23062022-ATR-01.qxd 6/22/2022 11:57 PM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar TRIBUNE WILL BOYCOTT GOVT’S ARBITRARY PORTAL, SAYS RMS CHHINA Chhina said the latest directives from the Edu Dept to impose centralised admission portals was full of flaws. FORECAST MAINLY CLEAR SKY PAGE 2 PAGE 3 DILJIT’S EMOTIONAL TRIBUTE TO SIDHU MOOSEWALA SONA ANNOUNCES PREMIERE OF DOCUMENTARY SHUT UP SONA Diljit shared a clip from the concert on Instagram, where he performed a special segment for Moosewala. MAX 36°C | MIN 23°C | YESTERDAY MAX 33°C | MIN 21°C PAGE 4 The singer recently treated her fans with the news of her intimate and unapologetic documentary. SUNSET THURSDAY 7:39 PM SUNRISE FRIDAY 5:26 AM THURSDAY | 23 JUNE 2022 | AMRITSAR ‘Monsoon ready’ claims worry residents after first showers Have sufficient mechanical solution to avoid waterlogging: MC Squall uproots trees, hits power supply Charanjit Singh Teja Amritsar, June 22 During the last few years, the Municipal Corporation has spent a huge amount on the desilting of sewer lines and its mechanical solutions in the city. However, a number of areas still witness waterlogging and accumulation of rainwater. On Tuesday night, the pre-monsoon showers exposed the tall claims of the MC as rainwater, accumulated on several main roads and streets, was there till Wednesday evening. There are several areas in the walled city and outer city areas, where rainwater accumulates for hours even if it rains moderately. Areas such as Madan Mohan Malvia Road, Ann Amm Cinema Road, Rani Ka Bagh near Government College, Majitha Road, Circular Road, Chheharta, Kot Khalsa, Mustafabad, Indira Colony and Islamabad witness waterlogging during the monsoon season. Similarly, in the walled city Tribune News Service ❝ Tribune News Service The Municipal Corporation conducted desilting on major roads, but there are several areas where residents witness regular waterlogging. There is a need to streamline the sewer lines to get rid of waterlogging. Premonsoon showers in the last two days have us worried about the upcoming monsoon season. Amritsar, June 22 A squall hit the city resulting in uprooting of several trees and causing a blackout in different parts of the city on Tuesday evening. The winds were so powerful that an iron structure (shed) installed in front of Akal Takht at the Golden Temple was also blown away. As many tree branches fell on electricity supply lines in residential areas, the power supply was snapped too. Fast The winds were so powerful that an iron structure (shed) in front of Akal Takht at the Golden Temple was also blown away winds accompanied by heavy rain and hailstorm lasted for nearly five minutes, during which traffic came to a standstill on roads. Such was the intensity of the squall that the drivers had to halt their vehicles on roadsides as due to heavy rain and hailstorm, the visibility was significantly impacted. Much to the delight of residents, however, the area has been witnessing intermittent rains for the last three days. On Tuesday evening, after a pause of nearly six hours, it started raining again around 7 pm. While many residents were out on roads to enjoy the pleasant weather amid mild drizzling, the weather suddenly changed around 8.30 pm. ❞ Randhir Sharma, A RESIDENT OF A waterlogged road at the Rani Ka Bagh in Amritsar on Wednesday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR area, the Heritage Street, Bus Stand Road, Katra Jaimal Singh Road, Beri Gate Pink Plaza-Hindustan Basti Road witnesses heavy waterlogging in the inner-city area. During the last two years, the MC brought seven jetting machines, 10 vehicle-mounted garbage bucket machines, one super sucker and other machines for desilting. Mahesh Khanna, chairman, water sewerage subcommittee, said: “Most of the sewer lines are cleared of silt. Desilting has been conducted in all main sewer lines. The rainwater will be drained out within two hours. Prior to the monsoon season, we have issued instructions to all disposal plants to make required arrangements. This week, we will physically check the main area, from where we get regular complaints of waterlogging during monsoon.” “This time, our main focus is Heritage Street and areas around the Golden Temple. The staff of the department GARDEN ENCLAVE concerned have been asked to clean all chambers and lines before the monsoon,” he said. The MC has recently started a desilting project at Ghanupur Kala at a cost of ~32 lakh. The