27042023-LT-01.qxd 4/27/2023 12:34 AM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune SAFAI KARAMCHARIS PROTEST AGAINST DELAY IN SALARIES APARSHAKTI’S NEXT SONG AS SINGER IS INSPIRED BY JUBILEE HOLLYWOOD DIRECTOR GUNN WANTS TO WORK WITH NTR JR Staff object to Municipal Corporation’s plan to hire company for door-to-door lifting of garbage in city. P2 Currently riding on the success of the period drama Jubilee, we are soon going to see him in a retro avatar. P3 Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn has shared that he wants to work with RRR-fame NTR Jr. P4 » » » FORECAST GENERALLY CLOUDY MAX 34°C | MIN 21°C YESTERDAY MAX 36°C | MIN 19°C SUNSET THURSDAY 7.02 PM SUNRISE FRIDAY 5.45 AM THURSDAY | 27 APRIL 2023 | LUDHIANA DA CASE Ex-MLA Vaid quizzed again for over 6 hrs Brampton homicide: Canada police issue arrest warrant Kalahar-based victim’s parents seek death penalty for ‘killer’ Tribune News Service Mahesh Sharma Ludhiana, April 26 Former Congress MLA Kuldeep Vaid was questioned again by the Vigilance Bureau (VB), Ludhiana, for over six hours in the disproportionate assets (DA) case. He produced some documents related to properties and bank accounts to Vigilance sleuths. This is the fifth time that Vaid appeared before the VB. Last he appeared on April 19 but he had then failed to produce all property-related documents sought by the department. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Vigilance Bureau, Ludhiana, Ravinderpal Singh Sandhu, said last time Vaid had not produced all papers related to property and other investments. “Today, he has submitted some incomplete documents. Hence, he has been called again on May 3,” the Sandhu said. POWER SHUTDOWN LUDHIANA 9 am to 4.30 pm: Jyoti Colony, Mahajan Vihar, Sukhdev Nagar, Baba Deep Singh Nagar, GRD Colony, GK Estate, Bhamian Khurd, Mahavir Colony, Jain Villa, Ramandeep Colony, Shankar Colony, Krishna Colony and Balaji Estate. 9.40 am to 5 pm: Shakti Nagar, New Shakti Nagar, Shastri Nagar street no 3, 4 and 5, Beas Dyeing, Dada Motors and surrounding areas, Dairy Complex, Indrapuri Street nos 4 and 5, parts of Jagdishpura. 10 am to 4 pm: Iqbal Ganj, Khawaja Kothi Chowk, Khud Mohalla, Rupa Mistri Gali, Gulchaman Gali and Ahata Sher Jang. 10 am to 6 pm: Guru Gobind Singh Nagar, Azad Nagar, Basant Nagar, Dhillon Nagar, Ekta Marg, Sukhdev Nagar, Garg Colony, Grewal Colony, Major Foundary, Sunder Nagar, Gurbachan Nagar, Gurmail Nagar, Pipal Chowk, Bapu Market, MJK Nagar, Krishna Colony, Hero Nagar, Karamjit Nagar, Kunti Nagar, Prem Nagar, New Satguru Nagar, Phase 4 sheds and part of Vishwakarma Colony. Mandi Ahmedgarh, April 26 The parents of Pawanpreet Kaur, murdered last December in Canada, are satisfied that the Canadian police have issued an arrest warrant for one Dharam Singh Dhaliwal for first-degree murder of their daughter. The 21-year-old Pawanpreet, a native of Kalahar village in Payal subdivision of the district, died after she was shot multiple times at a gas station in Brampton, Greater Toronto Area (GTA), on December 3, 2022. Though the parents of the accused had claimed that he had died by suicide, the investigating police announced on Monday that the person responsible for the fatal shooting had been identified as Dharam Dhaliwal and he had intentionally gone missing Four injured as LPG cylinder catches fire Ludhiana, April 26 Four persons, including three women, suffered serious burn injuries in a flash fire caused due to leakage of a LPG gas cylinder in a house at Lohara here on Wednesday. The injured were taken to a hospital where their condition was stated to be normal. House owner Shiv Gobind said he had lent a portion of his house to Pardeep Soni. Recently he had taken a LPG connection from Bachan Gas agency in the area. Cylinder was not working properly due to some technical fault. Pardeep had lodged a complaint with the agency. This evening, the agency sent an employee to rectify the fault. He claimed that he had rectified the fault. However, when he connected the cylinder and lit the stove, flash fire occurred due to gas leakage. The agency employee and three women namely Kusum, Urmila Devi and Chameli Devi suffered burn injuries in the incident. — TNS ACCUSED’S PARENTS CLAIMED HE HAD DIED BY SUICIDE The parents of accused Dharam Singh Dhaliwal had feigned that