04042021-CT-01.qxd 4/4/2021 12:56 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh TRIBUNE SUNDAY | 4 APRIL 2021 | CHANDIGARH FIRE AT BIR GHAGGAR FOREST AREA IN PANCHKULA DISTRICT It takes firemen two hours to control the fire that broke out in the forest area at Bir Ghaggar in Panchkula. FORECAST GENERALLY CLOUDY TRICITY COVID REPORT CHD SAMPLES TESTED POSITIVE RECOVERED NEW CASES ACTIVE CHANGE DEATHS NEW P’KULA 3,18,451 27,853 24,309 310 3,162 64 382 1 MOHALI 2,21,625 2,46,657 13,453 27,881 12,266 23,910 82 360 1,033 3,529 5 115 154 442 0 2 PAGE 3 PAGE 3 PATRAN MAN THROWS WIFE OUT OF MOVING CAR, BOOKED Patiala police book a man, Sandeep Kumar of Patran, for throwing his estranged wife out of a moving car. MAX 35°C | MIN 15°C | YESTERDAY MAX 32.8°C | MIN 12.3°C SUNSET SUNDAY 6.43 PM Ishaan registers 21-8 21-8 victory over Agastya to clinch the boys’ U-17 title at Tau Devi Lal Stadium. SUNRISE MONDAY 6.07 AM At 310,UTsingle-day case increase at six-month high CHANDIGARH 98 PANCHKULA 101 MOHALI 117 401-500 301-400 201-300 101-200 51-100 0-50 SEVERE VERY POOR POOR MODERATE SATISFACTORY GOOD INBRIEF FOUR-WHEELER, MOBIKE STOLEN Chandigarh: A Sector 63 resident, Mukesh Guleria, reported that an unknown person stole his bike from the parking area near his house on the night of April 1. A Sector 23 resident reported that an unknown person stole his car parked near an underconstruction building in Sector 9 here on April 2. Cases have been registered in connection with the two incidents. TNS THEFT AT HOUSE IN MANI MAJRA Chandigarh: A Mani Majra resident, Anil Kumar, reported that an unknown person stole one LED TV, an iron, two bathroom taps and a mobile phone from his house on April 2. A case under Section 380 of the IPC has been registered at the Mani Majra police station. TNS Chandigarh, April 3 The city today recorded 310 fresh cases of Covid-19, which is the highest since mid-September last year. The active caseload is 3,162, the second highest after September 16 when the UT had 3,171 active cases. The city started witnessing a rise in cases on August 17 with 114 single-day cases and reached the peak on September 13 with 449 cases. During this period of 28 days, 5,775 cases were recorded. After September 13, a declining trend was seen in the past two weeks of the month. On September 16, the case doubling time was 19 days in Chandigarh. The doubling time is the number of days required for the cases in an epidemic to double, based on the rate of the cumulative increase in the number of cases. With 5,615 cases having been recorded since March 6, the second surge is of the same magnitude as of the first wave. Dr Rajesh Kumar, former head of School of Community Medicine and Public Health, PGI, said, “The cas- Active caseload second highest since the pandemic struck A man aged above 45 gets the Covid-19 vaccine at a community centre in Sector 23, Chandigarh, on Saturday. PHOTO: PRADEEP TEWARI ONE DEATH IN CITY The city recorded one Covid-induced death on Saturday, taking the toll to 382. With 310 fresh cases, the UT case tally reached 27,853. A total of 191 patients were cured of the disease in the past 24 hours. es are expected to rise in the days to come and it is quite possible that the second wave turns out to be more infectious.” The month of March has seen around 5,000 cases against 845 cases seen in February. To prevent the further spread of Covid in the city, a three-member Central team laid emphasis on contact tracing and enhancing vaccination. At 14 per cent, the weekly positivity rate of the city is still the second highest in the country after Maharashtra. more infectious and virulent and could send more people to hospitals with moderate to severe disease. All should follow Covidappropriate behaviour, wear a mask, observe social distancing, avoid crowding and wash hands regularly. People should get themselves vaccinated. It will protect them from severe illness.” Over 4,000 more take the shot in the city As many as 4,203 doses of the Covid vaccine were administered in the city today. So far, 75,228 first doses and 13,071 second doses have been given to beneficiaries in the city. FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE Sanjay Bumbroo Tribune News Service PRESENT WAVE MORE INFECTIOUS, SAYS UT HEALTH DEPT An advisory issued by the UT Health Department on Saturday read, “There is a steady increase in Covid cases. In the past 10 days, the city saw an average of over 250 cases a day. It has been observed that the present wave is TWITTER/THETRIBUNECHD Vaccination: Mohali to get 3 more mobile units Tribune News Service AIR QUALITY INDEX PAGE 3 ISHAAN DEFEATS AGASTYA TO WIN U-17 BADMINTON TITLE A health worker takes a sample for the Covid test at the Civil Hospital in Panchkula. NITIN MITTAL 82 test+ve in P’kula PANCHKULA: At least six healthcare workers were among 82 fresh coronavirus cases reported from Panchkula on Saturday. The fresh cases took the