ABOHAR
EUNUCH MC HELD: Basanti Sharma, the first eunuch Municipal Councillor from the region, was arrested by the police on Wednesday. Mr Gurcharan Singh, ASP, said 2 gm of smack was recovered from Sharma. A case under the NDPs Act has been registered against the suspect.

AMRITSAR
TELECOM DEPT: Mr Onkar Singh Duggal, president, Sav Sudhar Krantikari Dal, has expressed dissatisfaction with the functioning of the Telecommunication Department. In a press note, Mr Duggal lamented the delay in issuance of telecom bills.

APPROVED: The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development, Mumbai, has approved the proposal for a research paper on “Role of informal rural financial markets in Punjab — a case study”, to be prepared by Dr Gian Kaur, Professor of economics, Guru Nanak Dev University, according to a communication received by her. The bank has also approved a grant of Rs 45,000 for the purpose.

BARNALA
HEARING AIDS: The Lions Club (Harmony), Barnala, will organise a function to give hearing aids at concessional rates to the hearing impaired at the local Gobind Bansal Charitable Trust complex on December 3. This was stated by Dr Sandeep Kumar, president of the club. Mr Malkit Singh Keetu, MLA, will be the chief guest.

LOK ADALAT: Mr Justice H.S. bedi of the Punjab and Haryana High Court will preside over a state-level lok adalat to be held here at the local courts complex on December 3. This was stated on Thursday by Mr Dilbag Singh Johal, Additional Civil Judge (Senior division), Civil Courts, Barnala, who is also the chairman of the local Legal Services Aid Committee.

BATALA
HEPATITIS CAMP: A hepatitis-B vaccination camp organised at the local R.R. Bawa DAV College for Girls concluded on Thursday. The camp was sponsored by the Rotary Club. Mr Anjan Bansal, president of the club, inaugurated the camp.

BATHINDA
PARITY SOUGHT: The Punjab Ayurvedic Medical Services Association has demanded full parity in pay scales and other allowances for the ayurvedic medical officers with allopathic medical officers of the state. This was stated by Dr Harmanjit Singh, president of the association, in a press note issued here on Thursday.

AIDS AWARENESS: A rally on AIDS awareness was organised by schoolchildren, volunteers of various NGOs and the NSS here on Thursday. The rally was flagged off by the Deputy Commissioner.

GRANT RELEASED: Panchayats of 33 villages in the district have been provided Rs 1.25 crore in the form grants announced by Mr Parkash Singh Badal, Chief Minister, during a “sangat darshan” programme at Dhade village on November 22. This was stated by Mr Jaspal Singh, Deputy Commissioner, in a press note issued here on Thursday.

DEMANDED: Engineers of Guru Hargobind Thermal Plant ( GHTP) Lehra Mohabbat, are on a collision course due to the non-implementation of the policy of the Punjab State Electricity Board regarding the shift duty of engineers. They have been wearing black badges since November 17 to register their protest. The regional secretary, PSEB Engineers Association (GHTP) in a press note issued here on Thursday, demanded that shift duty be implemented at the GHTP.

ALLEGED: Satpal Bharty, vice-president, CITU, has alleged that the policies of the government have rendered more than three lakh brick-kiln and other industrial workers jobless. A press note issued here on Thursday said CITU would hold a state-level rally on December 3 to press for the acceptance of workers’ demands.

OBSERVED: Various functions were organised in the city to mark World AIDS Day. A district-level function chaired by Mr Jaspal Singh, Deputy Commissioner, was organised at the Goodwill Society office.

A cultural programme was presented by school children of the city.

GURDASPUR
POPPY HUSK SEIZED: The police on Thursday arrested Manohar Singh, resident of Rehana Jattan village in Kapurthala district, and seized 60 kg of poppy husk from his possession. According to Mr Varinder Kumar, SSP, a case under various Sections of the NDPS Act has been registered against the suspect and a truck carrying the poppy husk impounded.

HOSHIARPUR
REGISTERED: On the complaint of Surinder Singh, resident, of Jainpur, the Garhshanker police has registered a case against travel agent Santokh Singh and his wife Amandeep kaur of Ghumar Mohalla, jattawala Chontra in Patiala district on Wednesday. The complainant alleged that Santokh Singh had taken Rs 1,45,000 for sending him to the USA but had neither kept his promise nor returned the amount.

2 HURT: Vir Singh and his father were seriously injured when a tractor-trailer hit their scooter near the railway station, Dasuya, on Wednesday. Both were admitted to the Civil Hospital, Dasuya. The police has registered a case under Sections 279/337 of the IPC against tractor driver Sukhwinder Singh of Jaura village.

KHAMANO
DEAD: Senior Congress leader of Khamano Bhim Sen Verma died of heart attack on Thursday. He was being taken to hospital at Ludhiana but he died on the way. The local MLA Amrik Singh Dhillon, Mr Harbans Singh Nanowal, Mr Shyam Khurana and a large number of people were present at the cremation.