he had died by suicide. However, the investigating police announced on Monday that the person responsible for the fatal shooting had been identified as Dharam Dhaliwal and he had intentionally gone missing prior to the murder. prior to the murder. The police have cautioned the public in Pawanpreet Canada that Kaur, the victim Dharam should be considered armed and dangerous. Pritpal Dhaliwal and Amarjit Kaur Dhaliwal, the brother and mother of the accused, were earlier arrested for helping him in the murder and helping him escape. Davinder Singh of Kalahar, the father of the victim, alleged that Dharam had been blackmailing his daughter on various pretexts. Davinder demanded that his daughter’s killer be hanged after arrest. “The Canada police have informed us about the outcome of their investigations and assured us that Dharam would be arrested soon,” said Davinder, adding that the parents of the accused had even pretended to perform his last rites to fool the police. It was in the second week of December that the body of Pawanpreet was cremated in her native village and her parents had sought capital punishment for the killer. continued on page 2 Shahi Imam recalls Badal’s relation with Muslim community Our Correspondent Ludhiana, April 26 Expressing immense shock and grief over the demise of veteran politician and Akali Dal patriarch Parkash Singh Badal, Shahi Imam of Punjab, Maulana Mohammed Usman Rehmani, today spoke about the long-standing relationship of his family and the entire Muslim brotherhood with the departed leader and former Punjab Chief Minister. The Shahi Imam said the senior Badal always rose above political considerations in maintaining relations with persons from different cultural, social and religious backgrounds. He was known for his secular approach among people of different castes, creeds, regions and religions, the imam added. Recalling long-standing relations with the fivetime Chief Minister, he said right from his grandfather Hazrat Maulana Mufti Mohammed Ahmed, his father Maulana Habibur-Rehman, and down to him, the legendary Akali leader had maintained close relationship with the Muslim community and remained a frequent visitor to the Jama Masjid here, especially during religious festivals of the community. Rehmani said in the death of the leader, the state had lost a political genius and a torch-bearer for Punjab and Punjabis. He also expressed felt condolences with Akali Dal president Sukhbir Badal and said he hoped he would also follow in the footsteps of his father to maintain amity and communal harmony in the state. 18-year-old beaten to death, friend gets serious injuries One of 15 suspects held; they tried to portray incident as road mishap Tribune News Service Ludhiana, April 26 An 18-year-old youth, Ujjwal, was beaten to death and his friend Amit was rendered serious injuries by several youths at Green City, Dhandra road. The assailants tried to portray the incident as a road mishap case as they had informed the ambulance helpline that two youths suffered critical injuries in an accident and they needed immediate help. After cornering the victims, the suspects bundled the duo in their Innova vehicle and took them to some isolated place near Roop Nagar where they thrashed the latter badly. The suspects have been ‘STATEMENT OF DECEASED’S FRIEND UNFOLDED MYSTERY’ “Amit, the friend of the deceased, who had suffered serious injuries, regained consciousness on Tuesday. His statement unveiled the mystery behind the death of Ujjwal. The autopsy report also exposed the lies of the assailants. Accordingly, the police registered a murder case on Tuesday,” the deceased’s father said. identified as Sidhant Kumar of Satjot Nagar, Akhilesh, Arvind Singh, Tony, all residents of Dhandra road, Narayan, Bharat, Golu, Ramayan, Dheeraj and six unidentified assailants. Complainant Jaswant Singh of Dugri told the police that the incident occured on April 23 night around 11 pm when his son Ujjwal and his friend Amit were returning home on their motorcycle after paying obeisance at some reli- gious place in Dugri. On the way, they had arguments with a cyclist on the Dhandra road. Later, the cyclist called the suspects who first attacked them and then bundled them into their Innova vehicle. They took the duo to an empty plot where they brutally attacked