The city beautiful Chandigarh will soon become the first city in India, where parking lots will be managed by the women. Around 200 women would be hired and some will be provided by the Urban Poverty Alleviation and Livelihood Cell of the Municipal corporation for this purpose.




Under the Joint initiative of the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation and Arya Toll Infra Limited, a smart parking system will be launched in the second week of June, 2017. The company will be allotted a parking contract. Nearly 25 public parking lots in the different sectors of the city and multi-level parking in Sector 17 will be managed by the women attendants from 7.00am to 9pm. After this men attendants would manage the parking lots. The company also shared that to ensure the safety of the women attendants CCTV cameras are already there in every parking lot. Also the entire staff of their’s would have an internal WhatsApp group and if any attendant faces any issue, she can immediately post it there.

Municipal Commissioner Baldeo Purushartha confirmed the development. The specific date of the launch is yet to be announced. There would be designated pink parking spots in parking areas reserved for women drivers. Arya Toll Infra, which is a Mumbai-based company, was allotted the parking contract for Rs 14.78 crore.




For the last one year, the parking lots have remained without contractors, causing losses to the civic body. The project coordinator shared that the women are able to handle all kinds of situations well and they are good managers. Chandigarh is the best city to start this pilot in the country because it is comparatively safer than other cities. Also, motorists would be able to book parking space in advance through a mobile app which would be launched a day before the new smart parking system starts. The details of all the parking lots and the space available would be available on the app. For example a resident has to go to Sector 17, he can just book his parking space in the nearest parking lot of the sector. Online payments can be made through e-wallets or other facilities provided in the app.

If no parking space is available in the nearest lot, the details of other parking lots would automatically come on the app. A senior officer of the municipal corporation said that before rolling out the new system, all the women attendants would be imparted training that would be held next week.

The parking lots will have designated slots for senior citizens and disabled drivers. There are plans to have a system where slips issued for parking would automatically be generated in the name of the vehicle owner.

India’s largest lender, State Bank of India (SBI) will charge for withdrawal from bank branches and ATMs from June 1, 20017. The banks will also charge for the torn and damaged notes from branches. The government has also decided to exact 5% TDS for those who pay more than Rs 50,000 per month. The money will be deducted at the source. Other financial services will also get dearer.




The first four transactions will be free of cost after which the bank will charge Rs.50 service tax per transaction. From ATMs of other banks, SBI will charge Rs. 20 per transaction. From SBI ATMs, the bank will charge Rs. 10 per transaction. Even the online services will not be free. IMPS, UPI, and IUSSD transactions above Rs 1 lakh will be charged Rs 5. from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 2 lakh, Rs 15 will be charged. And from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 5 lakh, Rs 25 will be charged apart from service tax. If one want to exchange bank notes, money would be charged after the transaction of Rs 5000.

SBI will also charge penalty on keeping low balance in the accounts. For metro cities the minimum balance is Rs.5,000 and Urban & Semi urban areas it will be Rs.3,000 to Rs.1,000.

Blood Donation is something which is considered good for the health and body. After the first 48 hours of blood donation the body of the donor starts replenishing the red blood cells which are lost. This replenishment process keeps the body staying healthy and productive at work. If not planning to donate blood this World Blood Donor Day then start planning as it will help you keep your body healthy. Apart from the fact that it is a noble deed, blood donation is largely recommended by doctors and medical experts for health reasons. If you are donating then you should know that it can be highly beneficial for your health. The theme for this year’s World Blood Donor Day is Give blood. Give now. Give often.




Health Benefits of Blood Donation

Blood Donation Stimulates the development of New Red Blood Cells – Within the first 48 hours of blood donation, the donor’s body starts replenishing the lost red blood cells. The replenishment process helps in staying healthy and productive at work.

Blood Donation helps in improvement in cardiovascular health – According to research, when there is a rise in the iron level in blood, it raises chances of heart diseases. People should donate blood from time to time and particularly men in order to reduce the iron level in the blood. This can lessen the probability of heart attacks by 88%. Regular blood donation lowers the risk of strokes and other severe cardiovascular events by 33%.




Blood Donation helps in Free blood Analysis – On donating blood, the donor receives a free mini health screening and blood tests. His blood pressure, hemoglobin and overall check up is done. Before any blood donation, the candidate is screened for hepatitis, syphilis, HIV and other diseases. In case, the test results turn out to be positive, it is informed immediately and complete confidentiality is maintained. A person found to be suffering from any one of diseases mentioned, he or she is deferred from donating blood on a permanent basis.

Blood Donation Burns Calories – Donating blood can burn approximately 650 calories for each pint that is like 450 ml of blood.

Blood Donation Reduces the probability of Cancer Risks – According to a study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, it is believed that iron increases the free-radical damage which paves way to risks of aging and cancer. People who donate blood from time to time are at lesser risks of cancers of lung, liver, colon, throat and stomach.

Donate Blood! Stay Healthy and Happy!

With just one month left for the roll out of the Goods and Services Tax the businesses in Gujarat, Karnataka and Chandigarh are the most prepared for the new indirect tax system. According to the sources, 92% of the taxpayers have enrolled for GST.




Around 5.50 lakh taxpayers in the Karnataka have enrolled for the Goods and Services Tax. Karnataka is followed by the Gujarat where 5 lakh taxpayers have enrolled for the GST. After which Chandigarh has 16,000 tax payers enrolled for the new tax system. In Andhra Pradesh 88.6% of more than 2.29 lakh taxpayers, Maharashtra 87.80% of more than 8 lakh taxpayers and Tamil Nadu 87.29% of over 6.30 lakh taxpayers. The States that have more than 80 per cent enrolment for the Goods and Tax Services are Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab.

