Schools asked to mark surgical strike day
The Chandigarh Education Department, on the orders of the Ministry of Human Resource Development, has directed schools to observe Surgical Strike Day on September 28 and 29 by organizing talk sessions and parades. The schools have been told to hold talk sessions by ex-servicemen regarding the armed forces and their duties and the sacrifices made by them in safeguarding the country. The servicemen will also apprise students of the role of the armed forces in disaster management and rescue and relief operations. Parades and a visit to the exhibition will be organized. A special parade will be organized by the NCC units of schools.
DSPs come under DANIPS cadre
The Deputy Superintendents of Police (DSPs) of Chandigarh Police has been merged with the DANIPS cadre, and the new cadre has been renamed as the National Capital of Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Daman and Diu, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Chandigarh (Police Services) Rules 2018. Now the DSPs of the city can be posted in another Union Territory where officers of the DANIPS cadre are serving, as per the notification issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs. But DSPs who will be promoted two years before their retirement will be allowed to stay in Chandigarh.
Segregating waste made mandatory
Chandigarh Municipal Corporation has made it compulsory to segregate household, commercial and institutional waste from October 2, which is the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi and this year marks four years of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. The corporation will levy lifting charges or fine the defaulters in the first two months. From December 2, the charges will be added to water bills. The civic body will impose garbage collection charges ranging from J50 to J250 in residential areas, and J500 to J5,000 in commercial and institutional buildings. It has invited objections by October 12, after which the final rates will be notified. A penalty of J200 has been proposed for households failing to segregate waste.
Monorail to be revived
The Chandigarh Administration has decided to revive the monorail project it shelved in 2006. The project was conceived in 1997. The Adviser to the Administrator, Pradeep Rai, and MP Kiron Kher met the representatives of Swiss transport company Intamin. In 2006, the Union government had rejected the monorail project and told the administration to explore the metro option. Last year, the MHA rejected the metro proposal and asked the administration to look for an alternative transportation system. French company Systra MVA had suggested four modes of public transport for Chandigarh, combining light rail transit, bus rapid transit, and modern tram and monorail systems for three corridors.
300 concrete bus queue shelters to be built
The city is to have 300 concrete bus queue shelters, as about 70 stainless steel shelters built in 2013 at a cost of about J9 crore are to be demolished. The Chandigarh administration is reverting to the old, simple and cost-effective structures. Bids to build the 300 shelters using the random rubble masonry (RRM) technique will be invited shortly. The administration once again approved the old design about a year ago and has constructed a sample shelter in Sector 17. The new concrete shelters can seat seven persons. A present the city has 10 RRM bus shelters and 135 brick-and-mortar shelters. At least half of the 250 shelters across the city are in a dilapidated state.