24052022-LT-01.qxd 5/24/2022 12:46 AM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana TRIBUNE BUDDHA NULLAH REJUVENATION PROJECT HITS HALFWAY MARK The work of the ~840-cr rejuvenation project of the highly-polluted Buddha Nullah has reached the halfway mark. FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY SKY INBRIEF 13 ARRESTED WITH DRUGS Ludhiana: The police have arrested six drug addicts/traffickers from the Sidhwan Canal bridge on Pakhowal Road on Sunday. They have been identified as Sikander Sahni, a resident of New Five Star Colony, Hans Raj, a resident of Datta Colony, Arjun Verma of Satjot Nagar, Ravinder Sahni, a resident of Roop Nagar, Mitlesh Kumar of New Five Star Colony and Abdul Wahid, a resident of New Colony, Pamal. A recovery of 2.2 kg of cannabis (ganja) was made from the suspects and they were booked under Sections 20, 61 and 85 of the NDPS Act. Meanwhile, seven other drug traffickers were arrested on Sunday from various areas. Shubham Sidhu was nabbed from near a dharamshala at Mohalla Peeru Banda with one gm of heroin and a motorcycle, Harjeet Singh and Vishal were arrested from Ishar Nagar, Canal bridge with 6 gm of heroin and a Honda Activa scooter, Gagan Chaudhry was held from Sarpanch Colony, Jamalpur, with 10 gm of heroin and a Honda Activa, Ashu was arrested from Sahibana Puli with 5 kg of cannabis and a Honda Activa and Narinder Singh and Balbir Kaur were held from the bus stand, Koom Kalan, with 17 gm of some narcotics powder and 54 strips of Pregbalm. All accused have been charged under the NDPS Act. OC NINE-YEAR-OLD GIRL DIES IN HIT-AND-RUN Ludhiana: Ria, a nine-year-old girl, lost her life in a hit-andrun near a TVS agency in Dhandari Kalan on Saturday when a speeding car ran over her while the victim was crossing GT Road with her mother and maternal aunt. In a complaint lodged with the police, Kiran Devi, a resident of Shanti Nagar, said when she along with her sister Rekha and niece Ria were crossing the main road after alighting from an autorickshaw, a speeding while car hit Ria, who sustained grievous injuries. “We rushed her to the Civil Hospital where the doctors declared her dead,” she said. The police have booked the unidentified car driver under Sections 279 and 304-A of the IPC. OC Panchayat Dept gets 83 acres freed from illegal occupation Tribune News Service Ludhiana, May 23 The Panchayat Department on Monday got 83 acres of land freed at Selkiana village under the Block 2, Ludhiana-2. It was stated by BDPO Gurpreet Singh Mangat on Monday. Till date, 271 acres of illegally occupied panchayat land have been freed in the district, of which 185 acres have been freed in the Block 2, Ludhiana, block alone. Mangat said the panchayat land got freed with the support of panchayat officer Harpal Singh, village panchayat and other officials concerned. District Development Panchayat Officer (DDPO) Sanjeev Kumar said the process would be started soon to get illegally occupied ‘Shamlat’ lands of villages freed. PAGE 2 GROVER’S POST AS GUTTHI ON CANNES RED CARPET GOES VIRAL PAGE 3 He morphed his on-screen character Gutthi on French Riviera’s red carpet, which has left the netizens in splits. MAX 38°C | MIN 22°C | YESTERDAY MAX 39°C | MIN 18°C SUNSET TUESDAY 7:20 PM IRANIAN FILM HOLY SPIDERSTUNS CANNES BY SHOWING NUDITY PAGE 4 A gritty drama about a real-life Iranian serial killer earned a thunderous seven-minute standing ovation. SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 5:26 AM TUESDAY | 24 MAY 2022 | LUDHIANA Motorists suffer as water floods Miscreants rough up cop, underpasses after rain in city take away private vehicle 17.6-mm rainfall recorded, high-velocity winds uproot tree in Sham Nagar DSP loses mobile phone to snatchers in another incident Our Correspondent Tribune News Service Ludhiana, May 23 After the thunderstorm and rain lashed the city, waterlogging was witnessed on the Lodhi Club Road underpass and newly constructed Pakhowal Road-Sarabha Nagar RUB on Monday. The commuters faced inconvenience due to the water accumulation on the underpasses. The residents had raised their voice against waterlogging on the underpasses earlier too but no concrete steps have been taken in this regard. Questions are also being raised after water accumulated for some time on the newly constructed RUB after the rainfall. A city resident, Kapil Arora of the Council of Engineers, said in view of the upcoming rainy season, the departments concerned should take concrete measures to avoid waterlogging on all underpasses in the city. The commuters are forced to face a lot of inconveniences whenever rainwater gets accumulated on the underpasses. A big tree was uprooted at Sham Nagar near