KHANNA
SCHEME LAUNCHED: An instant disposal scheme was launched on Friday at the city police station by SHO Rajesh Hastir, for immediate appraisal of complaints being filed by residents of Khanna at the station. A meeting of municipal councillors, prominent citizens and media persons was also called at the station. Hastir said that the image of police would be improved. Eve-teasing would be checked in the city. Patrolling by police at night would continue from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m.

STATUS GIVEN: Dhanwantri Ayurvedic Society has welcomed the state government’s decision to give Class A gazetted status to ayurvedic medicinal officers of the state. Talking to mediapersons, Dr Anil Garg, organising secretary of the society, said that it had been a long pending demand of ayurvedic medical officers. Punjab was the first state to give this status to AMOs. He also demanded that any ayurvedic specialist be appointed as Director of the Ayurvedic Department, so that Ayurved may progress in the right direction. Secretary of the society, Dr Somesh Batta, said that a function would be organised next month at Mandi Gobindgarh to honour Chief Minister, Parkash Singh Badal and Health Minister, Dr Baldev Parkash. It may be mentioned here that the state government had notified Class A gazetted status for AMOs under pay scale for 7220-11660 on November 28.

LUDHIANA
DECISION HAILED: Mr K.S. Budhiraja, chairman, Industries and Commerce Cell, state unit of the Janata Dal (united), has welcomed Prime Minister’s decision of ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir during the month of Ramzan. Mr Budhraja said that Mr Vajpayee has upheld the Indian tradition of its commitment towards peace throughout the world. He said that there was no harm if India started free trade with Pakistan since both countries had similar culture and traditions.

MOGA
MEDICAL CAMP: A heart and diabetes camp will be organised here on December 5 by the local chapter of the Rotary Club. This was stated by Dr Ramesh Lall Goel, president of the local unit of the club.

TWO KILLED: Gurmeet Singh and Bikkar Singh of Kahan Singhwala village were killed on the spot when their scooter was hit by a vehicle coming from opposite direction on the Faridkot-Talwandi road. The police has registered a case and bodies of the deceased have been sent for post-mortem examination. Another youth, who was injured in the accident, has been hospitalised.

FOLK SONGS CONTEST: A folk songs competition, organised by the management of the S.D. College for Women, concluded here on Wednesday. College Principal Surinder Brar gave away the prizes.

NAWANSHAHR
BLOOD DONATION CAMP: The Blood Donors Social Service, Aur, in collaboration with the local Blood Donors Council organised a blood donation camp in memory of Major Sikanderjit Singh Sra at Government Senior Secondary School, Aur, 10 km from here, on Thursday. Mr Santokh Singh inaugurated the camp.

WORKSHOP: The Punjab Police Academy, Phillaur, in collaboration with local educational institutions and NGOs, organised a workshop to create awareness about children’s rights here at Ralla Mall Bhuchard DAV Centenary Public School on Thursday. This was stated by Mr Parveen Kumar Singh, Deputy Director, Punjab Police Academy.

PATHANKOT
POPPY HUSK SEIZED: A police party headed by Ms Vibhu Raj, SP, intercepted a truck and seized 60.5 kg of poppy husk hidden in its tool box. Manohar Singh, driver of the truck, has been arrested and a case under the NDPS Act registered against him.

PATIALA
FORTNIGHT HELD: Canara Bank organised ‘interface with its customers at its Leela Bhavan branch here on Thursday in response to the bank’s nationwide call to celebrate ‘customre fortnight’. More than a 100 customers attended the ‘interface’ meet which was presided over by Mr A.K. Verma, branch manager of the bank. Mr Verma informed the customers about the various important schemes initiatiated by the bank. Useful tips were given regarding the availing of nomination facility for deposit to avoid future hassles and regarding the ‘banking ombudsman’ scheme for the speedy redressal of grievances which were yet to be settled by the bank. Tips were also given on how to avail various loan schemes of the bank for construction of houses and for education purposes.

PANEL DISCUSSION: The Institute of Multi-culturalism and Sikh Studies has decided to organise a series of seminars and discussions on recent trends in international organise a series of seminars and discussions on recent trends in international thought by inviting eminent scholars specialising in various fields. The first panel discussion in the series of ‘multi-culturalism’, accepted as the cultural philosophy of Canada and the USA, will be held on Saturday. The panel consists of Prof. Jasbir Jain, Head, English Department and Director, Academic Staff College Rajasthan University, Jaipur, Prof. Bhupinder Brar, Head, Political Science Department, Panjab University, and Prof Gurbhagat Singh, former head of the English Department, Punjabi University, Patiala.

PHAGWARA
RALLY ORGANISED: A sakhrata rally was organised at Hadiabad township on Thursday. It was flagged off by local SDM Pritam Singh. Councillors Lal Chand Thapar and Gurbachan Singh Walia were among those who addressed the rally.

