Chandigarh Beat

Pros and cons
Rehri-phari owners at the Sector 22 Sonia Gandhi Market produced a stand-in for the mayor last week when they demonstrated against the Municipal Corporation. Here8217;s the photo they sent, identifying the proxy as the four-legged fellow in the centre with a garland round his neck and a poster over his head.

The protesters8217; intention was, of course, to make an unflattering comparison but Mehitabel urges mayor Gian Chand to look on the bright side. Donkeys may not be highly intelligent but they have a remarkable capacity for hard work on poor rations; they are also uncomplaining and unpretentious.

Palsora perfume
To say that the Palsora road looks like it8217;s been nuked is an exaggeration but, according to commuters who daily venture along the highway, the road could easily pass for a enemy target that has been strafed. The craters get wider and deeper with each passing day and there is no sign that the MC repair crew intends to carry out even patchwork, much less proper resurfacing.

The road8217;s other distinction is quot;aromaticquot;. Piles of cowdung on both sides of the road at close intervals make a trip to or from Mohali an unforgettable experience. The offices of the SDM and PUDA are located near this road so of course the employees at these places get the full benefit. This is what is called quot;fresh country airquot;. Breath deep, babus!Errors in uniform
A fan of the the Zee TV Hum Paanch serial called up the newsroom last week fuming over the liberties taken with Army ranks and insignia. A character in the who is supposed to be an Army major was shown wearing the the ranks of a lieutenant colonel most noticeably red collar tabs which majors may not wear.

Fax-finding
Every Tom, Dick and Harry has a fax these days so why doesn8217;t the Telecom Department issue a fax directory apart from the telephone directory? True, many fax machines in the city are used without prior permission of the department, but at least the legal ones can be listed 8212; especially those of prominent government offices, the hospitals and the police.

Sudden death
The Sector 32 Government Medical College and Hospital faced a harrowing time last week when eight telephone lines, including fax lines, were disconnected by the Telecom Department for quot;nonpayment of duesquot;.

Medical College authorities shot back a letter to the DoT stating that the they had paid all the bills and had not defaulted in any respect to the telephones.

Disconnecting phones of an institute which runs emergency services is something which the DoT should have avoided, and more so in the event of the institute having paid all bills.

Moreover, the disconnection took place without any warning or even the courtesy telephone call from the DoT 8212; but expecting that would be asking for too much.

Cheaters never win
An old adage says that everybody is fond of holidays and copying. But the dictum doesn8217;t seem to apply to students of PU8217;s Mathematics Department. Yes, this is the same department where the question paper was leaked.The students are upset at the paper leakage and, surprisingly, do not want any leakages. quot;We want to study and secure marks and not merely solve leaked papers,quot; was the consensus among students the day the paper was leaked. This could come as shocking news for those who think that students are looking for the easiest way out.

An interesting aftermath of the leakage issue has been the politicisation which accompanied the publication of the news. Both nervousness and glee was visible after the report came out.

While some point an accusing finger at the Examination Branch, others point the finger toward the department. Meanwhile recent actions of at least some prominent officials suggest that a cover up is being attempted to deflect the blame.

An inquiry committee has meanwhile commenced work. All those who are privy to information about paper leakage are welcome, say the inquiry official. Identities of all those who reveal information will be kept secret and in no case will confidentiality be breached.

Students appearing in the Master of Finance and Control examination at the DAV college centre number three had an unusual experience on Wednesday. Students sitting in one of the examination halls were given the question paper but no answer sheets. The answer sheets turned up a full 45 minutes after the exam started.

When they complained, the considerate authorities allowed them additional 45 minutes so that they could make up for the lost time.

A-a-a-a-a-ugh!
And here8217;s another quot;testingquot; experience 8230; A young man received his roll number for the Common Entrance Test being conducted by the Punjab Technical University, Jalandhar. His roll number mentioned that he was to appear at a particular examination centre at Panchkula.

On reaching the examination centre, he discovered to his dismay that his roll number did not figure in the seating arrangement made at the centre. Following repeated pleas, he was allowed to appear in the examination.

But then another problem cropped up8230; the centre had no question paper and answer sheet for the student. This was arranged, but more problems were to follow. In each of the three papers he took that day, he was made to sign numerous documents and state his address and other particulars. And all this was done at the cost of the time which the student would have spent on writing his exams. To add to all this an invigilator stated, quot;Ultimately your candidature is likely to be cancelled, because you have not appeared at the examination centre where you were supposed to appearquot;.

Now that the examination is over, the words of the invigilator continue to daunt him. Are the authorities listening?

Observed 8230;
Time: 10 p.m. Place: Sector 17. Two policemen demand and get quot;complimentaryquot; ice creams from a vendor. After a few licks, they find the flavour not to their liking and tell the vendor to give them something else. When the poor vendor refuses to hand out another round of treats, he is ordered to leave the place. Surely this is a lesson in the price of doing business.

Time 12:30 p.m. Place: road in front of the Sector 34 gurdwara. With the red light on its roof glowing, a Gypsy bearing registration number PB-16-0099, races down the empty road at high speed, makes a two-wheel turn and races back only to turn again and make another pass down the road. The four young men in the vehicle were obviously having a jolly time. At that hour, they were not exactly disturbing anyone but then are government vehicles meant for such shennanigans?

Take a close look at your CD before you sip,quot; cautions Puneet Singh of Panchkula8217;s Sector 12. Puneet should know he found a fly floating in his Pepsi last week. He says he tried unsuccessfully to complain to the bottling company but so far the only thing he8217;s got is a bad taste in the mouth.

Next they8217;ll pay you
A fortnight back Mehitabel reported that a cable connection was costing Rs 33 in a part of Sector 15. Well, now it8217;s down to 8212; hold your breath 8211;308230;208230;108230;0. Yes, you watch all the channels and pay nothing to the operator. How right are economists in saying that competition ensures the best of services at most reasonable prices. The reason, however, which the company is offering is difficult to comprehend. The strip advertisement being run frequently on Siti Cable reads: quot;Due to maintenance Raj Communications introduces free cable connections to their subscribers.quot;

A water-melon seller surprised a colleague when he said he almost prays that more and more people in the City should buy cars. Why?

quot;Sahib, with so many people having cars, we8217;re selling even the heaviest melons. Some people even take away more than one melon. We owe a lot to these cars,quot; the tarbooz-wallah retorted.

No life without wife
A UT official8217;s working wife has been transferred to the city which is obviously a source of happiness for the couple. But the official8217;s staff is no less elated. quot;It has made a lot of difference. Earlier, office was his second home. Now at least he doesn8217;t sit too much beyond the office hours,quot; said an employee of the department.

Through their paces
When the Advisor to the UT Administrator Jagdish Sagar visited Daddu Majra colony a few days back, he walked so rapidly that many had to struggle to keep pace with him. One heard many comments on the Advisor8217;s quot;racingquot; strides. But a sub-divisional magistrate may have had a different reason to lag behind. Every time, the Advisor would stop at a place to listen to people, he had to yell for the official. quot;You are supposed to be around,quot; he told him. The official still couldn8217;t really match steps with the advisor.

Forest fire
Smoking is injurious not only to health, but also to trees. Around noon on Saturday, dense black smoke engulfed the field adjoining Ankur School on the Panjab University campus as a grove went up in flames.

Cause: A smouldering bidi had been carelessly thrown by some negligent passerby. It took three fire tenders nearly half an hour to bring the fire under control. The Express photographer caught them in action and the resulting snap accompanies this edition of Cityscape.