the Ludhiana bus stand due to the high-velocity winds in the city after midnight. An official of the MC Horticulture wing, Kirpal Singh, said a 25year-old tree got uprooted due to the high-velocity winds. He said the tree fell on electricity wires. After getting information, the damaged tree was lifted from the site. After rain on Sunday night, the temperature has TEMP DROPS BY 10 DEGREES After rain on Sunday night, the maximum temperature has dropped by 10 degrees. The maximum temperature recorded on Monday was 30°C. The city received 17.6 mm of rainfall on Monday, giving the much needed respite from the intense heatwave. Clockwise from above: Clouds over the Ludhiana sky on Monday evening; and a waterlogged Lodhi Club underpass and Pakhowal Road-Sarabha Nagar RUB in Ludhiana. HIMANSHU MAHAJAN Ludhiana, May 23 A police constable was roughed up, his uniform torn and his private vehicle was taken away by miscreants on Saturday night. In another incident, a DSP lost his mobile phone to snatchers. Police constable Baldev Singh, who is deployed at the narcotics cell-3, here, was assaulted by miscreants. They torn his uniform and took away his private Ford Endeavour vehicle (bearing registration no. PB 11BC 4848) while threatening him with dire consequences. In a report lodged at the Police Division No. 6, he said he was on patrol duty with another constable Paramjit Singh at Chet Singh Nagar on Saturday night. He said he came across Sarpreet Singh in the street along a liquor vend, who was known to him. “When I started questioning him on suspicion, some 10-12 persons accompanying him surrounded me. They attacked me and in the scuffle, my uniform was torn. When people started gathering at the spot, the assailants threatened me and escaped from the spot. They also took away my private vehicle,” said Baldev. The police have booked Sarpreet and his unidentified accomplices under Sections 379-B, 341, 353, 186, 323, 506, 148 and 149 of the IPC on Sunday and efforts were on to apprehend the assailants. In the other incident, DSP Baldev Singh, a resident of Sector 32, Ludhiana-Chandigarh Road, lost his mobile phone on Sunday when he was having a morning walk near Dev Hospital. He said two motorcycle-borne persons came from the rear and snatched his mobile phone. Afterwards, they fled towards the Vishal Mega Mart side. The police have registered a case under Sections 379-B and 34 of the IPC. City resident robbed of two-wheeler, money Sumesh Kumar, a resident of Husssainpur, Ashiana Colony, in Jassian, lost his Honda Activa scooter (bearing registration no. PB 10HG 4059) and Rs 4,500 to five snatchers near Jassian Bridge on Sunday. He said he was going towards Salem Tabri early on Sunday morning on his scooter when a motorcycle hit him when he had reached near Jassian Bridge. Four more persons reached the spot. They took away my scooter and cash at dagger-point and fled the spot. The police have registered a case under Sections 379-B/120-B of the IPC. 2 booked for assault, firing into air Our Correspondent dropped by 10 degree and maximum temperature recorded today was 30 degree celsius. The city received 17.6 mm of rainfall today giving the much needed relief from the intense heatwave that was going on for the past few days. It was last in mid-February that it rained and the showers were much awaited. As per PAU’s School of Climate Change and Agricultural Meteorology, the minimum temperature was recorded at 18.4°C while the maximum was 30.5°C. According to Dr KK Gill, Principal Agrometeorologist, Punjab Agricultural University, the weather is expected to remain partly cloudy with a possibility of gusty winds/thun- dershowers over Ludhiana and its adjoining areas during the next 24 hours. Dr Pavneet Kaur Kingra, head, Department of Climate Change and Agricultural Meteorology, said it was the most awaited rainfall and it can been expected tomorrow as well. “After this, the temperature is again going to rise,” she said. Ludhiana, May 23 The police have booked Sehmbi and Guri, for allegedly attacking a man, damaging cars parked along the street, intimidation and firing into the air. The incident occurred after the duo had an altercation with Kirpal Singh over a minor road accident involving the motorcycle of the latter and the car in which the suspects were travelling in. According to the police, A CCTV grab of the scuffle that occurred in the Dugri area. the accident had occurred late last night at MIG flats in Dugri. After exchange of heated words between Guri and Kirpal, the former called his friends to the spot who ransacked cars parked there, scuffled with Kirpal with an intent to cause injury and also fired shots into the air. The accused