05052025-CT-01.qxd 5/5/2025 12:34 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune RAILWAYS, COACH FACTORY IN HOCKEY TOURNEY FINAL AMIT'S QUICKFIRE 94 RUNS LIGHT UP GULLY CRICKET DILJIT CONFIRMS MET GALA 2025 RED CARPET DEBUT Coach Factory outplayed Roundglass 9-8 in first semifinal, Indian Railways defeated Chd XI 4-0. P3 His knock helped Team No. 103 cruise to a commanding 102-run victory over Team No 110. P3 Diljit Dosanjh has confirmed his much-anticipated attendance at the fashion industry’s biggest night. P4 » » WHAT’S ON APNI MANDI Chandigarh: Sectors 43 & 45, and Maloya P’kula: MDC, Sector 5 Mohali: Phase V Please send information about events in tricity at: whatson@tribunemail.com INBRIEF WARRANT AGAINST MOHALI RTO Mohali: A local court has again issued non-bailable warrant (NBW) returnable till May 13 against Mohali RTO Pardeep Singh Dhillon, who is evading arrest in a Vigilance Bureau case since April 24. Dhillon’s anticipatory bail was earlier rejected by the court. TNS 22-YR-OLD STUDENT DIES BY SUICIDE Mohali: A 22-year-old student of a private university in Sector 83 reportedly died by suicide in his room on Saturday. Rohit, a native of Solan, was a second year student of forensic science. He was found hanging from the ceiling fan of his room, said the police. No suicide note has been found on him. TNS /THETRIBUNECHD FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE All private schools in city bound to serve needy students: UT Says land without auction only for charitable purpose Nitin Jain Tribune News Service Chandigarh, May 4 All private unaided schools, both minority and nonminority, are bound to serve the needy students from the economically weaker sections (EWS) and disadvantaged groups (DG) under the obligations of the land contracts as well as the Constitution, the UT Administration has ruled. In an order to this effect passed recently to settle the contentious matter pertaining to the reimbursement of expenditure incurred by the private unaided schools on the admission of EWS/ DG students in the city, the Director School Education (DSE), HPS Brar, has made it clear that the grant of government land to the educational institutions at concessional rates and without auction was for charitable purpose. “The reservation in the Scheme of 1996 currently determined by the Chandigarh Administration for admission to the schools for the students belonging to the EWS/ DG is 15 per cent, which constitutes not only the contractual obligation but also the constitutional obligation CONCESSIONAL RATES There were a total of 83 unaided recognised private schools in Chandigarh, of which 20 were minority schools and 63 non-minority ones. All these schools have been allotted government land under the Capital of Punjab (Development and Regulation) Act, 1952, at concessional rates for establishment and administration of such schools. undertaken by virtue of Articles 21A, 41, 45 and 46, by such educational institutions,” the DSE noted, while ruling that such institutions owe a public duty to act in public interest and they are bound to discharge the same. The order mentioned that there were a total of 83 unaided recognised private schools in Chandigarh, of which 20 were minority schools and 63 were non-minority schools. All these schools have been allotted government land under the Capital of Punjab (Development and Regulation) Act, 1952, at concessional rates for establishment and administration of such schools. Separate lease/ conveyance deeds were executed and registered, containing the terms and conditions. These schools were not only imparting elementary education but also running secondary and higher secondary classes. “Even before the RTE Act, 2009, the Constitution of India imposed a duty upon the states to apply such principles to achieve the objective of a welfare state. It is in the light of this duty as well as other socio-economic factors, the UT Administration, to bring about uniformity and equity in all spheres and in exercise of powers conferred under Sections 3 and 22 of the 1952 Act, introduced the Clause 18 of allotment of land to educational institutions (schools), etc on a leasehold basis in the Chandigarh Scheme of 1996, as amended from time to time,” Brar recalled, while reproducing the relevant provisions of the Scheme of 1996, which was duly notified by the UT Administration on January 31, 1996. Among other provisions, the Scheme of 1996 provided that the educational societies/institutions/schools/tr usts shall be required to reserve 15 per cent or more seats as may be determined by the Chandigarh Administration from time to Continued on page 2 A waterlogged road on the Panjab University campus after rain on Sunday morning. PHOTO: PRADEEP TEWARI More rain likely over next two days Tribune News Service Chandigarh, May 4 The rain, which started around 5:30 am and continued intermittently for around two hours in most parts of the city, has brought relief from the heat. The city recorded 7.4 mm rainfall till 8.30 am. The rain occurred due to fresh and active Western Distur- bance in the northern part of the country. The maximum temperature was recorded at 36°C, which was 1.5 degrees below normal. The weather will remain Candidates being frisked by the police at an examination centre in Chandigarh on Sunday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: PRADEEP TEWARI Tribune News Service Mohali, May 4 A major fire broke out at the gym of the Soul Space Mayfair housing society in Sector 70 here this afternoon. No one was injured in the incident but furniture, AC units and gym equipment were damaged in the fire. Local residents said the fire broke out in the sauna unit around 3:30 pm. They informed the fire officials, after which one fire tender reached the spot. The officials said the cause of fire couldn’t be ascertained. They, however, suspected that short-circuit led to the blaze. Local councillor Sukhdev Singh Patwari said, “Fortunately, the fire was controlled well in time.” The gym on fire at Soul Space Mayfair society in Sector 70. Chandigarh, May 4 The medical entrance exam, National Eligibility-cumEntrance Test-Undergraduate (NEET-UG), was held amid strict monitoring and security measures at 10 centres here today. As many as 4,848 candidates had registered for the test. More than 95 per cent registered students, accounting for over 4,600 pupils, appeared for the test, said Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Amandeep Singh Bhatti. Mock drills were held at all centres on Saturday to ensure a smooth conduct of the nationwide exam. Most of the centres were located in government and government-aided schools, colleges, universities and institutions. No untoward incident has been reported from inside or outside any of the 10 centres, said SSP Kanwardeep Kaur. However, sporadic incidents of the candidates objecting to the removal of their certain sacred items, which they were wearing, before entering the exam hall were reported. There were three layers of monitoring at the district, state and central levels. Transporting question papers under police escort, monitoring coaching centres to identify organised cheating rackets, multi-layered frisking by the police in addition to the deployment of designated security personnel at the exam centres were among the steps taken by the National Testing Agency (NTA), governed by the Union Education Ministry. The strict measures came a year after alleged irregularities, including paper leak, were flagged in NEET-UG. Under scrutiny over last year's irregularities in NEET-UG and the PhD entrance exams, the Centre had set up a panel to ensure "transparent, smooth and fair" conduct of the exams by the NTA. The University Grants Commission-National Eligibility Test (UGC-NET) was cancelled last year after the ministry received input that its integrity was compromised. Both matters are being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Two other exams -- CSIR-UGC NET and NEET-PG -- were cancelled at the last moment as a pre-emptive step. Together we can: Youth, Admn unite to free city of drugs Chandigarh, May 4 With a strong show of unity during the launch of the statewide war on drugs in Chandigarh on Saturday, over 2 lakh students and teachers from more than 200 schools of the city have taken a steadfast stance against the drug menace. The Chief Ministers of Punjab and Haryana—Bhagwant Mann and Nayab Saini—called the initiative a revolution. They actively participated in the state-level event, ‘ VADA’ (Victory Against Drug Abuse), which features activities such as posting messages on ‘ Kalpataru’ (also spelled Kalpa-taru), a mythical wish-granting tree, which has been set up in all schools, besides other extracurricular activities like slogan writing, caption contest, and poster-making competitions across the UT schools. In a first-of-its-kind initiative, which is a part of the “drug-free Chandigarh” mission launched by the UT Education Department, over 2 lakh students, parents and teachers have put up their wishes on these wish-granting trees of the heavens by hanging buntings and placards ahead of the statewide war on drugs spearheaded by the Punjab Governor and UT Administrator, Gulab Chand Kataria. The best decorated and most wishful tree will be awarded and recognised by the UT Administration after examining all the trees put up across the city schools. A brainchild of UT Education Secretary Prerna Puri, the initiative was aimed at fostering a drug-free society to fulfil the wish of making Chandigarh the first drugfree city in the country. “The ‘Kalpataru’ wishgranting tree project has been introduced in all the government, aided, private and IAF-run schools across the city after the first one was inaugurated by the Governor-cum-Administrator at PM SHRI GMSS in Dhanas on April 26,” Prerna told The Tribune, here on Sunday. Kataria had made the first wish for a drug-free city, setting the tone for a community-wide commitment to this vital cause. On Saturday, the students and teachers marched to Tiranga Park in Sector 17, besides marching around their respective schools and colleges and attending the live telecast of the event through webcast. Prerna said the students had long been at the forefront of societal change, acting as flag-bearers of social reforms and embodying the spirit of activism. “Their energy, idealism and willingness to Continued on page 2 c m y b partly cloudy with possibility of the rain, thunderstorm and lightning over the next two days. The temperature will remain around 35°C in the next three days. Fire at gym in Mohali Tribune News Service Tribune News Service MAX 36°C | MIN 21°C YESTERDAY MAX 36°C | MIN 20.7°C SUNRISE TUESDAY 5.36 AM 4,600 students take NEET-UG at 10 exam centres in city Nitin Jain PARTLY CLOUDY SUNSET MONDAY 7.03 PM » MONDAY | 5 MAY 2025 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST Students put up anti-drugs messages on a tree. TRIBUNE PHOTO: PRADEEP TEWARI Bakery sealed over unhygienic conditions Tribune News Service Dera Bassi, May 4 A food safety team of Mohali sealed a bakery on the Barwala road here for preparing snacks in unhygienic conditions. Led by the District Health Office, the team, including police officials, raided the bakery and confiscated unhygienic food items after a video went viral on the social media. The purported video shows cakes and other snacks items being prepared in unhygienic conditions close to a toilet. The workers, who were preparing the snacks, were not wearing gloves and headscarves. The officials said strict action was being taken against all outlets, which were found preparing food under unhygienic conditions. Unhygienic food preparation on a commercial scale at obscure units is under public scrutiny these days. Residents have sought strict action against firms and individuals engaged in such unhygienic preparation of food items. On March 16, a video shot by local residents, purportedly showing food being prepared in dirty utensils in a house at Mataur, had gone viral, triggering public outrage. Similar videos also surfaced from Kharar, Zirakpur and Phase 9 markets. Food outlets across Mohali, Zirakpur and Kharar continue to serve substandard, adulterated and unhygienic eatables in utter disregard to food safety regulations with no fear of the health authorities.