11092024-CT-01.qxd 9/10/2024 11:25 PM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune STRIKING DOCTORS THREATEN TO INTENSIFY PROTEST TWO NABBED FOR THEFT, 36 MOTORCYCLES RECOVERED CHANDIGARH GOLF LEAGUE TO TEE OFF TOMORROW Patients continue to suffer as OPD services at Fatehgarh Sahib govt hospital remain suspended. P2 Panchkula police arrest two Dera Bassi residents for vehicle thefts and recover 36 bikes from them. P2 Eighteen teams to compete in Chandigarh Golf League, which will begin in city on September 12. P2 » » PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 34°C | MIN 24°C YESTERDAY MAX 32.9°C | MIN 23.5°C SUNSET WEDNESDAY 6.35 PM SUNRISE THURSDAY 6.04 AM » WEDNESDAY | 11 SEPTEMBER 2024 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST TWITTER/THETRIBUNECHD FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE Sector 26 mandibares ugly side of City Beautiful Visitors put off by slushy entrances, waste dumps, foul smell, no designated parking area CHANDIGARH Silk India: Exhibition of traditional handlooms; Kisan Bhawan, Sector 35; on till September 17 Kathak dance performance by Sree Bandyopadhyay: Being organised by Pracheen Kala Kendra; ML Koser Indoor Auditorium, PKK Complex, Sector 35-B; 6:30 pm, entry on first-come-first-served basis Exhibition ‘The Dreamland’: By Navpreet Kaur; Chandigarh Lalit Kala Akademi’s Open Hand Art Studios, Le Corbusier Centre, Sector 19; on till September 15 APNI MANDI Chandigarh: Sectors 15, 40, 46 and 52 Mohali: Phase11 Panchkula: Sector 25 Please send information about events in tricity at: whatson@tribunemail.com INBRIEF VISA ASPIRANTS DUPED OF ~33L Chandigarh: The UT police have registered another case against the owner of the Sapphire Education Consultant, Sector 17, for defrauding people to the tune of Rs 33.85 lakh. Complainant Simranjeet Singh of Zirakpur along with other victims had alleged that they were duped of Rs 33.85 lakh on the pretext of providing student visa, PR, etc. A case has been registered. TNS High Court puts PU on notice over term of Senate Chandigarh, September 10 The Panjab and Haryana High Court has issued a notice of motion to Panjab University on a petition filed by five Fellows of the Senate to get the tenure of the body extended by another year. The term of the current Senate is ending on October 31. The petition was submitted Jagwant Singh, Varinder Singh, Dr Gurmit Singh, Balbir Chand Josan and Manish Wayyer, all members of the Senate, through counsel Nandita Verma. They prayed for issuance of a writ seeking quashing of the notifications dated September 21, 2021, December 20, 2021, and January 18, 2022, to the extent whereby the term of the members of the Senate, including the petitioners, was curtailed from four years to three years, the same being in contravention of the provisions of the Panjab University Act, 1947, read with the applicable regulations under the University Calendar. — TNS Tribune News Service Sandeep Rana PLAYING WITH PEOPLE’S HEALTH Tribune News Service Chandigarh, September 10 Can Chandigarh be truly called a “Smart City” when its only fruit, vegetable and grain market in Sector 26 here has been neglected for years and its condition has only gone from bad to worse? Potholes filled with rainwater, broken roads full of slush, waste dumps, stagnant dirty water and chaotic traffic conditions are some of the major problems visitors to the mandi encounter on a routine basis. Barring one, all entry and exit points have broken roads, which are filled with rainwater these days and are an open invitation to mishaps. Insanitary conditions prevail here as rotten vegetables and fruits are dumped at various spots. Parking is the first issue that visitors have to deal with. There is no demarcation of parking lots and no one manages vehicles entering the mandi premises. During peak hours, it becomes difficult to get in or out of the mandi. “For years, the UT Administration has failed to pay attention to the mandi, which otherwise could have been their priority. We are forced to buy items of daily needs amid foul smell and in such unhygienic conditions. It is hell- ❝City residents have to consume vegetables and fruits procured from this dirty place. You can imagine what affect it will have on their health. No proper sweeping is done and waste is not lifted regularly. The mandi has always remained neglected. ❞ — Dalip Sharma, AREA COUNCILLOR Waste dumped at the fruit and vegetable market in Sector 26, Chandigarh, on Tuesday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: PRADEEP TEWARI like situation here these days,” said Mamta Kumari, a visitor from Sector 28. Area councillor Dalip Sharma said, “People of the City Beautiful have to consume vegetables and fruits procured from this dirty place. You can imagine what affect it will have on their health. No proper