overall tally to 13,453 and active caseload to 1,033. The toll remained at 154. As many as 12,266 patients have been cured of the disease. The district recovery rate is 91.17 per cent. — TNS Over 3K given vaccine PANCHKULA: As many as 3,093 persons were administered the Covid-19 vaccine at 35 sites in the district on Saturday. Among the total beneficiaries, 1,697 were in the age group of 45 to 59 years and 930 above 60 years of age, 169 were health workers and 297 frontline workers. Over 73,000 doses of the vaccine have been administered in the district so far. — TNS Mohali, April 3 Buoyed by the response to mobile Covid vaccination centres, the district health authorities have decided to increase the number of these centres from four to seven to target the maximum number of residents. At present, there are four mobile Covid vaccination centres that visit various societies and colonies daily to administer the Covid vaccine to people in three sub-divisions - Mohali, Kharar and Dera Bassi - of the district. Three mobile vaccination centres are operating in the Mohali sub-division alone. Civil Surgeon Dr Adarshpal Kaur said in view of the good response to the mobile vaccination centres, they had decided to add three more centres from Monday onwards. She said 1,126 persons aged between 45 and 59 years were given the Covid vaccine on Saturday, showing over 50 per cent increase in the past ‘WILL BE AVAILABLE FROM MONDAY’ Civil Surgeon Dr Adarshpal Kaur said in view of the good response to the mobile vaccination centres, they had decided to add three more centres from Monday onwards. There are 55 static vaccination centres in government healthcare establishments, besides private hospitals. Now, they would be able to cover more people under the vaccination drive. two days. A total of 6,751 persons in this category got the first dose till date. As many as 953 persons aged 60 years and above were given the Covid vaccine today, taking the total number to 23,969. The Civil Surgeon said 9,699 healthcare workers got the first dose of the vaccine, while 4,207 received the second dose. Similarly, 10,892 frontline workers got the first dose of the vaccine and 2,745 got the second dose till date. Mohali sees 360 cases, 2 deaths MOHALI: Two more persons suc- cumbed to Covid-19 during the past 24 hours, taking the district toll to 442. Meanwhile, the district witnessed 360 fresh cases till Saturday evening, while 243 patients were cured of the disease. Among the new cases, 248 were from Mohali (urban), four from Gharuan, six from Lalru, 12 from Kurali, 17 from Kharar, 25 from Dera Bassi and 48 from Dhakoli area of Zirakpur. — TNS UT plans to map households with members aged above 45 Chandigarh, April 3 The UT Health Department is planning to map all households with people above 45 years in an attempt to motivate the priority groups to come forward for Covid-19 vaccination. As per the plan, auxiliary nurse midwives (ANMs) will visit every household to identify reasons behind poor vaccination coverage, their choice of vaccine (if any) and 10-YR-OLD BOY GOES MISSING Chandigarh: A Sector 52 resident reported that her 10year-old son has been missing from home since April 2. A case under Section 363 of the IPC has been registered at the Sector 36 police station. TNS the apprehensions related to the vaccine among the general public. The move is aimed at motivating people to come forward for vaccination and allay their fears. Dr Amandeep Kaur Kang, Director Health Services, Chandigarh, said ANMs were going to carry a household survey as part of the Covid-19 vaccination drive. ANMs would urge the priority groups to get vaccinated against coronavirus. “Vaccination is the key to break the chain of Covid-19 transmission. Post-vaccination, the severity of the disease will remain low and it will lead to less mortality among Covid patients,” said Dr Kang. Till now, 75,228 people have been administered the first dose, while 13,071 people have received the second dose of the vaccine in the city. Around 47.07 per cent healthcare workers are yet to be vaccinated, while 39.94 per cent frontline workers have not come forward for vaccination. People above 60 years of age have received more Covid jabs than any other priority group. Till date, 33,701 persons above the age of 60 have received the first dose of the vaccine (Covishield) in the city. — TNS Bid to motivate priority groups to come forward for vaccination ABOUT THE MOVE As per the plan, auxiliary nurse midwives will visit every household to identify reasons behind poor vaccination coverage, their choice of vaccine (if any) and the apprehensions related to the vaccine among the general public. The move is aimed at motivating people to come forward for vaccination and allay their fears. Encroachers sit pretty in Mayor’s ward 13-yr-old boy slips into choe, drowns Sandeep Rana Chandigarh, April 3 A 13-year-old boy died after falling into the Sukhna Choe