COP KILLED: Police driver Jarnail Singh was killed when his vehicle was hit by a truck near Dadwindi village on Wednesday. He was cremated on Thursday at his native village Chairan.

TRAINING: A total of 182 women received training in different crafts, organised by Nehru Yuva Kendra, Chandigarh, in collaboration with the Servants of the People Society, between November 21 and 30, as Yuva Srijan 2000. The craft works included leather work, oil painting, fabric painting, soft toys, embroidery, flower making, beauty care and cooking. The course ended with an exhibition of the products prepared by the participants.

EYE CAMP: As many as 78 children were examined at a free eye check-up camp organised by the Bharat Vikas Parishad (east) branch at Shree Hazarilal Sarvhitkari Vidya Mandir in Ramdarbar, Phase-II here on Friday, informed Mr. Sanjay Singla, secretary of the Parishad.

HONOURED: Mr. Kamal Dev Verma, a teacher of Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 10, has been awarded certificate of commendation by the Government of India, Ministry of Home Affairs, Directorate of Census Operation, UT Administration. The certificate was awarded to him by Mr Sham Lal, Director in recognition of his outstanding contribution in house listing operation of the Census of India-2000.

DHARNA: Members of the All-India Trade Union Congress have decided to stage a dharna in Sector 17, before the office of the Labour Commissioner, in favour of their pending demand for an increase in the minimum wages and against the contract system and the unlawful closure and lock out by the mill-owners. A large number of trade union leaders participated in the agitation, informed Mr Bant Singh Brar, general secretary of Punjab AITUC.

ERADICATION CAMP: The Audit and Accounts Employees Welfare and Health Care Society, will organise a two-day hepatitis-B eradication camp in Audit Pool Colony in Sector 41-B from Saturday, informed Mr RS Heer, general secretary of the society.

HONOURED: Students and teachers were honoured for the best results at the annual prize distribution function of Government High School Sector 38-B here on Friday. Mr Ravinder Singh Saini, president of the Parent Teacher Association was the chief guest, said Mr Karam Chand, Headmaster of the school.

PARTICIPATED: As many as 23 persons participated in the fourth workshop on ‘ESI scheme held at the regional office of ESI Corporation here on Wednesday, according to Mr B.C. Bhardwaj, Regional Director of the corporation.

ELECTED: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Residents Welfare Association, Sector 40: chairman — Mr A.N. Kapoor; president — Mr BP Arora; senior vice-president — Mr R.P. Singh Sharma; vice-president — Mr Inderjit Singh and Mr P.K. Goel; general secretary — Mr Pradeep Mahajan; and joint secretary — Mr Vipin Jassal.

ASSOCIATION: The following have been elected office-bearers of the Industrial Welfare Association (10 marla), Industrial Area-II: chairman — Mr Harbans Singh Fauji; adviser — Mr Naresh Khosla; president — Mr K.L. Musafir; vice-president — Mr Rajesh Manchanda; general secretary — Mr Vinod Mittal; and joint secretary — Mr Dinesh Verma.

AMBALA
MEDICAL CAMP: With the cooperation of Sai Samiti of Ambala, Dr A K Sharma, Dr (Mrs) Sharma and other associates will organise a multi-speciality medical camp at Krishna Hospital in Jandli on Sunday.

Specialists in various fields will render free service of consultation, diagnosis, treatment and medicines, free of cost will be given to patients, a press note said.

MEETING HELD: A meeting of the Haryana Ministerial Staff Association was under the chairmanship of former association president, Mr Surinder Rana. It was decided at the meeting to give moral support to the ongoing agitation by the Pichdawarg Karamchari Kalyan Sangh. The association urged the government to immediately implement the order regarding reservations, otherwise they too would be forced to hold agitation, a release said.

URGED: The vice-president of the Haryana Library Association Mr R N Arora, has urged the union HRD Minister, Dr Murli Manohar Joshi to release the scale of Rs 14940 to college librarians at par with college teachers. He said the UGC had already recommended this scale to the college librarian under the carrier advancement schemes.

SIRSA
DOWRY CASE: Satbir, resident of Hisar, and his mother were booked in a dowry case by the Nathusari Chopta police of the district on the complaint of his wife Sheila Devi of Chaharwala village. According to the information given by the police, a case was registered under Sections 498 (A), 406 and 506 of the IPC against the two for demanding dowry and trying to kill Sheila.

SONEPAT
TWO HELD: With the arrest of Anand of Jatheri village and Ravinder of Mahmoodpur village, the police on Friday claimed to have solved the case of looting of a liquor vend near Kanwali village of the district on November 23. This was stated by Mr A.S. Chawla, SP. A country-made pistol, four bottles of liquor, four bottles of beer and Rs 720 were seized from their possession and their car, allegedly stolen from Rohtak, was impounded.