25042022-CT-01.qxd 25-04-2022 00:51 Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh TRIBUNE MONDAY | 25 APRIL 2022 | CHANDIGARH MC TO IMPOSE PROPERTY TAX IN 13 CITY VILLAGES SOON MC will soon start issuing property tax bills to commercial units in 13 new villages after holding a survey. FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY TRICITY COVID REPORT CHD P’KULA MOHALI POSITIVE 91,998 44,158 95,740 RECOVERED 90,798 43,735 94,570 NEW CASES 9 0 7 ACTIVE 35 9 26 CHANGE 7 6 2 DEATHS 1,165 414 1,148 NEW 0 0 0 AIR QUALITY INDEX MAX 38°C | MIN 21°C | YESTERDAY MAX 37.6°C | MIN 20°C SUNSET MONDAY 6:56 PM PANCHKULA 186 MOHALI 129 SEVERE VERY POOR POOR MODERATE SATISFACTORY GOOD INBRIEF 3 BOOKED ON FRAUD CHARGE Chandigarh: Three persons have been booked for allegedly cheating two Punjab residents of ~1.75 lakh on the pretext of providing a work visa of Singapore. The complainant, Harjinder Singh, a resident of Hoshiarpur district, alleged that Bunty, alias Amandeep, Neelam Kumar, Lokesh Kumar and others, who have their office in Sector 26, cheated him and his friend of ~1.75 lakh to provide a work visa. The suspects have also allegedly cheated around 30 other persons. The police have registered a case under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471 and 120-B of the IPC and Section 24 of the Immigration Act at the Sector 26 police station. TNS PG RESIDENT BOOKED FOR THEFT Chandigarh: A paying guest (PG) in Sector 20 has been booked by the local police for allegedly stealing another PG resident’s purse containing cash and ATM cards and withdrawing ~1.38 lakh from his account. According to the police, the complainant, Mohit Jindal, a resident of Kaithal district, alleged that the suspect, Ajay, who lives in the same PG, allegedly stole his purse containing ~15,000, debit and credit cards, documents and two mobile phones from the almirah. The suspect later withdrew ~1.38 lakh through the debit and credit cards. The police have registered a case. TNS UNKNOWN DOG OWNER BOOKED Chandigarh: An unknown pet dog owner was booked after a woman was bitten by the dog. The complainant, a resident of Sector 16, was bitten by the dog near a government school in Sector 16. The police have registered a case. TNS UT Estate Office fails to conduct a demolition drive in Khuda Lahora and Khuda Jassu after villagers’ protest. SUNRISE TUESDAY 5:45 AM TWITTER/THETRIBUNECHD FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE NSG defuses IED found near Too early to predict fourth Covid wave, says PGI expert jail, probe hints at use of RDX Points out slight increase in cases expected due to relaxations Some banned organisation may have planted explosives: SSP ‘KHALISTAN ACTION FORCE’ PAMPHLET Chandigarh, April 24 A day after explosives were found near the boundary wall of the Burail Jail in Sector 51, a bomb disposal squad of the National Security Guard (NSG) reached the city and defused an improvised explosive device (IED). The operation lasted around five hours during which an explosion took place. A team of the NSG, comprising 12 members, along with a dog squad, reached the city this afternoon from Manesar, Haryana. The team took stock of the situation and carried out the operation. To minimise the risk, a remote-operated machine was used during the operation. The NSG handed over the abandoned bag and other material recovered from it to the police. Sources said the bag contained a lunch box, a detonator, around 1,000 nails and a pamphlet with Khalistan Action Force written on it. UT SSP Kuldeep Singh Chahal said various components of the bomb had been neutralised by the NSG. “Preliminary examination has revealed that RDX was used in the explosive device,” the SSP said. The SSP said a pamphlet had been recovered from the bag with Khalistan Action Force written on it, which suggested that some banned organisation might have planted the explosives. The police said a detailed report regarding the specific explosive type and other components was awaited. All seized material would be sent to a forensic laboratory for examination. On a complaint of Inspector Amanjot Singh, the police have registered a case under Besides a burnt cordtex wire and a detonator, an abandoned bag containing a lunch box, a detonator, nails and a pamphlet with Khalistan Action Force written on it was recovered. Cops intensified patrolling after security alert NSG members with a robot to examine the IED found near the boundary wall of Burail Jail in Chandigarh on Sunday. PHOTOS: VICKY The police at the spot where the IED was found. Sections 3 (punishment for causing explosion likely to endanger life for property) and 4 (punishment for attempt to cause explosion, or for making or keeping explosive with intent to endanger life or property) of the Explosive Substances Act, 1908, at the Sector 49 police station. The police said the footage of CCTV cameras installed in the area was being scrutinised. Around 1,000 inmates are lodged in the jail. The jail complex also houses the office of the National Investigation Agency (NIA). Meanwhile, all roads around the jail in Sector 51 were cordoned off and movement of the general public was restricted