15022021-CT-01.qxd 2/15/2021 12:55 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh TRIBUNE MONDAY | 15 FEBRUARY 2021 | CHANDIGARH VOTER TURNOUT 70.09 PER CENT IN PATIALA CIVIC BODY POLLS PAGE 2 MOST WANTED CRIMINAL WITH ~5,000 BOUNTY IN POLICE NET The voter turnout for civic body elections in Rajpura, Nabha, Samana and Patran recorded at 70.09%. FORECAST MAINLY CLEAR SKY TRICITY COVID REPORT CHD P’KULA MOHALI SAMPLES TESTED 2,34,069 1,72,206 1,92,763 SAMPLES REJECTED 943 — — POSITIVE 21,238 10,666 19,779 NEGATIVE 2,11,888 — 1,72,806 RECOVERED 20,765 10,436 19,012 REPORTS AWAITED 53 — 178 ACTIVE 127 83 390 DEATHS 346 147 377 154 PANCHKULA 197 MOHALI 195 401-500 301-400 201-300 101-200 51-100 0-50 SEVERE VERY POOR POOR MODERATE SATISFACTORY GOOD Candidate of Azad Group demands repolling at 2 booths Mohali, February 14 The Azad Group candidate from Ward No. 10, Paramjeet Singh Kahlon, has lodged a complaint with the State Election Commission against Congress candidate Amarjeet Singh Sidhu. In his complaint, Kahlon alleged that members of Congress, aided by the police, captured the polling booth in Phase VII. He alleged that his election agents for booth number 32 Accuses Cong of capturing station in Ward No. 10 and 33, Punjab Singh Kand and Rajinder Pal Singh, respectively, were forcefully and illegally evicted by the police on the directions of a senior police officer. The complainant alleged that Congress leader Devinder Singh Babla from Chandigarh was illegally allowed inside booth number 32. However, Babla said he had come to support the Congress candidate and had not entered any polling booth. Kahlon urged the State Election Commissioner to order repolling in the two booths of Ward No. 10. — TNS Returning of ~72L cheques Mayor to get matter probed Tribune News Service Chandigarh, February 14 Mayor Ravi Kant Sharma today said the matter related with the MC returning cheques for ~72 lakh to an advertisement agency would be investigated. The OSD of the civic body had granted permission for displaying ads on a mobile van and later returned cheques for ~72 lakh received for the purpose. The matter was highlighted in Chandigarh Tribune. “I will get the approval checked and ascertain under what norms was the offer rejected,” the Mayor told Chandigarh Tribune. The advertisement agency had given ~72 lakh in the form of two cheques after getting the permission from the civic body. However, the MC later returned the cheques without giving any proper reason. It had cited some “administrative reasons” for this. The firm had planned to start 10 such vans in two months. It would have fetched the MC about ~8-9 crore. A van carrying ads was to be stationed at a parking lot. UT consumer panel directs firm to pay ~25,000 relief to a consumer for causing mental agony, harassment. SUNRISE TUESDAY 7.02 AM TWITTER/THETRIBUNECHD FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE 60% polling inMohali district Banur council witnesses highest turnout at 77.91 pc| Zirakpur lowest at 55.53 pc CIVIC BODY POLL Tribune News Service CHANDIGARH SUNSET MONDAY 6.11 PM PAGE 3 INSTALLING DEFECTIVE SOLAR PANEL COSTS COMPANY DEAR The Crime Branch of Panchkula police arrests a Dhakoli resident in two cases of snatching that took place last year. MAX 25°C | MIN 10°C | YESTERDAY MAX 25°C | MIN 9.8°C Sanjay Bumbroo AIR QUALITY INDEX PAGE 3 Mohali, February 14 About 60 per cent polling was witnessed in the elections to the Mohali MC and seven municipal councils in the district today. Of a total of 4,78,503 electorate, 2,87,479 voters (1,51,034 men, 1,36,444 women and one transgender) exercised their franchise in the district. In Mohali MC, 56 per cent polling was witnessed this year compared to 61 per cent in 2015, showing a decline of 5 pc. In Mohali, of a total 1,05,229 voters, 57,881 voters exercised their franchise. District Election Officer Girish Dayalan said voting for the Mohali MC and seven Municipal Councils in the district was conducted peacefully and smoothly. He said enthusiasm was witnessed among voters at Banur which saw 77.91 per cent polling, followed by Lalru with 