MoU signed for scholarships

ISLAMABAD, Sept 30: The Higher Education Commission (HEC) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the University of New Mexico, USA, for a scholarship programme for university scholars pursuing higher studies abroad.

Initially, the School of Engineering at the UNM will enroll Pakistani candidates for an MS course leading to the PhD programme from 2013. Officials at UNM said they were working on expanding the agreement to major disciplines.

Under various scholarship programmes, HEC has awarded over 6,000 foreign scholarships to Pakistani scholars pursuing higher education and research in renowned institutions of 37 countries. — A Reporter

Land scam probe

GUJAR KHAN, Sept 30: Additional deputy commissioner general Rawalpindi Talat Gondal has directed the revenue officials of Gujar Khan to produce the land transaction record of the city from 2001 to 2012 to probe into allegations of forgeries.

According to sources in the revenue department, large-scale forgeries in the land record reported to the higher authorities by the newly-appointed Patwari Chaudhry Jameel have served as an eye opener for the revenue department authorities.

The enquiry committee that is being convened by Mr Gondal has directed the local authorities to produce all the land transaction record.

The committee has also summoned patwaris who served in the area during this period.

According to the sources, the scrutiny of the record already produced by Jameel Patwari not only exposed forgeries aimed at dispossessing the genuine owners but also detected pilferage of revenue to the tune of millions of rupees.

On the other hand, a group of farmers from the Harar village also alleged tampering with the record of their land ownership documents and demanded an investigation. — Correspondent

Dangling electric wires

RAWALPINDI, Sept 30: Un-insulated electric wires dangling over commercial and residential areas in the city pose serious threat to human lives.

A survey conducted by this news agency showed that in most of the congested residential and commercial areas, including Tench Bhatta, People’s Colony, Bakra Mandi, Dhoke Syedan, Misrial Road, Lalkurti, Amarpura, Raja Bazaar, Committee Chowk, Buni, Akalgarh and Motti Bazaar, the electric wires had not appropriately been installed.

“These dangling wires pose serious threats to the residents, especially children,” said Malik Khalid, a resident of People’s Colony.

He said they had submitted several applications to the authorities concerned but to no avail.

The electricity service providers are fully aware of the danger but have turned a blind eye to the problem, said another resident.

The residents of Tench Bhatta said no one had ever bothered to cover or remove the dangling wires.

They demanded that the authorities concerned should take effective measures to rectify the problem in order to avoid any untoward incident. — APP

Revenue through advertising

RAWALPINDI, Sept 30: The Rawal Town Municipal Administration (RTMA) has utilised lamp posts in the garrison city for income generation, as it allows people to put advertisement banners.

It has earned Rs6 million for the fiscal year 2012-13 from 591 lamp posts installed on the main roads including Benazir Bhutto Road, Rawal Road, 6th Road, 5Th Road, Saidpur Road, Satellite Town, Commercial Market, Sadiqabad and others.

While talking to Dawn, Rawal Town Administrator Saif Anwar Jappa said that lamp posts were used to increase the income and it would become the main source of income for the town.

“Total five parties expressed their willingness to take part in the process and the RTMA selected one party. People would be able to install their advertisement banners on the lamp posts on specific size 4 X 6,” he said.

He said that the contractor would pay the rent of the lamp posts to RTMA and advertisement fee to the City District Government Rawalpindi (CDGR).

He said that the contractor would also be responsible of the maintenance of the lamp post. — A Reporter

Sabzi Mandi in poor shape

ISLAMABAD, Sept 30: The unhygienic condition at the capital's only fruit and vegetable market in I-11 sector is causing lots of hardship for the consumers and local residents.

A visit to the market on Sunday showed the apathy of the departments responsible for cleanliness, security, parking and price control.

The market is littered with garbage and rotten vegetables and fruits.

“No proper mechanism for keeping the market clean has been adopted despite the fact that the civic authority has hired a number of employees for this purpose,” said Mazhar Abbas, who visits the market twice a week to purchase fruits and vegetables.

He said the stalls had even occupied the main road, causing hindrance to both motorists and pedestrians.

Rain further aggravates the problem as movement through the mud and garbage becomes impossible.

Another buyer, Ishaq Khan, complained that price lists were not displayed by the vendors.

The district administration and CDA officials said they were striving to improve the hygiene conditions in the market. — APP