01052023-CT-01.qxd 5/1/2023 12:28 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune ILLEGAL BUILDING COMING UP AT DARIA DEMOLISHED IPL: PICKPOCKETS HAVE A FIELD DAY AT PCA STADIUM PATIALA EVES LOG 5-WKT WIN, MAKE IT TO SEMIS The Enforcement and Periphery Team razes an illegal building being constructed in Daria village. P3 Several pickpocketing incidents have been reported at Mohali stadium during IPL matches recently. P3 Patiala eves register a five-wicket win over Jalandhar, qualify for semis of inter-dist women’s U-19 meet. P3 » » AIR QUALITY INDEX CHANDIGARH 131 PANCHKULA 82 MOHALI 78 401-500 301-400 201-300 101-200 51-100 0-50 SEVERE VERY POOR POOR MODERATE SATISFACTORY GOOD INBRIEF PEDESTRIAN DIES IN ACCIDENT Chandigarh: An unidentified pedestrian has been killed in a hit-and-run accident. Anuj Yadav reported that a vehicle sped away after hitting a pedestrian near the ITI light point. The police were informed about the incident and the victim was admitted to the PGI, where he died during treatment. The complainant noted down the registration number of the vehicle. The police have registered a case at the Industrial Area police station and started investigation. TNS MAN HELD WITH STOLEN BIKE Chandigarh: The police have arrested Sandeep, a resident of Phase VII, Mohali, for riding a stolen motorcycle bearing a fake registration number. He was nabbed in Sector 48. A case against him has been registered at the Sector 49 police station. The police said the motorcycle was stolen from Mauli Jagran in June 2022. TNS TWO BOOKED FOR CHEATING Chandigarh: Two persons have been booked for cheating a resident of Sector 8. Krishan Chand Sokhey alleged that Rajiv Sharma and Sanjay Makkar, from a finance company, issued him a fake sanction letter for a loan of Rs 3.50 crore and duped him of Rs 58 lakh on the pretext of depositing the processing fee and taxes between July 2020 and December 2022. The police have registered a case at the cybercrime police station and started investigation. TNS POWER SHUTDOWN MOHALI 9 am to 2 pm: New and old Sunny Enclave Sector 123, 124, 125; area of villages and colonies in Jhampur, Behlolpur, Thaska, Manana, Desu Majra, Hussainpur and Jandpur. 1,500 units replaced, residents to get 24-hour water supply Sandeep Rana ~162-CRORE PILOT PROJECT Tribune News Service Chandigarh, April 30 For the first time in the city, residents of Mani Majra have started getting ultrasonic smart water meters under a pilot project for providing round-the-clock water supply. Around 1,500 water meters have been replaced with ultrasonic smart ones. A total of 13,700 meters are to be replaced in the area. According to officials, with the installation of ultrasonic smart water meters, the Municipal Corporation staff need not visit these houses for taking the meter reading. The reading will be visible on the SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) system. The system will give not only monthly reading but also daily consumption figures. Besides, the new meters give 100 per cent accuracy. It will save on manpower and billing cost. Chandigarh Smart City Limited (CSCL) has allocated the Mani Majra pilot meter project to SBE Engineering and Infrastructure Private Limited for Rs 162 crore. It includes Rs 70.77 crore as capital cost and Rs 91.30 crore as cost on operations and maintenance of water supply for 15 years. The whole area of Mani Majra will be divided into four zones and 16 district metered areas (DMAs). Each DMA will have meters at the inlet and the outlet to know the exact loss of water and the total consumption. The SCA- Chandigarh Smart City Limited (CSCL) has allocated the Mani Majra pilot meter project to SBE Engineering and Infrastructure Private Limited for ~162 crore. It includes ~70.77 crore as capital cost and ~91.30 crore as cost of operations and maintenance of water supply for 15 years. NO MORE VISITS FOR METER READING Newly installed smart water meters in a locality of Mani Majra. A total of 13,700 meters are to be replaced. RAVI KUMAR WORK TO BE COMPLETED BY AUGUST completion August ❝Afterwill get waterof the project by and the2023, the residents supply 24 hours problem of contaminated water will be resolved. ❞ — Anindita Mitra, CEO, CSCL DA system will monitor the water meters and control the distribution network. “After completion of the project by August 2023, the residents will get water supply 24 hours and the problem of contaminated water will be resolved. The non-revenue water will be reduced from 35% to 15%. The chances of leaks in supply lines will be minimised,” said Anindita Mitra, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), CSCL, while talking to Chandigarh Tribune. As per the plan, a maximum of canal water will be available for the residents of Mani Majra and their dependency on groundwater from 32 tubewells will be reduced drastically. ■ Staff need not visit houses for taking reading as the figures will be available on the supervisory control and data acquisition