12012025-CT-01.qxd 12-01-2025 00:03 Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune PATIALA MAN POSING AS POLICEMAN ARRESTED COPS FOLLOW ‘CHOCOLATE & CHALLAN’ POLICY JAYA KAPOOR STORMS INTO SECOND QUALIFYING ROUND The suspect, identified as Mandeep Singh, was harassing people at the Phase 3B2 market in Mohali. P3 On January 9 and 10, 1,662 traffic slips were handed to traffic offenders in Mohali. P3 Beats Aadirai KA 6-0 6-1 in the first round qualifying match of J200 World Tennis Tour Juniors meet. P6 » » MAINLY CLEAR SKY MAX 16°C | MIN 9°C YESTERDAY MAX 18.8°C | MIN 8°C SUNSET SUNDAY 5.42 PM SUNRISE MONDAY 7:20 AM » SUNDAY | 12 JANUARY 2025 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST /THETRIBUNECHD FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE Leisure Valley sculptures falling apart Sheetal Tribune News Service WHAT’S ON CHANDIGARH Painting Workshop: 12day Miniatures Painting Camp by the North Zone Culture Centre, Kalagram, Sector 13, on till January 12, 9:30 am to 6 pm Wool ‘n’ Silk Expo: Widest and finest range of traditional handlooms as well as dress material like raw silk, silk suit, sarees and more, Himachal Bhawan, Sector 28, on till January 14 APNI MANDI Chandigarh: Sectors 34, 37 and Dadu Majra Mohali: Dasehra Ground, Sector 62 Please send information about events in tricity at: whatson@tribunemail.com INBRIEF TWO ARRESTED FOR CHEATING Chandigarh: The police have arrested UP natives Kamlesh Kumar and Pakhi Malik in cheating cases. Dilip Kumar Biswas of Adarsh Nagar, Nayagoan, had reported that he was duped of Rs 5 lakh on the pretext of providing US Dollars at cheap rates. The accused had duped people of about Rs 18 lakh in UT. TNS Chandigarh, January 11 As many as eight sculptures in Leisure Valley, once the pride and joy of the city, have turned into an eyesore. The park opposite the Government Museum and Art Gallery, Sector 10, which hosts installations and sculptures by renowned sculptors such as Shiv Singh and Charanjit Singh Matharu, installed in 1991, lie unattended and uncared for. The metal installations of both these artists are rusting away, while their masonry artworks are either partially or fully damaged. In another part of Leisure Valley, renowned artist and first principal of the Government College of Art Sardari Lal Parasher’s landscape sculpture, “Undivided Punjab”, is in terrible shape. The 16-foot tall concrete sculpture, designed and installed in 1967 and conceived as a monument on the reorganisation of Punjab, has masonry eroding at the base, while the weather gods over the years have discoloured the artwork and the Punjabi inscription on it to such an extent that it can no longer be read. The sculpture of a third artist, HS Kulkarni, a creation in steel sheets has been almost completely eaten up by rust. Avtarjit Dhanjal’s marble stone mural is chipped in different places. Shiv Singh’s environmentfriendly galvanised pipe maze is dull and decaying. All these sculptures were intended to be part of a Sculpture Park that had been thought up by the North Zone Cultural Centre back in 1991. They are shoddy and unkempt today, lost in a bureaucratic maze owned by no one. Ironically, another of SARDARI LAL PARASHER’S LANDSCAPE SCULPTURE “UNDIVIDED PUNJAB”. DISHEARTENING TO SEE WORK IN SUCH BAD SHAPE: ARTIST Vikram Dhiman, whose installation “Udaan” is among those displayed in Leisure Valley, said, “It is disheartening to see your artwork in such bad shape. Any artist would feel encouraged and proud once their work is recognised by the local bodies and is acquired for public display. Sculptures need proper maintenance and care.” WHO IS RESPONSIBLE A GALAVANISED-PIPE MAZE DESIGNED BY SHIV SINGH. Parasher’s mural called Vidya Valanj (States of Knowledge), selected by Le Corbusier himself, is in perfectly good condition. The mural, also in the open, stands on top of the main building of the Post Graduate Government College, Sector 11, formerly called the Government College for Men. The Tribune spoke to several officials in the Chandigarh Administration’s Cultural Affairs Department, Engineering Department, which is ostensibly in charge of maintenance; the city’s Lalit Kala “The responsibility of maintaining the sculptures directly falls on the authorities of the premises or the building in question,” a senior official from the administration told The Tribune. Akademi, the director and the deputy curator of the Government Museum and Art Gallery, but none of them agreed to speak on record. Some officials refused to speak at all, or answer phone messages. Many passed the buck to another department Tewari, Lucky to pick Cong candidates MAYORAL POLL Tribune News Service Chandigarh, January 11 Senior leaders of the Congress have unanimously authorised MP Manish Tewari and city party president HS Lucky to select the party candidates for the Mayoral posts as per the understanding reached with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), while stating that all seven councillors of the Congress are equally competent and capable. Sources said the arrangement settled with AAP dur- ing the previous mayoral elections would continue. The AAP would field its candidate for the post of Mayor, while the Congress would get the posts