since Saturday night in view of the security threat. Chandigarh, April 24 Around three weeks ago, the UT police had received an alert from a security agency, which stated that the interrogation of a terrorist revealed that he had done a recce of the area near the Burail Jail on the directions of the ISI. Following the alert, the UT police increased patrolling. Sources said a few days ago, they received another alert stating that public places such as malls in the city were on the target of terrorists. Following repeated alerts, teams of the Operations Cell, an anti-terrorist wing, conducted security checks at public places, including the ISBTs at Sector 17 and 43. Later in the evening, a team of the DSP (Operations), Jasbir Singh, and the in-charge, Operations Cell, Inspector Amanjot Singh, went to the Burail Jail. The police then drove around the road outside the jail and noticed something burning near the wall. The police got alert after they noticed that it was a cordtex wire connected to a detonator. They stepped back and alerted the control room. Soon, more police teams with an armoured vehicle reached the spot and cordoned off the area. During further search, an abandoned bag was found near the detonator. — TNS Tribune News Service Chandigarh, April 24 “If the rise is exponential and consistent, only then can we gauge if we are heading towards the fourth wave of Covid-19. It is too early to say anything,” said Dr PVM Lakshmi, Professor of Epidemiology, PGI. She said slight increase in cases was expected as there was complacency about masks, complete relaxations were reintroduced and schools and offices were opened. The active caseload in the city, which stood at 22 last Sunday, now stands at 35. Meanwhile, the city recorded nine fresh Covid cases today. Asked about the importance of masks, the doctor said those who were not infected with Covid in the third wave, were still at a risk of the infection. “Even those who got the infection in the previous waves and received the Covid vaccine can catch the virus,” she said. She advised the eligible elderly persons to get the booster dose. Meanwhile, the UT Administration has already advised all city residents to wear face mask at crowded places in view of the increasing number of Covid cases in some states and UTs and various countries. It has also started pulling up socks to urgently vaccinate the entire targeted population of children in the age group of 12 to 18 years. A girl gets the Covid vaccine in Chandigarh. PRADEEP TEWARI SPECIAL VAX CAMPS AT GOVT SCHOOLS Special vaccination camps will be organised at eight government schools for children in the age group of 12 to 14 on Monday and Tuesday. Similar camps were also organised on Friday and Saturday. To protect unvaccinated children in the age group of 12 to 18 years, the authorities may next week restrict their attendance in the physical mode and such students may be asked to attend the classes in the online mode only. City sees 9 fresh cases No fresh case in P’kula CHANDIGARH: The city record- PANCHKULA: ed nine fresh coronavirus cases on Sunday. The active case count now stands at 35. The death toll remained unchanged at 1,165. Meanwhile, two persons were cured of the disease. — TNS MOHALI:Seven new Covid cases were reported from the district, while five patients recovered from the virus on Sunday. The case tally stands at 95,744, while 94,570 patients have recovered from the virus. There are now 26 active cases in the district. The toll stands at 1,148. — TNS Elderly woman hit by vehicle, dies Chandigarh, April 24 In a hit-and-run case, a 70year-old woman pedestrian was killed after being hit by an unknown vehicle. According to the police, the complainant, Radha Krishan Joshi, a resident of Sector 41, reported that an unknown vehicle sped away after hitting his wife, Chandni Devi (70), near a petrol pump in Sector 37 on April 22. She was injured and admitted to Government MultiSpecialty Hospital, Sector 16, Shastri Market assn chief booked Cocking a snook at MC Tribune News Service Chandigarh, April 24 The president of the Shastri Market association, Sector 22, has been booked by the local police for allegedly deterring officials of the encroachment wing of the Municipal Corporation from the discharge of their duty. The complainant, Bhupinder Kaur, a sub-inspector with the encroachment wing, reported that she was on duty at the Shastri Market on Saturday evening when she Deterred MC officials from discharge of duty found encroachment outside shop number 199. Kaur alleged that she seized the goods kept outside the shop and issued a challan to the shopkeeper. However, when the corporation staff were taking the confiscated goods to their truck, the market association president, Jaswinder Singh Nagpal, arrived there and stopped the MC staff from taking away the seized goods. The police were informed following which a case under Sections 186 (obstructing a public servant in the discharge of public functions), 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter a public servant from his duty) and 353 (assault or criminal force to deter a public servant from the discharge of his duty) of the IPC