the State Agriculture Marketing Board and the project will be awarded to the highest bidder.

On July 31, AMB Chandigarh had issued the Request for Proposal (RFP) and Draft Development Agreement (DA) documents to four qualified applicants who were selected after a detailed Request for Qualification (RFQ) stage. The qualified private parties include Reliance Group (in consortium with Ranger Farms), Bharat Hotels Pvt. Ltd (in consortium with NAFED), NCDEX and DSCL (DCM-Shriram Consolidated Ltd.).
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Chandigarh: The Municipal Corporation (MC) opened price bids for the proposed multi-level parking project at Sector 17 on Thursday. Out of total four bidders, Subhash Projects and Marketing Limited from Delhi has quoted the lowest concession period of 9 years and 11 months. Civic authorities said that the work will be allotted shortly.

MC officials said that this concession period is very low as compared to similar projects in other cities like Chennai, Jaipur, Mumbai and Kolkata where the concession period varies between 20 to 60 years. “This is because of the tough competition and steps taken by the corporation,” officials said.

This facility will come up on the existing parking plot measuring 6739 sqm, adjacent to the Electric Grid Sub Station on Built Operate Transfer (BOT) basis. The Municipal Corporation had invited expression of interests for the project from private investors in April 2006 and 20 parties were short-listed based on the qualification criteria.

To make the project economically viable, 9 per cent of the floor area has been allowed to be used for commercial purposes. The proposed multi-level parking facility will have parking area to accommodate 1,200 Equivalent Car Space (ECS) and 2,388 sqm of commercial area.
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Chandigarh: A delegation of members of the Students Organisation of India (SOI) submitted a memorandum to the SSP on Thursday. They alleged that they were being threatened by other parties at DAV College, Sector 10.

The delegation alleged that members of president of the DAV unit of Students Organisation of Panjab University(SOPU), Amandeep Multani and his supporters were threatening the group members and not allowing SOI members to enter the college premises.

SOI incharge, Pardeep Pal Singh said such moves may lead to a fight between the two parties. HE added that Immediate steps must be taken to prevent such a situation. The SOI members were recently accused of being involved in the firing incident at DAV College.

Source: Express News Service

Chandigarh: UT Administration has launched a Child Protection Programme to rescue and protect children from physical, emotional or sexual abuses at home, in the neighbourhood, at schools, college campuses and at workplaces.

If case a child up to 18 years of age reports abuse, the police will work in close collaboration with the rapid response team of this programme to provide emergency assistance to the victim.

The police have been asked to specially look out for crime against children and women. Moreover, the Station House Officer (SHO) should personally deal with such cases in consultation with volunteers of the rapid response team.

Raji P Shrivastva has been appointed as the nodal officer for the programme. The volunteers can be contacted through a 24-hour Child Abuse Helpline of Chandigarh Administration — 99150-23456.

The Administration has said that prompt attention should be paid to the volunteers of the NGOs who visit the police station. An FIR should be lodged immediately and complete medical examination of the victim should be done. If required, the child should be provided shelter through the orders of Child Welfare Committee Member.

Source: Express News Service