fled when the victim raised an alarm and the people started gathering on the spot. The police said both occupants of the car had been charged under Sections 452, 148, 149, 506 and 323 of the IPC and Section 25 of the Arms Act. Sewer connections of two Gang of looters busted, nine nabbed dyeing units snapped Eight two-wheelers, six mobile phones recovered from suspects Our Correspondent Ludhiana, May 23 The Municipal Corporation on Monday disconnected the sewer connections of two more dyeing units. Executive Engineer Ranbir Singh said the sewer connections of Ashok Dyeing unit in Phase V and Lovely Dyeing in Phase VII were disconnected. Superintending Engineer Rajinder Singh said they disconnected illegal connections of the two dyeing units. The units had failed to cut their connections linked with the MC’s sewerage line after they got their connections joined with the CETP concerned. MC officials cut the sewer connection of a dyeing unit in Ludhiana. After recent action against dyeing units in Focal Point, Rahul Verma of the Punjab Dyers Association said they had already informed the MC (through an application dated March 25), requesting the MC Commissioner for disconnection of the sewer connections of dyeing units in the Focal Point area. He said the dyeing units had been connected with a CETP — TNS . Ludhiana, May 23 The police claimed to have busted a gang of looters and snatchers with the arrest of nine of its members and seizure of seven motorcycles, one scooter and six mobile phones. Giving the information here today, Commissioner of Police (CP) Kaustabh Sharma said a police party, headed by the PAU police station SHO, had conducted a raid on the basis of a tip-off and nabbed the suspects from a vacant plot near the Sai temple on Sunday. The suspects have been booked under Sections The accused in police custody in Ludhiana. TRIBUNE PHOTO 399 and 402 of the IPC. They were being presented before a court for obtaining police custody for further interrogation. Those arrested were identi- fied as Gaurav, alias Ravi, Nikhil Chahal, Rohit, alias Sem, Sumit Sharma, Prince Sharma, David, alias Shooter, all residents of Amritsar dis- trict, Paras, alias Aniket, a resident of Chuharpur Road, Ladian Kalana, Anil Kumar of Haibowal Kalan and Dhiraj Gaba, a resident of Jassian Road, Haibowal. The CP said during preliminary interrogation, it was learnt that three other members of the gang, Gaganpreet Singh, alias Dhoni, a resident of Amritsar, Akshit, alias Cheeku, of Malhotra Colony, Haibowal, and Yuvi Wahabi of Rajan Estate, Haibowal, were absconding. The accused had confessed to their involvement in around 50 cases of loot and snatching of mobile phones and two wheelers, Sharma said. Road works begin in New Punjab Mata Nagar One fresh case of Covid reported Tribune News Service Ludhiana, May 23 Ludhiana (West) MLA Gurpreet Bassi Gogi today assured residents that all roads of the New Punjab Mata Nagar area on Pakhowal Road would be revamped with a cost of Rs 60 lakh. The MLA said this while inaugurating the road construction works in the area today. While speaking to mediapersons, Gogi assured that there was no shortage of funds for carrying out development works in the Ludhiana (West) constituency. MLA Gurpreet Bassi Gogi kick-starts a road work at New Punjab Mata Nagar in Ludhiana on Monday. TRIBUNE PHOTO c m y b The MLA said ever since the Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government came to power in the state, several propeople decisions had been taken by it. He said even in the Ludhiana (West) constituency, his team had prepared a comprehensive development plan and they had already started working on the same. He assured all residents of the constituency that providing good quality roads with water recharging pits would be his priority. Ludhiana, May 23 One fresh case of Covid-19 was reported while no person died due to the virus in the district today. A total of 1,09,927 persons have tested positive for the virus since March 2020 while 2,280 persons from the district have succumbed to the virus so far. The recovery rate of Covid patients was 97.91 per cent on Monday. There were 14 active cases in the district and the patients were asked to isolate themselves at their homes by the Health Department. At present, no Covid patient COVID-19 FIGURES SAMPLES POSITIVE ACTIVE 35,72,172 1,09,927 14 1 DEATHS 2,280 For any information related to Covid Contact: 0161-2444193 & 4622276 is admitted to any hospital in Ludhiana. Till date, a total of 35,72,172 samples have been taken, of which 34,47,478 were found negative. Samples of 1,735 suspected patients were sent for testing today, the results of which are expected shortly. — TNS