them and left the victims almost dead. “The suspects tried to portray it as a case of accident. One of the assailants called the ambulance service and said the duo Uncle booked for violating 12-year-old Ludhiana, April 26 A 12-year-old girl was raped by her uncle (father’s younger brother) at Guru Ramdas Nagar, Tajpur road. The Jamalpur police yesterday registered a case against the suspect, Madan, a native of Jamalpur, at present staying in the Tajpur road area. The complainant, the victim’s mother, told the police that on April 9 she along with her family members had gone to their native place in UP and she had left their daughter at the house of her brother-in-law, who stays in their neighbourhood. When she returned after a few days, her daughter was looking upset. When asked the reason, she said on April 14, her uncle forcibly developed sexual relationship with her and also threatened her of dire consequences if she reveals anything to her family, she alleged. She said recently they had lodged a complaint and after preliminary probe, the police yesterday registered a case. — TNS The activists have claimed that the pond in Gill village has turned into a dumping ground for garbage, leading to contamination of both surface and groundwater. TRIBUNE PHOTO DUMPING OF WASTE IN GILL VILLAGE POND Two city activists move NGT Tribune News Service Ludhiana, April 26 Two activists have filed a complaint with the National Green Tribunal (NGT), accusing government departments, private hotels and marriage palaces of contaminating the Gill village pond and degrading the environment. The activists, Kapil Arora and Kuldeep Singh Khaira, claimed that the pond, located on the main Malerkotla Road, has turned into a dumping ground for garbage and other waste materials, Ludhiana ranks third among 12 ‘rising cities’ in country, says survey Nitin Jain Tribune News Service Ludhiana, April 26 Ludhiana has ranked third among 12 ‘rising cities’ in the country in a latest survey, which has rated the cities on several parameters pertaining to urban infrastructure and mobility. The study, ‘Ease of Moving Index — India Report 2022’, was conducted by the OMI Foundation (OMI), a policy research and social innovation think tank operating at the intersection of mobility innovation, governance and public good. It houses three interconnected centres which conduct cutting-edge evidence-based policy research on all things mobility. The report, a copy of which is with The Tribune, has revealed that public transport usage among women and the trans/non-binary is the highest in Ludhiana. Ludhiana has scored 33.7 points in the “ease of moving index” (EoMI) survey, to be Public transport usage among women highest in city ABOUT THE SURVEY Passengers board buses in Ludhiana on Wednesday. ASHWANI DHIMAN Ease of Moving Index is India’s largest-ever mobility survey, covering over 50,000 respondents stratified by gender, disability and income across 40 cities. The study sets mobility scores and ranks cities on nine parameters covering over 40 indicators, which will be updated regularly in future years. The 2022 edition also places emphasis on active and shared mobility as a key enabler of clean mobility. ranked third, while Coimbatore and Guwahati stood first and second with 40.6 and 34.3 score, respectively. Among other cities, Nashik ranked fourth with 33.1 score, Varanasi fifth with 32.3 points, Raipur sixth with 30.5 score, Chandigarh seventh with 29.9 points, Gurugram eighth with 28.7 score, Ranchi ninth with 27.4 points, Vijayawada 10th with 26.7 score, Mysuru 11th with 26.3 points and Jabalpur stood 12th with 26 score. The parameters on which the ‘rising cities’ were ranked, included impetus for active and shared mobility, in which Ludhiana scored 0.292 points, seamless mobility 0.416 points, towards vision zero 0.436 points, mobility for all 0.396 points, affordable mobility 0.464 points, efficient and reliable mobility 0.409 points, clean mobility 0.483 points, future mobility 0.162 points, and 0.18 points for investment in the city. The ‘rising cities’ comprise those with a projected population between 10 to 20 lakh. The smallest city by population is Chandigarh while the largest is the wine capital of India, Nashik. Among the 12 cities mentioned in this cluster, three cities — Jabalpur, Mysuru, and