14032023-CT-01.qxd 3/14/2023 1:02 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune UT STARTS REMOVING LARGE, OLD FISH FROM SUKHNA LAKE MONTHS ON, POTHOLES DOT ROAD NEAR Z’PUR FLYOVER NAVRATRI FAIR: HRY SPEAKER REVIEWS PREPARATIONS Department starts removing old and large fish from Sukhna Lake to maintain its ecological balance. P2 Stretch from UT to Zirakpur side at the end of the newly constructed flyover left unmetalled. P2 Gian Chand Gupta presides over a meeting to review preparations for the Chaitra Navratri fair. P2 » » AIR QUALITY INDEX CHANDIGARH 201 PANCHKULA 129 MOHALI 129 401-500 301-400 201-300 101-200 51-100 0-50 SEVERE VERY POOR POOR MODERATE SATISFACTORY GOOD INBRIEF TWO THEFT CASES REPORTED IN CITY Chandigarh: Surender Singh has reported that an unidentified person stole one LED TV, three gas cylinders and five gutter covers from House No. 84, Sector 9, on the night of Saturday. A case has been registered at the Sector 3 police station. In another case, Rohit (30) of Sector 20 has complained that an unidentified person stole Rs 90,000, one gold chain and two rings after breaking the locks of his house between March 4 and 12. A case has been registered at the Sector 19 police station. TNS YOUTH STABBED, ROBBED AT DARIA Chandigarh: A resident of Daria, Amit (25), has reported that two unidentified persons stabbed him and snatched an ATM card, a credit card, an Aadhaar card and a driving licence from him and his friend Munir Alam near the wine shop on Saturday. A case under Sections 392 and 34 of the IPC has been registered at the Industrial Area police station. TNS Irregularity with regard to Sec 17-E SCOs, booths pointed out by CAG Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 13 Failure of the Estate Office to adhere to the prescribed procedure for increasing rent in respect of shops/booths at Sector 17-E resulted in a short assessment of rent amounting to Rs 9.37 crore for the period 1992-2022. This irregularity was pointed out by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India in a report submitted to UT Administrator Banwarial Purohit recently. According to the audit report, the UT Administration leased out government shops (SCOs)/booths in Sector 17-E for a period of five years. The lease was renewable after every five years with an increase of 20 per cent in rent. The rent of these SCOs was increased to Rs 14,000 per month in 1992. Further, the rent of five booths carved out of three SCOs was fixed on a pro rata basis. However, the same was challenged by the lessees in the High Court and the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court in 1999 ordered that the rent of the SCOs/booths would not ESTATE OFFICE REVIEWED CASES ■ In response to audit observation, the Estate Office carried out a review in respect of 18 SCOs and five booths from March, 1992, to May, 2022. ■ The office rechecked and worked out a short assessment of rent amounting to ~Rs 9.37 crore for the period. ■ Demand notices (May 2022) were issued for the recovery of dues to three allottees/tenants AUDIT FINDINGS The audit found the Estate Officer fixed the rent contrary to instructions under Clause 9 & 10 of the scheme, by ignoring the prescribed stages for increase in rent and revised the lease rent by directly applying 50 per cent increase on the base rent, ie ~14,000. be further enhanced, without framing the rules. As per the directions of the court, the UT Administration framed “Leasing out of Government Built-up Shops/Booths on Monthly Rent Basis in Chandigarh Scheme, 2000, and thereafter, rents were to be fixed from March 1, 1992, when the rent for these SCOs was fixed at Rs Youth held for bid to run over cop Tribune News Service SUPPORTERS OF AAP JOIN BJP Chandigarh: A few supporters of AAP on Monday joined the city BJP in the presence of party president Arun Sood. AAP’s youth supporters, led by leader Lucky Malik of Sector 56, joined the BJP at the party’s office, Kamalam. Sood offered them party flags and sweets. TNS MOHALI: 4 CARS VANDALISED Mohali: Unidentified persons vandalised around four cars in the residential area of Phase 7 in the wee hours of Sunday. They smashed the windowpanes of the vehicles between 3:15am and 3:35 am before fleeing the spot in a bluecoloured vehicle. The police are investigating the matter. TNS 14,000 per month”. During a scrutiny of records of the Estate Office for 201819, the audit noticed that while reassessing the rent in case of 18 shops and five booths in Sector 17-E, the Estate Officer fixed the rent of shops/booths, contrary to instructions under Clause 9 & 10 of the scheme, by ignoring The mangled remains of the car on the Mohali-Landran road. Two residents of Patiala die in truck-car collision Tribune News Service Mohali, March 13 Two persons were killed when the car they were travelling in rammed into a truck on the Mohali-Landran road in the wee hours of Tuesday. The deceased have been identified as Naresh Kumar (36) and Parminder Singh Harry (28) of Patiala. Both were returning home from the Mohali side when their car collided with a truck coming from the Banur side near Raipur village around 2:30 am. The car was badly damaged and the victims were extricated from its mangled remains with difficulty. Naresh was the owner of an eatery in Patiala. They were rushed to the Phase 6 hospital in Mohali where the doctors declared them dead on arrival. The truck driver fled the spot. The Saneta police have impounded the truck and booked the absconding driver under Section 279, 337, 427 and 304-A of the IPC at Sohana. Chandigarh, March 13 The police have arrested a resident of Sector 37, Prabhsimran Singh (23), and booked Navtej of the same sector for allegedly pointing a pistol at a policeman and trying to run him over at a naka on the road separating Sector 17 and 18 last night. Constable fires at car tyre as suspect tries to flee The complainant, Constable Veerender, said he fired from his service weapon at a tyre of the suspects’ car in an attempt to stop them, but both fled the scene after trying to run him over. He suffered minor injuries. Around 12:20 am, the two youths were signalled to stop at the naka. The police said a case under