near Kishangarh here on Saturday afternoon. The victim has been identified as Sumit, son of Ajay and a resident of Surajpur. He had come to his uncle’s home in Mani Majra on vacations. The Class VII student, along with his two friends, was standing near the regulatory end of the 20-footdeep choe when he slipped and fell into it. The police reportedly received the distress call around 12:44 pm Tribune News Service Chandigarh, April 3 A market in Mayor Ravi Kant Sharma’s ward is full of encroachers. Despite the fact that the local Municipal Corporation has permitted only 107 registered vendors to operate from the Sector 22 market, their number has swelled to more than double in reality. Earlier, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had ordered removal of all encroachments from the walkways, corridors and open spaces in front of the booths, shops and showrooms. After a few days of the court order, the MC and the police had in 2019 showed strictness for a few days, but things are again back to square one. During a visit to the market, it was seen the whole area around Shastri Market and shops/showrooms near Kiran cinema in Sector 22 was full of hawkers, vendors and squatters. Not only it has left little space for people to walk, but also threw Covid norms to the wind. Due to a large number of vendors there is no social distancing. “This market falls in the ward of a councillor, who is also the city Mayor. The market should have been an example for others in Unregistered vendors outside the Shastri Market in Sector 22, Chandigarh, on Saturday. COVID-APPROPRIATE BEHAVIOUR GOES FOR A TOSS At a time when there is a heightened risk of Covid, social distancing due to a large-scale encroachment in the Sector 22 market has become difficult. Besides, many vendors, shop owners and even visitors are spotted without mask, which increases the risk of virus transmission in the crowded market. << Shopkeepers without mask flout the Covid norms at the market. TRIBUNE PHOTOS: PRADEEP TEWARI implementation of the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act. On the contrary, there are unauthorised vendors all around,” said Kulbir Singh, president of the Sector 22 Shastri Market Traders’ Association. “Even vendors registered to operate from Sector 15 are coming here. Besides, there are unregistered vendors. Some showroom owners have given them space outside their premises on a daily rent basis. It is government’s land, which is being misused. Everybody here knows it is happening with the connivance of officials,” alleged the owner of a shop at Shastri Market, preferring anonymity. Parking lots, corridors, areas in front of shops and open spaces have been massively encroached upon. When contacted, Mayor Ravi Kant Sharma said, “It has come to my knowledge and we will take strict action.” c m y b The body being fished out of the Sukhna Choe on Saturday. and rushed to the spot for the rescue operation. Later, officials of the Fire Depart- ment and others rescuers were pressed into action. Twenty minutes later, fire officials brought the boy out of the choe with the help of a net. He was rushed to the GMSH-16 where doctors declared him brought dead. Constable Rambir of the IT Park police station, who was the first to jump into the choe to save the child, said the choe was deep and slushy and the water muddy, which hampered the visibility. Mani Majra fire officer GS Multani said, “The child and his friends had come from Indira Colony. Sumit slipped and fell into the choe.” — TNS Replace faulty meters in timely manner: JERC Dushyant Singh Pundir Tribune News Service Chandigarh, April 3 Over non-replacement of electromechanical meters, the Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission (JERC) has directed the UT Electricity Department to ensure replacement of faulty meters in a timely manner. During a public hearing on February 12, stakeholders SK Nayar and Narinder Sharma, president and secretary of the Indian Citizen’s Forum, respectively, had submitted that the commission had already directed the depart- Electricity meters installed in a residential area. MANOJ MAHAJAN ment to replace the meters in a time-bound period. However, the department did not abide by the direction. As a result, it was suffering huge commercial losses as these meters were not so efficient in recording energy used. In response to the allegations, the department stated that replacement of defective or non-functional meters was a continuous process. However, every effort was being made to ensure that faulty meters were replaced on a priority. At present, there were only a few electromechanical meters and these would be replaced shortly. The department submitted quarterly report on the status of meters to the commission regularly, stated the department. Taking a serious view of the fact that the department was yet to ensure full compliance of its orders, the commission Continued on page 3