Vijayawada — were also part of EoMI 2018, four — Chandigarh, Raipur, Guwahati and Ranchi — are administrative capitals and nine are smart cities except Gurugram, Mysuru and Vijayawada. The other cities c m y b had suffered injuries in a road accident. The ambulance took them to the Civil Hospital where Ujjwal succumbed to his injuries the same night while his friend Amit, who had suffered serious injuries, regained consciousness yesterday. His statement unveiled the mystery behind the death of Ujjwal. The autopsy report also exposed the lies of the assailants. Accordingly, the police registered a murder case on Tuesday,” the deceased’s father said. Investigating officer ASI Harmesh Lal said one of the accused, Sidhant, was arrested and raids were being conducted to nab the other suspects. have distinct attributes and are strategically significant. However, Ludhiana has not found a place in the other three categories of cities — “promising, booming and mega cities” — ranked in the survey. Among the ‘rising cities’, Ludhiana and Ranchi have the lowest number of buses across all cities and therefore, have low impetus for active and shared mobility. Chandigarh leads the way in providing impetus to active and shared mobility among the ‘rising cities’. “Investment made in the shape of 210-km dedicated cycle tracks and a thriving public bicycle sharing system across the city reflects in the healthy adoption of active and shared mobility within the city,” the EoMI report said while mentioning that the planned cycling infrastructure also acts as an impetus for citizens to own and ride bicycles. In the “personal mobility” parameter of the “rising cities”, Ludhiana was report- ed to have 0.531 personalised motorised two and fourwheelers per lakh population, which was highest among all 12 “rising cities”. Lower the number of personal vehicles, higher the reliance on shared mobility, said the study. In the “power of pedals” category, the bicycle ownership amongst respondents in Ludhiana was 0.361 per lakh population, which was seen as an impetus for active mobility. This was less than Raipur, Varanasi and Jabalpur, which have 0.378, 0.374, and 0.362 bicycle ownership per lakh population, respectively. In the “public mobility” index, Ludhiana has 0.042 buses per lakh population, which was lowest among all the “rising cities”. The sufficient fleet of buses encourages commuters to adopt shared mobility. However, Ludhiana has no bus rapid transit and rail-based mass transit infrastructure, which was also studied under the “mass transit” category. In the “24x7 mobility” index, Ludhiana has 0.371 commuters per lakh population perception on ease of access to public transport at all times, which was second lowest after Varanasi with 0.367 points. In the “adoption of public transport” category, Ludhiana’s share of commuters stating regular usage of public transport was reported 0.378 per lakh population, which was again second lowest after Vijaywada with 0.267 score. In the “adoption of shared and active mobility” parameter, Ludhiana’s stated usage of active and shared mobility was 0.553 per lakh population, which was third lowest after Jabalpur and Varanasi with 0.461 and 0.551 points, respectively. In the “seamless mobility” index, Ludhiana scored 0.416 points for robust mobility system, which was fourth highest after Guwahati, Coimbatore and Gurugram with 0.519. 0.447 and 0.429 points, respectively. continued on page 2 leading to the contamination of both surface and groundwater. They also criticised the government departments concerned for allegedly neglecting the issue. The activists have urged the NGT to take appropriate action to address the issue. 26 fresh Covid cases in dist Ludhiana, April 26 The Department of Health and Family Welfare confirmed 26 new cases of Covid19 here on Wednesday. Among the infected persons, 11 had influenza-like illness, three had visited the OPD, four were undertrials, one had come into contact with positive patients and seven others. To date, the total number of positive cases in Ludhiana district stands at 1,14,302 with 3,024 deaths, the Health Department confirmed. At present, there are 245 active cases in the district. — TNS FIGURES Samples Positive Deaths 41,06,305 1,14,302 3,024 FOR ANY INFORMATION RELATED TO COVID Contact 0161-2444193 0161-4622276