was registered at the Sector 17 police station. Meanwhile, the shopkeepers staged a protest today against the registration of the FIR. Panchkula, April 24 Residents, who have been bearing the brunt of unscheduled power cuts for the past many days, have asked the Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVN) to schedule power cuts so that they can plan their day-today activities accordingly. The Panchkula Vikas Manch, a residents’ body, has written to the Managing Director, UHBVN, to “share the exact time of all power cuts”. Officials at the VENT IRE AGAINST UHBVN ONLINE Due to no information of power cuts, residents dail the UHBVN helpline numbers, but to no avail. Consequently, residents raise their complaints on social media websites, including Twitter, to vent out their frustration. Panchkula unit of the UHBVN had recently alerted residents about expected unscheduled power cuts in the days ahead due to an “acute shortage of power”. Power cuts can be imposed at any time of the day and the duration could not be fixed, the officials had said, adding that it would totally depend on the demand and supply. A member of the Panchkula Vikas Manch, Rakesh Aggarwal, said the UHBVN should inform citizens about the power cuts so that everyone could plan their work accordingly. He said the UHBVN should also instruct the field staff to ensure that other than the scheduled power cuts, there should be no outages. Tribune News Service Panchkula, April 24 A tubewell operator at Budanpur village was allegedly attacked with a sharp weapon by a group of persons last evening as one of them was furious after a pet dog of the victim barked at him. The incident took place around 8 pm. The victim, Mukesh Kumar, was referred to the PGI from the Civil Hospital in Sector 6 here where he was first taken after the attack. His condition is still critical and he is unfit for giving a c m y b The district saw no fresh virus case on Sunday, pushing down the active caseload to nine. The tally stayed at 44,158. The death count is 414. As many as 43,735 patients have recovered from the infectious disease so far. — TNS Seven new cases surface in Mohali district where she later succumbed to the injuries. The police have registered a case at the Sector 39 police station. The police said the footage of CCTV cameras installed in the area was being scrutinised to identify the vehicle. MC imposes ~31K fine on AAP supporter Tribune News Service Heaps of building material and road waste dumped in a green belt at Sector 30-A, Chandigarh, despite an MC order displayed on a board saying that it is an offence. PHOTO: PRADEEP TEWARI Schedule power cuts, say residents Tubewell operator attacked over pet bark Tribune News Service PAGE 3 PROTEST HALTS UT ESTATE OFFICE'S DEMOLITION DRIVE Police arrest a woman and her paramour for abetment to suicide after her husband ends his life. Tribune News Service 144 PAGE 3 WIFE, PARAMOUR HELD FOR ABETTING MAN'S SUICIDE Amit Sharma CHANDIGARH 401-500 301-400 201-300 101-200 51-100 0-50 PAGE 3 statement, the police said. The complainant, Shishpal, a neighbour of the victim, told the police that he found the victim lying in a pool of blood and unconscious at the gate of the tubewell house. The police said the key suspect, Abhyas, a resident of Dera Bassi, had entered into an argument with the victim a few hours before the incident after the latter’s pet dog barked at the former. “While he (the key suspect) was sitting on the wall of the tubewell house, the victim’s pet dog barked at him, which Referred to PGI, condition stated to be critical made him furious. He picked up a stone to thwart it. The victim (Mukesh) stopped him and they subsequently entered into an argument. The altercation, however, ended somehow after the intervention of neighbours,” Sushil Kumar, in-charge of the Sector 16 police post, said, adding that the key suspect came back after some time with his two accomplices and attacked the victim with a sharp weapon. The police said they were yet to arrest the suspects. An FIR was registered under Sections 307 (attempt to murder), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 34 (common intention) of the IPC at the Sector 14 police station against Abhyas, Dinesh and other unidentified persons. Chandigarh, April 24 The local Municipal Corporation today imposed a penalty of ~31,294 on an Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supporter, Sukhdev Chaudhary. He had allegedly put up hoardings of AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to congratulate them on the victory of the party in the recently held Punjab Assembly elections without seeking permission. “To check this illegal practice, hoardings were removed from the city and a penalty of ~31,294 was imposed on Chaudhary,” read a statement issued by the corporation. Chaudhary said: “I have no knowledge about any such penalty. There is no hoarding of mine in Chandigarh.” The civic body said the hoarding was removed from Sector 47. Two days ago, newly appointed Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring was fined ~29,390 for allegedly putting up posters and banners in the city without seeking permission.