system ■ The system will provide monthly as well as daily readings ■ It works with 100 per cent accuracy ■ Will save manpower and billing cost Most tubewells will be closed down, as such there will be a reduction in energy charges as well as other expenditures, said officials concerned. Besides, preparations are also being made for a separate 24x7 pan-city water supply project. These smart meters will be installed in the entire city. 24 years on, former CM Beant’s killer Tara visits native village Sec 10 resident loses ~15 lakh to cyber fraud Granted custody parole to attend brother’s bhog ceremony Tribune News Service Amit Sharma Tribune News Service Chandigarh, April 30 Jagtar Singh Tara, who is serving a life sentence at Model Jail, Burail, for the assassination of former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh, was yesterday granted a few hours of custody parole to attend the bhog ceremony of his brother at his native village in Ropar district. That was Tara’s first visit to his village in 24 years. It has been for the first time since his re-arrest in 2015 that the prisoner was granted a custody parole. His brother, 2004 JAIL ESCAPE ■ Tara was arrested in September 1995 in Delhi for his involvement in Beant Singh’s assassination. ■ He, along with two other assassins and a murder accused, Devi Singh, had escaped from the jail in 2004 after digging a 104foot-long tunnel. ■ While two of them were arrested a few years later, Tara was arrested in Thailand in 2015. ■ The fourth escapee, Devi Singh, is at large. Jaswinder Singh (53), passed away recently. The IG (Prisons), Deepak Purohit, allowed Tara’s custody parole after which the latter was taken to his village in tight police security and brought back to the jail the same day. Jail officials said Tara was taken to the village around 9.30 am and brought back by 3 pm. A team, led by a DSP was , provided assistance by the Punjab police. “There were several police vehicles with the security team to ensure that no untoward incident took place,” said a jail official. Tara claimed he last visited his village in 1999. continued on page 3 Chandigarh, April 30 A resident of Sector 10 has lost Rs 15 lakh to an online fraud. Anil Kumar Verma reported that he was facing some problem while using an e-commerce application downloaded on his mobile phone. He searched for the customer care number on Google and rang up to lodge his complaint, which was resolved. He received a call that he could not pick. Later, he called back on the same number and the caller introduced himself as an executive of the e-commerce application. continued on page 3 MAX 25°C | MIN 22°C YESTERDAY MAX 30.9°C | MIN 21.6°C SUNRISE TUESDAY 5:39 AM TWITTER/THETRIBUNECHD A first: Smart water meters installed in Mani Majra area GENERALLY CLOUDY SUNSET MONDAY 7 PM » MONDAY | 1 MAY 2023 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE 2G system obsolete, Burail jail to have new jammers FILE Amit Sharma Tribune News Service Chandigarh, April 30 The Model Burail Jail authorities are planning to upgrade their jamming system by replacing the outdated 2G network jammers with portable mobile phone jammers to be installed outside barracks. There have been frequent cases of recovery of mobile phones from jail inmates. The recovery of a total of 10 mobile phones from inmates, including notorious gangsters, during surprise checks in 2022, reflects the magnitude of the problem. While a previous proposal to install jammers of Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) didn’t materialise, the jail authorities are now working on a revised proposal for small jammers. The IG (Prisons), Deepak Purohit, said they were in the process of preparing the revised proposal. “The portable jammers will block the signal in a specific area,” he added. The existing jammers only work on the 2G network, while modern mobile phones are 4G and 5G compatible, rendering the jammers ineffective. PORTABLE JAMMERS TO BE PUT UP NEAR BARRACKS ■ 10 mobiles were recovered from inmates last year ■ In Nov, a bluetooth device was found in barracks No. 8 ■ Portable mobile phone jammers to be installed outside barracks ■ Use of phones or accessories by prisoners made a criminal offence in Chandigarh in 2020 The authorities admitted that the existing jammers were hardly of any use. In August 2022, the jail authorities had recovered a mobile phone from Arjun, who was lodged in barracks No. 5. In July, mobile phones and a charger concealed in the floor of the washroom of barrack No. 4 were recovered. The sources said almost all phones recovered from the jail had WhatsApp installed on them. In November last year, a bluetooth device was found hidden in the floor at barrack No. 8. A temporary jail warder was dismissed and a jail hospital employee arrested for working as a messenger for criminals lodged in the jail. In 2020, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) had made the use of phones or accessories by prisoners a criminal offence