Single emergency helpline
Soon a single emergency helpline number 112 will be launched in the city for police, ambulance and fires services. People in distress will have to dial the number. A control room is being set-up at the Chandigarh Police headquarters’ in Sector 9 where round-the-clock around 20 trained police personnel will be deployed to take these calls. The number of personnel can be increased later.
This number will also be displayed in police stations, on police control room vehicles, ambulances and fire brigades. At present, there are three numbers — 100 for police, 101 for the fire brigade and 102 for the ambulance. It will also be linked to the panic button on mobile phones and the location of the caller will be tracked and shared with the nearest emergency vehicle.
Sprucing up the city
A private company has started work on cleaning important government buildings such as the library, town hall and 30 bays in Sector 17 as part of the plan to rejuvenate the heart of the city. A nine-month deadline has been given to this company to complete this pilot project and D1.80 crore has been allotted to it. It is not just cleaning but also painting and strengthening of the buildings that are underway. Also, the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation has challaned 200 people for littering and using plastic in the last 10 days. It has also collected D12 lakh fine. Those found littering have been fined D10,000 and violators who have used plastic D5,000.
Arts made compulsory in school
The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has directed all schools to make arts compulsory from classes I to X for the upcoming academic session. Now, all schools will have to reserve a minimum of two periods per week for the subject, which includes music, dance, theatre and visual arts. The subject will be a part of the curriculum but will be integrated with the teaching and learning process of all academic subjects up to Class XII. The students will be evaluated on the basis of internal assessment and there will be no examination for the subject.
Hike in school bus fare
School bus fees in the city have been hiked by D1,200 per child per year from April as the Chandigarh School Bus Operators’ Welfare Association has proposed a hike of D100 per child per month. They have cited hike in fuel prices for the hike in fees. In September last year, the prices were hiked by D600 per child annually. At present, the bus fare hike is between D1,300 and D1,500 per child per month depending on the distance. Children who are picked-up from Panchkula or Mohali are charged D2,000 per month. The bus fare has been hiked by over 8 per cent in every academic session.