clearance of the sewer line would address the issue of waterlogging in several areas of the Chheharta area, he said. A tree lies uprooted after heavy rainfall at Tailor’s Road, Amritsar, on Wednesday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR Waterlogging raises concern of mosquito breeding in city ...East MLA directs officials to ensure cleanliness of sewers & open drains Tribune News Service Amritsar, June 22 Amritsar East MLA Jeevan Jyot Kaur held a meeting with senior officials of the Amritsar Municipal Corporation on Wednesday and reviewed development works. In view of the upcoming monsoon season and waterlogging issue in the city, the MC officials were directed to carry out the work of cleaning the sewerage chamber, sewer lines and open drainage on a priority. While interacting with the MC officials, she said it was common to see water accumulating on city roads Amritsar, June 22 Ahead of dengue and malaria season, water-logging on different roads, vacant plots and other places is a serious cause for concern, as these spots can easily turn into mosquito-breeding grounds. Even as the recent rains have delighted residents and brought the muchneeded respite from the heatwave, it has also caused stagnation of water at low-lying areas. Continued on page 2 INBRIEF FIRING: FORMER SARPANCH BOOKED Tarn Taran: A former sarpanch of Dhotian village was booked for opening fire on Monday. Complainant Nishan Singh in his complaint said the accused, Ranjit Singh, a former sarpanch, came in front of his house and opened fire. He said Ranjit wanted to purchase a residential plot, which he had purchased two years ago. A case under Sections 336 and 506 of the IPC was registered, ASI Gajjan Singh said. The accused is at large, he said. OC TARGET MET, 1.14L KIDS IMMUNISED Amritsar: The three-day polio immunisation drive concluded in the district with the health teams completing the target of administering drops to the targeted 1.14 lakh children below five years. Civil Surgeon Dr Charanjit Singh, said despite intense heat, the health employees worked tirelessly to accomplish the mission. He said total 1,500 employees and volunteers participated in the drive during which a door-todoor campaign was run. TNS ❝We have already advised residents to observe every Friday as dry day and devote it to changing water in air coolers and pots. They should also remove all junk or other items that can hold water. ❞ ❝The cleaning of sewerage In chambers and drains is must. Tribune News Service Amritsar East MLA Jeevan Jyot Kaur holds a meeting with MC officials in Amritsar on Wednesday. TRIBUNE PHOTO during the rainy season due to improper functioning of sewer system. Now, the monsoon season is just round the case of any problem faced by residents, it will be the personal responsibility of the officer concerned. Being an elected representative of the people, it is my responsibility to provide clean air, water and a healthy society to people and I will fulfil this responsibility diligently. Jeevan Jyot Kaur, ASR EAST MLA ❞ corner and there is possibility of waterlogging in several low-lying areas in the city. “In view of the rainy season, the sewer system of the city should be streamlined immediately. Wherever desilting or Continued on page 2 35,077 houses surveyed in 7 days Covid hits again: DELIMITATION 80 employees get show-cause notice for slow pace of work 1 dies, 13 test +ve Six booked under Prohibition of Child Marriage Act A waterlogged plot in a residential area of Amritsar after the pre-monsoon showers on Tuesday evening. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR Dr Charanjit Singh, CIVIL SURGEON Charanjit Singh Teja Tribune News Service Manmeet Singh Gill Amritsar, June 22 In the ongoing delimitation survey, only 35,077 houses have been surveyed in the last seven days by the teams formed by the Municipal Corporation (MC). MC Joint Commissioner Hardeep Singh had instructed to survey 15,000 houses every day. For this, 10 block officers were deployed for the field, 15 officers for the office and 300 to conduct surveys and compile the data. A special meeting with officers and employees deployed on survey duty was headed by Hardeep Singh. The Joint Commissioner expressed dissatisfaction over the slow pace of the survey. He said at least 15,000 houses should be surveyed every day. He also issued show-cause notices to about 80 employees, who were not performing as per the expectation. The Joint Commissioner said show-cause