Briefly Region

Teachers’ union chief jumps into canal,saved

Bathinda: Swarna Devi,the state president of Alternative and Innovative Education Teachers’ Union tried to commit suicide on Wednesday by jumping into a canal near the thermal plant here. She was taken out by a member of the union,Bawa Singh Boha,who jumped after her to rescue her. The water level in the canal was lesser than normal. The volunteers were protesting to demand enrolment in elementary teachers’ training course by the Punjab government. Bathinda SSP Sukhchain Singh Gill said no case was registered against anyone.

Laadli media award for Express staffers

NEW DELHI: Teena Thacker and Jasneet Bindra of The Indian Express have been conferred the Laadli Media Awards for their reportage on gender issues. The awards,instituted by NGO Population First,were presented for reports under the heads of investigative journalism,human interest story,features and articles which promoted gender sensitivity.

HP Cong starts protest against poor roads

SHIMLA: The Congress held its first public protest on Wednesday against the poor condition of roads in Jubbal,the apple belt of Shimla district,which caused heavy losses to apple growers in 2010. According to former MLA from Jubbal Kotkhai and Congress secretary Rohit Thakur,the apple economy of the state suffered a loss of nearly Rs 700 crore due to the poor condition of Theog-Jubbal Hatkoti road in 2010. The issue continues to figure as a hot topic in the daily Assembly proceedings too. Thakur said their next stop would be Rohru.

GNDU exams for UG classes from March 18

AMRITSAR: The annual examinations of under-graduate classes at Guru Nanak Dev University will start from March 18,2011. More than 1.5 lakh student are appearing in the examinations. According to Professor In-Charge (Examinations) Dr R K Bedi,all necessary arrangements had been made and supervisory staff appointed to check the menace of copying at all 300 centres.

Best poster award to GNDU

AMRITSAR: The poster entitled “Sustainable solutions for solid waste management – A Review” by Mandeep Kaur,Rajneet Kour Soodan,Vaneet Kumar,Jatinder Kaur Katnoria and Avinash Nagpal of the Department of Botanical and Environmental Sciences,Guru Nanak Dev University,was adjudged best in a contest held at the one-day UGC-sponsored national seminar on solid waste management held at Lyallpur Khalsa College,Jalandhar.

Rs 1.46 cr CTI for home guards

Shimla: Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal laid the foundation stone for a modern Central Training Institute for Home Guards and Civil Defence at Sargeen,on the Shoghi-Dhalli bypass,on Wednesday. A first of its kind in the state,the institute will cost Rs 1.46 crore.

Bank exec commits suicide

PHAGWARA: An executive with a private bank,committed suicide on Wednesday. According to the police,Amit Handa (31) hanged himself on the ceiling fan in his room. He was reportedly under stress due to pressure from creditors.

Date with ‘Super Moon’ on March 19

JALANDHAR: On March 19,the moon will appear closer by 17,300 miles than the average distance of 238,857 miles from the Earth. This closeness will make the moon appear as brighter than it usually is,and the phenomenon is termed as ‘Super Moon’. The Pushpa Gujral Science City will showcase this celestial event using high magnification telescopes at Science City from 7 to 9 pm.

Conference on challenges for India Inc

PHAGWARA: GNA Institute of Management and Technology organised a one-day national conference on “India Inc: Challenges Ahead”. The focus was on how to make companies nimble-footed as a result of greater integration into the global economy.