of Senior Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayor. A meeting of senior officebearers of the Chandigarh Pradesh Congress Committee was held today under the leadership of MP Manish Tewari and city Congress president HS Lucky to monitor the efficacy of the Municipal Corporation in managing civic affairs and other burning issues faced by residents. Rajiv Sharma, chief spokesperson for city Congress, said speaker after speaker lauded the sincere efforts of the seven Congress councillors in trying to restore the lost glory of the city despite the obstacles being created by the BJP and the UT Administration at every step. A resolution placing on record the appreciation of the remarkable work being done by the Congress councillors in the service of the people of Chandigarh was passed unanimously during the meeting. Tewari stated that he had been making honest efforts to find ways and means to break into the veil of bureaucratic inertia afflicting the city, which has stemmed from undemocratic style of their functioning and decision-making process. Stating that such an attitude of the administration is the root cause of almost all ills afflicting the city, he assured the people that he would not relent till the administration did not begin to reflect the real hopes and aspirations of the city residents. Reiterat- ing that the Congress is committed to fulfilling its election promises, Tewari asked the councillors and party activists to dedicate themselves in the service of the city with their full might. Lucky stressed the need to add more members to the booth-level committees of the party in order to ensure extensive participation of people in party programmes. Lucky appealed to the residents of the city to join its fight against the ill-advised and anti-people decision of the administration to privatise the Electricity Department. Shatabdi, Unchahar Express tardy run continues amid bad weather Akashdeep Virk Tribune News Service Visitors at Sukhna Lake on Saturday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: RAVI KUMAR Dense fog likely for two days Chandigarh, January 11 The Meteorological Department has warned of dense fog in the morning and night hours in the city for next two days. Cold wave conditions persisted today despite sun playing hide and seek. “There will be mainly clear sky with the possibility of dense fog in the morning and night hours on January 12-13,” stated the Met Department here today. However, the department has predicted mainly cloudy sky from January 14 to 15. The maximum temperature in the city was recorded at 18.9° Celsius, which continued on page 6 A STEEL STRUCTURE BY CHARANJIT SINGH MATHARU. Chandigarh, January 11 Foggy weather once again disrupted rail services with the New Delhi-Kalka Shatabdi arriving here late by over five hours today and the Unchahar Express running over 13 hours behind schedule. The Shatabdi, which is typically a symbol of punctuality, departed New Delhi at 12 noon, instead of its scheduled departure of 7:40 am, and reached here at 4:04 pm, well past its usual arrival time of 10:59 am. The Kalka-New Delhi Shatabdi was also delayed, leaving Kalka 31 minutes late at 6:16 pm and reaching Chandigarh 33 min- utes behind schedule. The Unchahar Express, departing from Prayagraj, was supposed to leave at 2 pm on Friday but started its journey at 10:40 pm instead. Originally scheduled to arrive here at 9:15 am, the train is now expected at 11:03 pm. This comes after two consecutive journeys with major delays, including a ninehour late departure on Wednesday when it arrived at Chandigarh in the early hours of Friday, nearly two days late. Its subsequent journey was no different, as it reached Chandigarh on Friday over seven hours behind schedule. Passengers expressed their dissatisfaction with the delays. Ramesh Mehta, step- c m y b ping off the Shatabdi, shared, “Delays like this are unusual for the Shatabdi. It’s frustrating when you rely on this train for important commitments.” Another passenger, Kavita Sharma, said, “We know fog is unavoidable, but better management could help mitigate the impact.” For Unchahar’s regular passengers, repeated delays are now a persistent challenge. As winter weather continues to affect operations, passengers are calling on Indian Railways to address recurring delays and improve their contingency planning to ensure more predictable service, even during challenging conditions. VIKRAM DHIMAN’S ARTWORK TITLED ‘UDAAN’ AT LEISURE VALLEY. in the city. A few spoke strictly on the condition of anonymity. “The responsibility of maintaining the sculptures directly falls on the authorities of the premises or the building in question,” a senior official from the administration told The Tribune. The administra- tion, he added, is not responsible for sculptures installed inside the Chandigarh College of Architecture or any other institute or building. The official said maintenance of the sculptures in Leisure Valley was supposed to be the responsibility of the Government Museum & Art Gallery. Vikram Dhiman, whose installation “Udaan” is among those displayed in Leisure Valley, said, “It is disheartening to see your artwork in such bad shape. Any artist would feel encouraged continued on page 6