notices have been issued to those who are working at a slow pace. He said a lethargic attitude at Tribune News Service MC Joint Commissioner with other officials during a meeting on delimitation survey at its Ranjit Avenue office in Amritsar on Wednesday. TRIBUNE PHOTO work will not be tolerated. He would also issue suspension letters to those employees, who were absent from the delimitation survey. Contrary to the desire of the MC Joint Commissioner, the MC officials and employees conduct surveys of around 6,500 households every day. The staff deployed on duty claim that the number of houses was more than 3.5 lakh and around 500 employees were needed to complete the task within 30 days. Now, senior MC officials don’t have this much staff. So, the pace of the survey can’t increase. Some officials advocated hiring some private firm having expertise to conduct surveys for early completion of the delimitation survey. Meanwhile, a delegation of the local unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led by district president Suresh Mahajan met the Joint Commissioner in his office and discussed the issues of delimitation. The BJP leaders also handed over a memorandum to him in this regard. They requested him to include their members in a panel to discuss the issues of delimitation to avoid errors. They claimed that there were several errors reported c m y b during the delimitation conducted in 2017. The residents of several wards faced problems due to errors in delimitation. If the MC includes BJP activists in the panel, the errors could be rectified in time, said Suresh Mahajan. Hardeep Singh assured them that their suggestions regarding delimitation would be considered. District BJP general secretary Sukhminder Singh Pintu, district BJP vicepresident Dr Ram Chawla, Anuj Sikka and district convener of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan Tarun Arora were also present. Amritsar, June 22 The deadly Covid-19 is back as the death of a patient due to the disease was reported by the district Health Department on Wednesday. Last, it was on February 28 this year that a local resident lost his life to the infectious disease. A sudden spurt in the number of Covid-19 cases is also noticeable as the district authorities reported total 13 positive cases on Wednesday. In fact, the number of Covid cases in the district is on the rise for the last few days. Of the total 55 positive cases reported from the district since June 1, at least 32 have been reported in the last seven days only. Further, 23 of these positive cases have been reported in the last three days only. The district health authorities reported six positive cases on Tuesday and four cases on Monday. It is after four months that the number of cases reported in a day has reached a twodigit figure. Though the COVID UPDATE NEW CASES TOTAL CASES NEW DEATHS TOTAL DEATHS ACTIVE 13 59,527 1 1,683 33 number of cases has witnessed an increase in many other parts of the country, local authorities said it was still premature to say anything about the cause of the increase in infections locally. Of the 13 cases reported on Wednesday, 11 are new cases, while two are contacts of positive patients. With the recent rise in the number of infections, the total count of active cases increased to 33 on Wednesday. The district has reported a total of 59,527 positive cases since the start of the pandemic. With one more death, the toll due to the disease has increased to 1,683. Amritsar, June 22 Division B police have booked six persons on the charge of rape, fraud, under the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act and Protection of Children from Sexual Offence Act (POCSO) following a complaint by a local court here on Monday. Those booked have been identified as Gurpreet Singh, Mohan Singh, Manjit Kaur, Kehar Singh, Sarpanch Makhan Singh, all residents of Kot Dharam Chand Kalan village in Tarn Taran and Nirmal Kaur of Rumana Chak village in Baba Bakala sub division. Gurpreet Singh had approached the court for marriage with a girl. Gurpreet and his accomplices prepared a fake Aadhaar card of the girl by changing her age as she was a minor. The couple also sought security. However, the court got suspicious and the matter was probed, following which a case under Sections 196, 197, 198, 420, 465, 467, 468, 471, 376 of the IPC and Section 10 of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act and Section 8 of POCSO Act was registered. — TNS