in Chandigarh. Removal of weed, plastic waste from Sukhna Choe begins Tribune News Service Chandigarh, April 30 The UT Forest Department has started the process of cleaning the Sukhna Choe ahead of monsoon. An official said a Rs 1.37crore tender had been floated. The work includes removal of polythene waste and weed to ensure a smooth flow of water. The official said the work would be completed before monsoon. Cleaning would be carried out in the area (Mani Majra block) under the jurisdiction of the Forest Department while the remaining part would be cleaned by the Engineering Department. When the water level in the Sukhna Lake reaches the danger mark, its floodgates are opened. The water is released into the choe. Last year, the water level in the Sukhna had reached close to the danger mark several times, forcing the department to open the floodgates. The official said the work In August 2020, water released into the Sukhna Choe had wreaked havoc on Baltana and other parts of Zirakpur. TRIBUNE PHOTO: VICKY FOREST DEPT FLOATS ~1.37-CRORE TENDER A forest official said work under ~1.37-crore tender also entailed the removal of wild grass and protection of plantation on the banks of the choe against weather and insects. entailed the removal of wild grass and protection of plantation on the banks of the choe against weather and insects. If the cleaning work is not taken up, it could lead to flooding of the Baltana area of Mohali district. On August 23, 2020, the excess water released from the Sukhna had wreaked havoc on Baltana and other parts of Zirakpur. A police post, marriage palaces, a municipal park, dairies and the cremation ground were inundated. After passing through the city, the choe merges into the Ghaggar river near Zirakpur. Furniture shop gutted in Mohali Tribune News Service Firefighters douse the flames at the shop, Decent Furniture, on the Landran-Chunni road in Mohali on Sunday. UT seeks WFI help to contain monkey menace Tribune News Service Mohali, April 30 A furniture shop on the Landran-Chunni road was partially gutted in a fire this morning. Passers-by saw smoke billowing out of the shop, Decent Furniture, around 9 am. Fire engines reached the spot within 15 minutes after being informed and brought the fire under control. Fire officials said some furniture was destroyed while the remaining was removed from the shop just in time. Kharar Chief Fire Officer Kaur Singh said, “Two fire engines were rushed to the spot.” A shortcircuit may have led to the fire, said the officials. Chandigarh, April 30 The UT Forest Department has written to the Wildlife Institute of India (WFI), Dehradun, to study the behaviour and habitat of monkeys straying into the city. Scientists of the premier institute have been requested to carry out the study in order to find a solution to the menace that has been troubling residents in parts of the city. The scientists will suggest measures to be taken to curb the problem. Forest officials said the WFI was a premier institute and its scientists had an expertise in dealing with issues of mananimal conflict. Sandeep Rana c m y b DECEMBER CENSUS There were 1,326 monkeys in parts of the city. At 594, the highest concentration was in Sector 14 (Panjab University), followed by 200 in Sector 1, 88 in Sector 28 and 75 in Sector 27. 170 MONKEYS CAUGHT ANNUALLY ❝We catch around 170 monkeys annually from the city. Still, these continue A group of monkeys on the Panjab University campus on Sunday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: PRADEEP TEWARI Debendra Dalai, Chief Conservator of Forests, confirmed they had sent a letter to the WFI. “We catch around 170 monkeys annually from parts of the city. Still, these continue to roam parts of the city causing trouble to local residents,” said a forest official. to roam parts of the city causing trouble to local residents. — Forest official Municipal Corporation councillor Harpreet Kaur Babla said, “The situation is so bad in my ward (Sectors 27, 28, 29) that monkeys enter kitchens, open fridge and take away fruits. These even take away clothes and household goods kept on terraces. ❞ The animals keep jumping on terraces in search of food and break covers of water tanks. Simians get violent or attack people if someone tries to shoo these away.” In December last year, the Forest Department carried out its first monkey census. It found there were 1,326 monkeys in parts of the city. At 594, the highest concentration was in Sector 14 (Panjab University), followed by 200 in Sector 1, 88 in Sector 28 and 75 in Sector 27. The forest staff had caught 80 animals over the past five months (November-March) and released these into the wildlife sanctuary and other far-flung areas. The department says it has placed nets at 25 vulnerable spots to catch monkeys, but residents feel it is not enough to tackle the problem. While the residents say there is a need to change the strategy, the officials advise people not to feed the animals to contain the menace.