sweeping is done and waste is not lifted regularly. The mandi has always remained neglected. After I raised the issue with the new MC Commissioner during Mohali DC-headed board to ensure security of medics Tribune News Service Mohali, September 10 Two days after two thieves pushed away a doctor at the Dhakoli community health centre, who was in the family way, while trying to flee with injections, a seven-member District Health Board has been formed to safeguard the interests of healthcare professionals and paramedic staff during duty hours. While the Deputy Commissioner is its chairperson, the SSP Civil Surgeon, Princi, pal/Medical Superintendent, nursing sister as representative of paramedic staff, district president of IMA and the district attorney are the other members of the board, which will hold a meeting every month. It has been decided that a single pass would be issued to the attendants in the in-patient department (IPD) at health facilities with heavy footfall. Only one person would be allowed to enter the IPD area. A security audit has been ordered at the District Hospital, sub-division hospital, community health centres and primary health centres that work as 24x7 health FILE PHOTO WHAT’S ON All’s well at Mohali varsity DHAKOLI CENTRE STAFF SEEK SECURITY The Dhakoli health centre staff have requested the district administration to deploy adequate security guards inside the premises and a PCR vehicle outside. “It is mostly female staff only on duty at night. Drunken men in big groups come here and misbehave with the staff,” an employee said. A class IV employee is there to handle odd works and such situations, they added. facility. The safety audit will be carried out by the Hospital Security and Violence Prevention Committee, headed by a senior medical officer, being formed at the local level. Sub-Divisional Magistrates have been asked to visit all these health facilities personally to complete the security audit by the next 10 days. Deputy Commissioner Aashika Jain said, “Provision for the safe movement of doctors/nurses within the hospital during night duties would be made besides routine patrolling in all hospitals during night time. In case of emergency, healthcare staff should contact or dial ‘112’ helpline. Photo ID cards are to be issued to all staff members of the hospitals to rule out the movement of any suspicious persons.” SSP Deepak Pareek said, “Besides day patrolling, special night patrolling would be done at 10 spots. I urge all SMOs to keep monitoring the functioning of CCTVs once in a while daily.” the last House meeting, the work of laying paver blocks has started.” Illegal vendors are also having a field day at the mandi with no check from the authorities. A vendor told Chandigarh Tribune, “Garbage is lifted only from the places where vendors are paying for it.” When contacted, Rupesh Kumar, Secretary, State Agricultural Marketing Board, Chandigarh, said, “The situation at the mandi has improved as compared to the past.” Paviter Singh, who recently took the charge as the Administrator of the board, added, “We have been able to raise the mandi fee. As far as infrastructure is concerned, paver blocks are being laid. For sanitation, we are going to increase the number of workers and machinery under the new tender. For encroachments, we are going to delegate powers to our staff as it was the MC job earlier. To end chaos, we are going to identify slots for parking area and depute staff. We will also fence the lots.” Officials said the permanent solution to the perennial issue was shifting the market to the new Sector 39 premises. The UT Administration is moving on a snail’s pace on that aspect as well. Mohali, September 10 Weeks after several students of Plaksha University, Sector 101, complained of flu-like illness symptoms, the Mohali administration today said a survey was conducted recently in which no one was found Covid positive. Samples of students test negative for Covid “After receiving information about the spread of Covid virus in Plaksha University, on the instructions of Additional Deputy Commissioner (J) Viraj S Tidke, a team from the Health Department took Covid samples of the students. None of the samples tested positive,” said an official of the district administration. Tidke instructed the university administration and the students to take precautionary measures against Covid in future. More than 38 students, out of a total of 500, reported cold, sore throat and fever over a period of three weeks on the campus. According to the university authorities, classes were held in the online mode from Wednesday as a precautionary measure, after which some of the students had gone home. The physical classes resumed yesterday. Leopard scare at Kharar village Mohali, September 10 Residents of Simbalmajra in Kharar and Mahmoodpur in Fatehgarh