22032023-CT-01.qxd 3/22/2023 12:31 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune 5.5K OWNERS NOT PAYING PROPERTY TAX IN CITY FORMER DIRECTOR OF PGI PATHAK PASSES AWAY 3 UT GOLFERS TO FEATURE IN BLACK BULL CHALLENGE The MC has found around 5,500 new residential, commercial properties that are liable to pay the levy. P3 Dr IC Pathak, PGI ex-Director and Paediatric Surgery Dept’s founder chairman, passed away at 97. P3 City’s Yuvraj, Aadil and Akshay will feature in the Duncan Taylor Black Bull Challenge. P4 » » AIR QUALITY INDEX CHANDIGARH 55 PANCHKULA 47 MOHALI 43 401-500 301-400 201-300 101-200 51-100 0-50 SEVERE VERY POOR POOR MODERATE SATISFACTORY GOOD INBRIEF DRUG PEDDLER HELD WITH GANJA Chandigarh: A drug peddler has been arrested by the UT police for possessing ganja. According to the police, Mewa Ram, a resident of EWS Colony, Dhanas, was nabbed with 1.700 kg ganja from Sector 22. A case under the NDPS Act has been registered at the Sector 17 police station. TNS HARYANA RESIDENT DUPED OF ~23L Chandigarh: The UT police have booked a city resident for duping a Haryana resident of Rs 23 lakh. Complainant Darshan Lal, a resident of Karnal district, claimed Sector 48 resident Ankit Singh duped him of Rs 23 lakh on the pretext of sending his son to Canada. A case of cheating has been registered at the Sector 49 police station and an investigation initiated. TNS 4-DAY IMPASSE Cops uproot tent, restore traffic |Barring YPS Chowk area, Net back in Mohali Mohali, March 21 Traffic was restored at the Sohana chowk as the fourday deadlock between the police and sympathisers of pro-Khalistan activist Amritpal Singh ended with forceful removal of protesters and uprooting of their tent by the administration here this afternoon. The police arrested around 30 protesters, including women, staging a sit-in on the road near Gurdwara Singh Shaheedan since Saturday afternoon. The protesters resisted the move but the anti-riot police whisked them away in private school buses and police vehicles. Sticks, swords and sharp weapons were recovered from the scene, the police said. Panic gripped the area for a while after several youths, including women, tried to flee as the police started removing the protesters. Earlier, a couple of police officials received minor injuries as the protesters resisted the removal of tent pitched in the middle of the road. SP City Akashdeep Singh Aulakh said: “Protesters had been causing inconvenience to road users and visitors to MOVE TO PREVENT CONFLICT, SITUATION PEACEFUL members and locals had requested ❝Panchayat to resolve the issue. The protesters have administration been removed to prevent conflict. No one will be allowed to disrupt peace. Traffic has been restored and situation is peaceful and normal. — Aashika Jain, MOHALI DC TWO COPS INJURED; AROUND 30 ARRESTED ❞ ❝ Some people, including two policemen, were injured and are undergoing medical examination. Around 30 persons have been arrested by the police in this connection. — Dr Sandeep Garg, MOHALI SSP ❞ Cops round up a supporter of pro-Khalistan activist Amritpal Singh from Sohana chowk near Gurdwara Singh Shaheedan in Mohali; and (right) cops remove a tent pitched in the middle of the road. TRIBUNE PHOTOS ALTERCATION WITH GURDWARA OFFICIALS ■ Gurdwara officials and panchayat members try to convince protesters to leave, but altercation breaks out, prompting cops to move in, say police officials ■ Protesters resist the move, but anti-riot police use minimal force and whisk them away in private school buses and police vehicles; tent is also removed ■ Sticks, swords and sharp weapons are recovered from the scene. Many youths, including women, try to flee the scene as police move in to remove them the gurdwara for the past four days. When gurdwara officials and panchayat members of nearby villages tried to talk to them, an alter- YPS CHOWK STIR STILL ON The Qaumi Insaaf Morcha has been protesting at the YPS Chowk in Mohali since January 7 demanding the release of ‘Bandi Singhs’. After violence erupted at the UT-Mohali border on February 8, the road separating Sectors 51-52 was closed to traffic. On March 10, NGO Arrive Safe Society of Chandigarh moved the HC seeking removal of encroachment by protesters. The matter will come up for hearing on Wednesday when Punjab and UT will apprise the Bench of steps initiated or proposed. cation broke out, prompting the police to move in. Minimal force was used to remove the protesters. There was a minor altercation 5 yrs on, govt blind to 200m potholed