75.91 per cent. In Kurali, 69.24 per cent polling was witnessed while in Nayagaon 65.90 per cent votes were polled. At Kharar, only 58 per cent voters cast their vote. At Dera Bassi, 65.69 per cent voters exercised their right to franchise while at Zirakpur, the turnout was 55.53 per cent. While praising the entire polling staff for performing their duty very well, he thanked the people of the district and all political parties for their cooperation. The polling began on a slow note. But as the day progressed, the voting percentage increased across the district. After the polling began at 8 am, only 12.5 per cent voting was witnessed till 10 am in the Mohali Municipal Corporation. It was 13 per cent at Kurali, 12 per cent at Zirakpur, 19.69 per cent at Lalru, 14.48 DIST FIGURES ELECTORATE 4,78,503 77.91% 80 AREA-WISE BREAK-UP 75.91% 70 VOTES CAST 2,87,479 1,51,034 MEN | 1,36,444 WOMEN | 1 TRANSGENDER 60 69.24% 65.90% 56% 65.69% 58% 55.53% 50 Mohali (MC) Banur Lalru Kurali Nayagaon Kharar Dera Bassi Zirakpur Policemen in action after a clash between workers of the BJP and the Congress at Ward No. 12, Dera Bassi, on Sunday. NITIN MITTAL BJP leader, 3 others hurt in clashes at Dera Bassi Dera Bassi, February 14 Four persons, including the BJP candidate from Ward No. 12 of the local Municipal Council, Mukesh Gandhi, were injured in clashes during polling here today. Gandhi alleged that Congress candidate Lakhwinder Singh Lucky and his 40-50 supporters attacked him around 3.30 pm. Gandhi’s supporters and a few residents alleged that there was an attempt to capture the booth, which they resisted resulting in the attack. Lucky, however, denied all charges levelled Voters stand in a queue at a polling station in Sohana village, Mohali district, on Sunday. TRIBUNE PHOTOS: VICKY SPECIALLY ABLED LEFT IN THE LURCH In Ward No. 33 of Sohana, specially abled people had to face problems as there was no wheelchair. The family members had to carry them on their shoulders to the polling booth. LONG QUEUES IN WARD NO. 1 OF MOHALI MC A long queue was witnessed in Ward No. 1 of the Mohali MC and voters had to wait from 45 minutes to an hour to cast their votes. Surinder Kaur said she had to wait for about 50 minutes in a queue before she could cast her vote. The Residents Welfare Society of the same ward had started a community kitchen to encourage voters to come out of their houses and exercise their right to franchise. Relatives carry an elderly woman to a polling booth at Ward No. 33 in Mohali on Sunday. per cent at Dera Bassi, 17 per cent at Nayagaon and 15 per cent at Banur. At about 12 noon, the polling picked up to 26.5 per cent in Mohali , 31 per cent at Banur, 35.2 per cent at Kurali, 22 per cent at Kharar, 35 per cent at Nayagaon, 42.35 per cent at Lalru, 31. 24 per cent at Dera Bassi and 23 per cent at Zirakpur. After two hours at 2 pm, 15 per cent increase in polling was witnessed in the Mohali MC taking the total voting percentage to 41.5 per cent. Chandigarh, February 14 A man reportedly committed suicide at his house in Khuda Ali Sher today evening. The victim has been identified as Wajid Khan. He was alone in his house as members of his family had gone to attend a wedding in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh. The police said the information about the incident The victim’s family had gone to UP when he took the extreme step was received at 3.40 pm. When the cops reached the spot, the victim was already taken to the GMSH, Sector 16, in a private vehicle. The police said the victim’s wife, Yashmin, had called her father-in-law, Murtza, to inform that her husband was going to commit suicide. On getting the information, victim’s brothers Mubarik Khan and Mohsin Khan reached Khuda Ali Sher, but Wajid had already committed suicide by hanging himself. He was rushed to the hospital where doctors declared him brought dead. Inquest proceedings have been initiated by the police. Mohali, February 14 To encourage residents to cast their vote in the Municipal Corporation elections, a bridegroom from Ward No. 4 today exercised his franchise on the day of his