Jammu and Kashmir has only 4.92% of the more than 58,000 taxpayers have enrolled for Arunachal Pradesh and Assam the percentage stands at 28.10% of 5,476 taxpayers and 27.92% of more than 2 lakh taxpayers respectively. Manipur has recorded 45.41% of 3,940 taxpayers, Meghalaya 19.39% of 24,296 taxpayers, Mizoram 37.53% of 2,313 and Nagaland 58.22% of 4,847.




Goods and Services Tax (GST) is a comprehensive indirect tax on manufacture, sale and consumption of goods and services throughout India to replace taxes levied by the central and state governments. It was introduced as The Constitution (One Hundred and First Amendment) Act 2016, following the passage of Constitution 101st Amendment Bill. The GST is governed by GST Council and its Chairman is Union Finance Minister of India – Arun Jaitley.

The goods and services tax (GST) council chaired by finance minister Arun Jaitley has urged states to approve state GST laws by the end of May to smoothen the roll-out of the historic tax reform by its target date of 1st July.

The city gets on high alert against the WannaCry Attack Ransomware Attack. The virus has so far affected more than hundreds of countries, organizations and businesses across the world. It’s high time for the city based companies, government and law enforcement agencies to update their systems to protect their data from the virus attack. The cyber cell of the Chandigarh and Punjab area has issued warnings about this virus attack to the department. But in case someone is attacked by the virus here’s what you need to do about it.




Ransomware Virus

Ransomeware is a programme or malware software that gets into the computer by downloading some link, encrypts its data and locks down the system. The owner cannot access it until he agrees to pay up the ransom of $300 Bitcoins. It is not guaranteed that after paying of the ransom the attacker will let you access your computer.

How to Protect yourself from the WannaCry Attack Ransomware Virus?

Any Windows operating system be it on your laptop/desktop/server/mobile/palmtop/ etc. are vulnerable to WannaCry Ransomware Attack.

Ensure that your Anti Virus is up to date otherwise update it right away for maximum protection.

Completely Ignore the Mails or messages which are carrying some kind of attachment or links for example .exe files. These kind of files are not to be opened strictly.

Download or open the files which are from authentic source.




Immediately create backup of your necessary files over an external hard drive backup device.

Use strong and unique passwords for every service you use. Avoid using same set of passwords everywhere.

Check with your IT administrator to make sure that every computer you use at work is completely protected from the Malware.

In case someone is hit by the the WannaCry Attack Ransomware Virus, the cyber cell of India has urged avoid paying ransom as it will encourage them to get out more ransom from the victims. The analysts have predicted these attacks are more likely to increase in future.

Every Year, Fathers Day is celebrated throughout the world on various days. Most of the countries celebrate this day on the third Sunday of June. This year Father’s day occurs on 18 June, 2018. Fathers day is celebrated to honor the fatherhood, paternal bonds and the male parenting. People across the globe celebrate this day by offering gifts and spending time with their loved dads.




How did Father’s Day begin?

The exact origin has been disputed. Most believe it began with Sonora Dodd, from Washington, who came up with the idea after hearing the Mother’s Day sermon in 1910 and thinking (not without good reason) why the dads didn’t have their own day too. She and her siblings had been raised by their father after their mum died in childbirth. Dodd began a campaign and the rest is history.



Other people argue it was Grace Golden Clayton from West Virginia, who suggested celebrating the day in 1908. She apparently put the suggestion forward after a mine explosion in a nearby town killed more than 360 men – the idea being it was a day for children to remember their fathers.




Celebration of Father’s Day in India

India traditionally has a two-week celebration since ancient days dedicated to celebrate ancestors called the Pitrupaksha. Father’s Day is not celebrated in all parts of India. But is observed on the same day as the USA, the third Sunday of June by mostly westernized urban centers. The event is not a public holiday. The day is usually celebrated only in bigger cities of India like Chennai, Mumbai, New Delhi Bengaluru, Kolkata, Hyderabad and others. After this day was first observed in the United States in 1908 and gradually gained popularity, Indian metropolitan cities, much later, followed suit by recognizing this event. In India, the day is usually celebrated with children giving gifts like greeting cards, electronic gadgets, shirts, coffee mugs or books to their fathers.

The UT Administrator V P Singh Badnore inaugurated the doll museum at Nek Chand Rock Garden Chandigarh. The museum has been inaugurated at the phase 3 of the garden on the second death anniversary of its creator Nek Chand. The museum has 200 rag dolls which are made of waste clothes made by Nek Chand in the 1970. New dolls of the same theme are also included in the museum.




According to sources, MP Kiron Kher, UT Adviser Parimal Rai and UT home secretary Anurag Agarwal also came for the inauguration and to pay homage to Nek Chand’s sculptures where he used to work from.

The Rags Doll Museum appears like a village where the dolls are kept. The village scene depicts the women and men cooking on a chulha and artificial trees and huts are installed. Also, there was a exhibition on Nek Chand and making of the garden. A seminar was also held on which showcased the importance and need to conserve Rock Garden. Rock Garden Society, which manages the beautiful and creative garden was working on rag doll museum, for the past one year. The museum will also display documentaries and short films related to their work, tools, cycle, old pictures, awards and other belongings.

Hundreds of visitors from the tricity came to pay tribute to Nek Chand, who brought the city on the global map with his work. Nek Chand before his death, shared some of his drawings which suggested to expand the garden. He wanted to create a one way path to move out of the beautiful garden. The Nek Chand society shared that it will take more than a year to construct the exit route at the garden. Nek Chand also wanted to construct a small waterfall restaurant there.

Visitors from abroad also came to see the creative work of Nek Chand and were impressed by his work. They suggested that the water in the ponds and waterfalls needs to be cleaned up.