Inquiry
Shimla: Ram Lal Markanda, Minister of State for Panchayati Raj and Rural Development, said that there was a need to conduct a thorough inquiry into the irregularities allegedly committed in the Thirot Hydel Project of Lahaul Valley so that action could be taken against those found guilty. Markanda was presiding over a meeting to review the working of the various departments at Kdylong yesterday. He said the HRTC would provide 12 more buses to Lahaul valley next year.

Mishap
Nahan: Nardev Singh, driver of truck no. HRX-5192, died on the spot yesterday when his truck rolled down a deep khud on Nahan Shillai road, about 65 km from here. The conductor was seriously injured. Reports received today say the mishap occurred when Singh lost control of the truck while trying to save the life of a cyclist. He belonged to Behral (UP). The district administration has sanctioned Rs 5,000 as immediate relief.

Abohar: Major Singh, a canter driver, was killed in an accident near Kallar Khera village on the Ganganagar-Abohar road. According to the sources, the canter, which was on its way to Ganganagar, had a head on collision killing the driver on the spot and injuring four others.

Dead
Nahan: Paonta police recovered the body of a woman from Badrinagar Chowk yesterday. The woman, Bhagmel, was a mentally ill homeless beggar who had been living in the area for about a year. People said she was from south India and they could not understand her language. The postmortem report says she was suffering from TB and died of cold.

Observed
Una: Free Legal Aid Day was observed in the Himotkarsh Industrial Training Institue (HITI) this morning. Kanwar Hari Singh, president of Himotkarsh Parishad, said that legal literacy had been introduced as one of the subjects in HITI and the parishad will soon set up a free legal aid centre for the poor and needy. H. R. Vashisht, Jt. Secretary Personnel (Rtd) delivered the keynote address on the subject ``Free legal aid for the needy and the weaker sections''.

Development
Sonepat: The Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) has decided to spend Rs 1.5 crore on the development of sector 7, Gohana, in this district. According to official sources, all the roads in this sector would be widened and repaired. The sector would also have a shopping complex.

Sanctioned
Patiala: The Department of Science and Technology has sanctioned a major project for research in the fast emerging field of forensic entomology to Dr Devinder Singh of the Department of Zoology, Punjabi University Patiala, according to a press release issued here today. The release said that earlier Dr Singh was sent to USA for training by the Department of Education, Ministry of Human Resources Development.

Renovation
Amritsar: Shree Durgiana Committee (SDC) Amritsar has appealed to Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal to undertake the renovation of sewerage tunnels around Shree Durgiana Tirath. Secretary SDC Ramesh Talwar said here today that tourists from all over the country visited the temple and the committee had failed to understand why the state government was not taking up the renovation work even after receiving the grant from World Bank for the purpose.

Students should participate in politics
Amritsar: National Students Union of India (NSUI) general secretary Sachin Mehra has asked the students to actively participate in the politics. While addressing a student gathering on Saturdy, Mehra said students had become a political force with 18 years being the voting age and they could play a major role in deciding the future of the country. District president NSUI Gautam Arora, vice-president Maneesh Dhingra and other student leaders also addressed the gathering.

New bus service from Dec
Gurdaspur: To help the commuters, a bus service would be started from Dina Nagar to Taragarh and Kathlore from December. This was announced by Deputy Commissioner S.K. Sandhu while presiding over a khulla darbar held at Khojki Chak village on Friday. He said that four buses had been pressed into service, two each on routes from Pathankot to Bamial and from Pathankot to Narot Jaimal Singh. The DC said that a Pontoon bridge would be laid across river Ravi at Kathlore until and unless a concrete bridge was built there.

Result
B.Com results today
Amritsar: The result of B.Com Part II and -- examinations of the Guru Nanak Dev University held in September 1998 will be declared tomorrow, according to registrar of the university Dr R S Bawa.