wedding. The poll staff at booth number 12 in the ward were taken aback as bridegroom Baljeet Singh, along with his parents, arrived there to cast his vote in the morning. He phoned his fiancee and asked her to vote first and then come for the wedding. He was dressed in silvercoloured sherwani paired with a violet turban. Baljeet Continued on page 3 Rosy affair Youngsters with red roses at Sukhna Lake in Chandigarh on Sunday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: PRADEEP TEWARI c m y b Sandeep Rana Chandigarh, February 14 Only 147 door-to-door waste collectors out of 609 enrolled with the Municipal Corporation are deployed on garbagelifting vehicles in the city. According to the MC, 1,342 garbage collectors are operating in the city. The MC procured the figure from its chief sanitary inspectors on February 2. Despite several notices, the remaining collectors, who are operating carts, have not registered with the MC to work as helper or driver on its vehicles. Now, the corporation is forced to think of hiring manpower through outsourcing. The agenda regarding its approval will be taken up in the House meeting on Monday. The House will also discuss the MoU to being signed with the collectors. If the plans of the civic body get a go-ahead from the House, several collectors, who are not ready to work under the MC, may be rendered jobless. The corporation started the waste collection in Sector 130 through its vehicles replacing the system of existing carts. The civic body would collect monthly fee ❞ Gurbakshish Singh Mann, DERA BASSI DSP against him by Gandhi. The police later apprehended unidentified youths from Continued on page 3 Tribune News Service collectors use MC vehicles Tribune News Service Dera Bassi. Two or three persons have been injured. They have gone for CT scans. Therefore, their statements could not be recorded. Groom casts vote before leaving for wedding venue Khuda Ali Sher man kills self Only 25% enrolled garbage Tribune News Service As of ❝beennow, no case has registered at Of the 1,342 door-to-door waste collectors, 609 registered with civic body Baljeet Singh at a polling booth in Mohali to cast his vote. Woman succumbs, 18 infected in city CHANDIGARH: The city on Sunday reported one death and 18 new cases of Covid, taking the toll to 346 and tally to 21,238. A 54-year-old woman from Sector 56, a case of type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension, coronary artery disease and cerebral artery infarct, breathed her last at the PGI. A total of 13 more patients have recovered. —TNS No death, 20 test positive in Mohali MOHALI: Twenty fresh cases of In the first phase, the Municipal Corporation started door-to-door waste collection in Sector 1-30. FILE PHOTO from the houses through 150 POS machines. Subsequently, in the second phase, more sectors will be covered by the MC. Thus, the collectors operating there earlier will too have the option either to work in the corporation or leave the work. A collectors’ union, led by Shamsher Lotiya, has been protesting outside the MC building since the civic body started its first phase of col- lecting garbage through its vehicles. “We want the existing system of garbage collection through carts to continue and collectors should be allowed to collect monthly charges,” Lotiya said. Another union, led by OP Saini, earlier met Mayor Ravi Kant Sharma and claimed to have agreed to the MC stand. However, the consensus is yet to translate into registrations of collectors. Covid-19 surfaced in the district during the past 24 hours, taking the tally to 19,779. Meanwhile, 19 more patients were cured of the disease. No fresh fatality was reported in the district till Sunday evening, keeping the toll at 377. So far, 19,012 patients have been cured. — TNS Eight new cases in Panchkula PANCHKULA: The district reported eight fresh cases of coronavirus on Sunday, taking the overall tally to 10,666. With no new fatality, the Covid toll remained 147. While 10,436 patients have recovered from the disease so far, 83 cases are still active. The recovery rate stands at 97.84 per cent. — TNS