Sahib are living in fear as a leopard scare struck the area after pugmarks were reportedly spotted in fields of these villages. A team from the Mohali Wildlife Department combed the area but there is no confirmation about the feline yet. “The reported pugmarks are relatively smaller in size as compared to that of a leopard. Also, there are no visible signs of a leopard’s presence in the area. We are combing the area to allay village residents’ fear,” said an official. Locals reported the matter to wildlife officials after which a team from Mohali inspected the area. Residents said they were exercising caution especially during early morning and evening hours. Leopard sighting is a regular feature every year in Dera Bassi subdivision. On April 7 last year, a four-year-old male leopard died after being hit by a car on the ChandigarhAmbala highway at night. In May 2020, a leopard was spotted in the fields of Janetpur village during the daytime. In August 2022, wildlife officials laid a trap to catch a leopard at Amlala village. — TNS Commuters head to their destinations amid rain in Chandigarh on Tuesday morning. 15.6 mm rainfall recorded in city, more expected: MeT Tribune News Service Chandigarh, September 10 Showers lashed the city in the morning today, making the weather pleasant. There is a forecast of rain for two more days. According to the Chandigarh Meteorological Department, it rained 14.3 mm till 8:30 am today and 1.3 mm later till 5.30 pm. The city has recorded 671.9 mm of rainfall during the ongoing monsoon season, which is 16% less than normal for the season. Meanwhile, the maximum temperature recorded in the city today was 32.9°C, which is normal for the day, while the minimum stood at 23.5°C, which is a degree below normal. As per the forecast, there is no major change expected either in the day or night’s temperature in the next few days. As per the weatherman, the September month is likely to see good rainfall. It is expected to witness normal or above normal rainfall. Last month, the city recorded 351.6 mm of rainfall, which falls in the “excess” category, against the normal 284.8 mm. On the contrary, June saw only 11.9 mm rainfall, which is 92% less than normal rainfall of 155.5 mm for the month. In July too, against the normal rainfall of 273.2 mm, the city received only 178.2 mm of precipitation. Ind’l Area to remain shut on Sept 12, 13 Of 236 coaching centres in UT, Owners of units to 168 sans fire safety certificate protest against building Tribune News Service Chandigarh, September 10 The Vyapari Ekta Manch has announced to completely shut the Industrial Area on September 12 and 13 in protest against issuance of misuse and violation notices. The front stated that traders would gather with their luxury cars to beg for the cancellation of the notices on September 12. Traders from all over the misuse notices city would come together for their collective interests. On September 13, they would approach the Chandigarh Administration with the collected alms and the notices, pleading for their cancellation. The Administration will be urged to revoke the notices ‘using the amount collected through these alms’. “If the Administration does not agree, all traders will symbolically hand over the keys to their business premises and vow to leave Chandigarh,” stated the manch. The industrialists claimed that the Administration was continuously harassing them by issuing misuse and violation notices, making it difficult to run business. c m y b It is pertinent to mention here that industrialists have already met Punjab Governor and UT Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria over the issue. On August 29, they protested at Tribune Chowk against the Administration and the Ministry of Home Affairs regarding their demands, claiming that many of their grievances had remained unresolved for the past 15 years. Chandigarh, September 10 As many as 168 of the total 236 coaching centres and institutes in the city have not procured the fire safety certificate, thereby putting lives of students in danger. A team from the Fire and Rescue Services wing of the city Municipal Corporation inspected the 236 coaching centres and institutes. The inspections revealed that 87 centres have initiated the application process for the fire safety certificate while 81 centres have not even submitted any application so far. However, the MC has not shared the names of the major violators. “The significant gap highlights the urgent need for compliance with fire safety regulations to protect the lives of students and staff,” said an official. In response to these findings, MC Commissioner Vinay Pratap Singh ordered a final compliance deadline of 30 days for the centres. Those failing to meet the deadline will face the sealing of their properties and further necessary action. — TNS