stretch in Zirakpur Naina Mishra Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 21 A 200-metre-long dilapidated stretch of the VIP Road connecting the Patiala highway has remained a constant source of inconvenience for thousands of commuters over the past five years. Despite a change in government, the situation has remained unchanged as the authorities have turned a blind eye to the problem. The stretch is a crucial link to Mohali as thousands of vehicles use it every day to access the Airport Road, making it one of the busiest roads in the area. However, its condition has deteriorated to the extent that it has become hazardous for motorists owing to frequent accidents. With population in the surrounding areas growing significantly over the years, the volume of traffic on the stretch has increased manifold, making it dangerous for commuters who have to navigate through potholes and broken patches. Moreover, many shops and businesses have come up, adding to the chaos and congestion on the already dilapidated stretch. Despite an urgent need for repair, the authorities have chosen to look the other way, forcing people to bear the brunt of apathy. “The road is full of potholes. One can’t drive without hit- FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE Protesters removed from Sohana chowk Tribune News Service A broken patch of VIP Road near the Patiala highway. PHOTO BY WRITER LINKS VIP ROAD TO PATIALA HIGHWAY ■ VIP Road stretch connects Patiala highway and is a key link to Mohali as thousands of vehicles use it every day to access Airport Road ■ Volume of traffic has increased manifold, forcing commuters to navigate through potholes and broken patches, risking injury ■ Poor state of road has hit businesses in the area as customers are hesitant to visit establishments fearing a bumpy ride RISKING LIVES ON DAILY BASIS WILL BE REPAIRED BEFORE MONSOON the point in ❝What’sgovernment electing a are trying ❝We the issue.to resolve Tenders that can’t even fix a small patch of road? It’s a shame that we have to risk our lives every day just to get to work. have been floated for drainage and construction of road. Commuters will be able to enjoy a smooth ride before monsoon. — Rakesh, A LOCAL RESIDENT — Kuljeet Randhawa, LOCAL MLA ❞ ting a bump, often causing injury. Having access to metalled roads is a basic right of every citizen, but Zirakpur residents are being deprived of it,” says Osheen Kumar, a regular commuter. Despite numerous com- ❞ plaints, the authorities have failed to address the issue, forcing users to risk injury on a daily basis. “It’s been five years but the authorities have done little to address the problem. We’re tired of waiting for Continued on page 3 c m y b between the protesters and gurdwara officials after the talks failed, so to maintain law and order the protesters were taken away.” Action MAX 27°C | MIN 14°C YESTERDAY MAX 25°C | MIN 14.4°C SUNRISE THURSDAY 6:23 AM TWITTER/THETRIBUNECHD Gaurav Kanthwal PARTLY CLOUDY SUNSET WEDNESDAY 6:35 PM » WEDNESDAY | 22 MARCH 2023 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST Round II: Only 11 of 52 liquor vends auctioned off Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 21 The UT Excise and Taxation Department yet again got a rude shock as only 11 of the 52 remaining liquor vends were auctioned in the second round today. In the last auction held on March 15, 43 vends of the total 95 were auctioned. In the second auction, the UT Administration earned a revenue of Rs 54.85 crore against a reserve price of Rs 51.27 crore, which is nearly Rs 3.57 crore higher (6.98%). In the auction, the highest bid of nearly Rs 7,56,90,000 was received for the vend located at Khuda Lahora, which was barely Rs 5,000 more than the reserve price of Rs 7,56,85,329. The second highest vend was auctioned in Sector 37D for Rs 7,37,00,019, against a reserve Continued on page 3 HOLIDAY IN UT TOMORROW will be taken against the protesters as per law, he added. After the protesters were removed, the police put up barricades in the middle of the road to thwart any attempt of takeover of the site. The movement of vehicles was restored from both sides around 1 pm. Chandigarh: On account of Martyrs’ Day of Shaheed-e-Azam Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru, the UT Administration has declared a holiday on March 23 in government offices, boards, corporations and institutions, including industrial establishments, as also under Section 25 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, in city. TNS