In brief

Modi College staff seek implementation of revised payscales
Responding to a call given by the Punjab and Chandigarh Non-Teaching Employees’ Union against the non-implementation of the 5th Pay Commission recommendations,a daylong strike was observed and a dharna in front of the principal’s office was staged in Modi College. Vinod Sharma,press secretary,Modi College Non-Teaching Employees’ Union,said that they were disappointed with the step-motherly attitude of the Punjab government towards non-teaching employees of private colleges.

273 examined at health camp
Chandigarh: As many as 273 patients were examined at a free health check up camp held by Surya Healthcare’s initiative,the Pharmacy Retail Chain division of Surya Pharmaceuticals,on Monday. Patients underwent free health tests such as blood sugar levels,blood pressure,body mass index (BMI) and dental check-up. They were also offered free consultations by dental physician,cardiologist,dialectologist,orthopedician and general consultation detailed Hari Om Bhatia,President,Corporate Finance and Head Retail.

Dentist Dr Vivek Gupta examined the patients suffering from dental problems and laid emphasis on proper cleaning of teeth i.e. brushing them twice a day and ensuring intake of healthy food for healthy teeth.

120 donate blood at camp
Chandigarh: A blood donation camp at DAV College,Sector 10,was organised by the NSS unit of the college in collaboration with the State Bank of India,Medical Institute,Chandigarh,to mark the honour of G P Chopra,President,DAV College Managing Committee,New Delhi,for being bestowed with Padma Bhushan. The students both boys and girls participated in the blood donation camp with great enthusiasm. About 120 units of blood were collected under the motivation and inspiration of Principal Dr B C Josan. Meanwhile, A blood donation camp was organised by the NSS unit of DAV College on the campus on Monday. The camp,which was held in association with the State Bank of India,Medical Institute Branch,saw the SBI staff and students donate blood. A second camp was also held at Government College,Sector 11. Over 200 donors donated blood in both the camps.

2 die in separate incidents
ZIRAKPUR: Two youths died in separate mishaps that took place in Zirakpur and Lalru during the last 24 hours,the police said. In the first incident,Parmod (20),resident of Industrial Area,Phase-1,Chandigarh,was found dead in AKM Marriage Palace,where he had gone to work as a waiter. According to the police,some of the cleaners noticed Parmod lying unconscious in the palace on Monday morning. He was taken to Civil Hospital,Dera Bassi,where he was declared dead on arrival. The deceased had probably died due to excessive consumption of alcohol,said the police. In another accident,Rahul (20),resident of Lalru village,lost his life after he was mowed down by a running train near Dappar railway crossing at Lalru late on Sunday night. According to Lalru Railway Police in-charge Ranjeet Singh,the victim was found dead near the railway crossing. The bodies of both the deceased were handed over to their respective families after conducting postmortem examinations and initiating inquest proceedings under Section 174 of CrPC.

City to host Whips Conference
Chandigarh: The Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs is organizing 15th All-India Whips Conference on February 10 and 11 in collaboration with the Punjab Government. The conference would be inaugurated by Punjab Governor and UT Administrator Shivraj Patil. A discussion would be held on matters of mutual interest on the subjects concerning functioning of Parliament and state legislatures.

Janta Dal (U) to protest price rise
Chandigarh: Ranjit Singh Dhaliwal,general secretary of Punjab unit of Janta Dal (U) in a statement issued today said the central government had failed to control the rising prices of essential commodities. The party would hold a protest and submit a memorandum with the Punjab Governor and UT Administrator Shivraj Patil on February 10.

Mid-day meal workers to submit memorandum to CM
Ambala: Agitated over the government’s move to hand over the midday meal scheme to private contractors,the Midday Workers held an emergency meeting at Naraingarh on Monday. The meeting was presided over by union secretary Raj Kumar. The meeting regretted that the government instead of regularizing workers — mostly widows,handicapped,poor and SC/BC members,were being threatened of losing their jobs. They said they will soon submit a memorandum to the chief minister.

Teachers hold protest in Ambala
Ambala: Guest teachers under the banner of Government Guest Teachers’ Union staged dharna in front of the office of deputy commissioner in support of their demands. The main demands included the regularisation of the teachers whose number was over 17,000 in the state,payment of salaries according to pay commission report . Dharna was led by union president Shashi Bhshan Shastri and general secretary Jitender.

29,894 children immunised against polio
Chandigarh: As many as 29,894 children were vaccinated on the second day of the Pulse Polio Immunization Campaign. The deputed teams visited all the houses in the city and vaccinated those children who could not reach the booths yesterday. The house-to-house activity was successfully conducted by the Health teams comprising health officials,students,teachers and volunteers.