Section 279, 332, 336, 353 and 34 of the IPC and 2554-59 of the Arms Act had been registered at the Sector 17 police station. UT plans hostel at GMCH south campus Naina Mishra Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 13 The Chandigarh Administration has given its nod to construct a new hostel accommodation for MBBS students studying at the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Sector 32. The new hostel, coming up on the south campus of the GMCH-32 in Sector 48, is expected to accommodate around 574 students. The new hostel will come as a huge relief to MBBS students who were struggling to find accommodation. The construction of the new hostel is expected to begin soon, and once completed, it will offer spacious and comfortable accommodation to students. At present, the GMCH has eight hostels with a total of EXISTING FACILITY NOT ENOUGH FOR 750 STUDENTS ■ At present, the GMCH has eight hostels with a total of 447 rooms ■ As per the National Medical Council norms, the GMCH requires rooms for, at least, 445 students, of a total of 750 students. ■ The new hostel rooms will have a capacity of three beds each. However, initially, only two occupants will be lodged in each room. ■ Once the new hostel is built, the existing hostel rooms will be provided to postgraduates and senior residents 447 rooms, which is not enough to cater to the needs of all students. The existing hostel rooms have cramped spaces, and as per the National Medical Council norms, the GMCH requires rooms for, at least, 445 students, of a total of 750 students. Due to a shortage of space, the hospital is not able to provide accommodation to senior residents (SRs) as well, and only 50 per cent of the postgraduate (PG) students are staying on campus. Even students from the tricity area are not provided accommo- dation if it is unavailable. Once the new hostel coming up at Sector 48 is built, the existing hostel rooms will be vacated, and accommodation will be provided to the PGs and SRs. Yashpal Garg, Health Secretary, said, “When the students will be shifted to the new building, the vacant rooms at the existing facility will be used for providing accommodation to senior residents, postgraduate students and for patients’ attendants.” The existing hostels have around 173 single occupancy rooms, and the rest have double occupancy or dormitories. The new hostel rooms will have a capacity for three beds each. However, initially, only two occupants will be lodged in each room. c m y b the prescribed stages for increase in rent and revised the lease rent by directly applying 50 per cent increase on the base rent, i.e. Rs 14,000. The audit worked out that the failure of the Estate Officer to follow the provisions of the scheme and exercise suitable checks on the calculations resulted in loss of revenue due to a short assessment of rent to the tune of Rs 3.71 crore. In response to audit observation, the department, while admitting the audit observation related to fixation of rent, carried out a detailed review of all cases in respect of 18 SCOs and five booths (for the period from March, 1992, to May, 2022). Accordingly, the Estate Office re-checked and worked out a short assessment of rent amounting to Rs 9.37 crore for the period 19922022 in respect of 18 SCOs and five booths. The Estate Office had issued demand notices (May 2022) for the recovery of outstanding dues to three allottees/tenants and stated that the demand notices in respect of the remaining allottees/tenants would be issued shortly. MAX 31°C | MIN 17°C YESTERDAY MAX 30.6°C | MIN 16°C SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 6:33 AM TWITTER/THETRIBUNECHD Short assessment of rent causes ~9.37cr loss to UT MAINLY CLEAR SKY SUNSET TUESDAY 6:29 PM » TUESDAY | 14 MARCH 2023 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE ENTRY, LICENCE FEE Authority fails to recover ~4.23 cr from Ola, Uber Chandigarh, March 13 The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has also stated that the State Transport Authority (STA) has failed to recover the entry fee and license fee of Rs 4.23 crore from app-based cabs (Ola and Uber) for 2017-21 under Aggregator Rules 2017. The cabs are registered in Punjab and Haryana with all-India tourist permits. Of a total Rs 4.23 crore, Rs 3.84 crore is the entry fee and Rs 39 lakh the licence fee. As per the report, there are 2,000 Uber cabs, of which 459 are registered in Chandigarh and 1,541 in Punjab and Haryana. There are 5,000 Ola cabs, of which only 215 are registered in Chandigarh and the rest in Punjab and Haryana. The report says Uber has deposited only the licence fee for 500 cabs and Ola for 2,600 cabs. It has resulted in a short realisation of the licence fee worth Rs 39 lakh. — TNS Earlier, people had to wait for a long time to get an appointment for submitting their files. FILE PHOTO Now, submit papers, files to RLA online Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 13 Residents will no longer have to visit the Registration and Licensing Authority (RLA) office for submitting their files as an online facility has been launched for the same. The residents can now submit their files and documents for 14 services from the comfort of their home. It would not only bring in transparency but also ensure that work is done on time. “Now the hassle of preparing files and getting an appointment for submitting files physically has been done away with,” said Pradhuman Singh, RLA. Earlier, people had to wait for a long time to get an appointment for submitting their files. Pradhuman Singh said Facility launched for 14 services initially, the online services were being provided for the renewal of registration certificate (RC), transfer of ownership of vehicles within the city, ownership transfer of vehicles in case of death and registration of vehicles purchased in public auction, changing address in RC, removal of hypothecation from RC, addition of hypothecation, issuing an NOC, cancellation of RC, updating mobile number in RC and issuance of trade certificate, etc. He said the department had also made all types of forms available online, so that people did not have to visit to the office to collect them.