27082023-ATR-01.qxd 8/27/2023 12:18 AM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY STONE OF ROAD REPAIR WORK ON BRIDGE LAID IN TARN TARAN DUA LIPA SAYS SHE IS NOT READY TO HAVE CHILDREN SANTHANAM’S HORROR COMEDY DD RETURNS TO PREMIERE ON OTT Ministers lay foundation stone of the Pangota-Khara bridge road repair work in Patti constituency. P2 Singer Dua Lipa doesn’t rule out the prospect of having children but for now, she’s focused on her career. P3 ZEE5 is gearing up for its next OTT release, DD Returns. The movie was a huge success in theatres. P4 » » MAX 34°C | MIN 24°C YESTERDAY MAX 34°C | MIN 22°C SUNSET SUNDAY 7.01 PM SUNRISE MONDAY 6:02 AM » SUNDAY | 27 AUGUST 2023 | AMRITSAR 2 held for murder of retired SDO Amritsar, August 26 With the arrest of two suspects, the police have cracked the murder case of a former PSPCL Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO) Rajinder Kumar Kalia. He was murdered five days ago. Those arrested were identified as Sahil and Ajay of Haripura, residents of a locality in the Islamabad area. While confirming the development Prabhjot Singh Virk, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police, said, “The police have recovered the bike used in the crime. Their third accomplice, who has the weapon, is yet to be arrested.” Kalia was at his confectionary shop in Bhalla Colony in Chheharta when he was shot dead by three bikeborne persons. Robbery was stated to be the reason behind the incident. The police had registered a murder case on the statement of Kalia’s wife Snehlata, a schoolteacher. The suspects entered the shop as customers. As they tried to snatch money from cash box, Kalia confronted them. One of the suspects took out a pistol and shot at him. He was rushed to a private hospital where doctors declared him brought dead. Virk said the two arrested suspects did not have any previous criminal record. They attempted robbery for the first time. He said they were currently on police remand and further investigation was under progress. He said raids were on to nab their third accomplice. — TNS Pathankot cops nab burglars posing as cooks, domestic helps A sum of ~57 lakh has been recovered from their possession Ravi Dhaliwal Tribune News Service Pathankot, August 26 Residents heaved a sigh of relief when news spread that the Pathankot police had arrested two Nepalese, who were the masterminds behind a series of recent robberies in the city. The accused used to offer their services in posh houses as cooks, drivers and domestic helps. Later, with the help of yet another team, they would conduct a reconnaissance of the area and rob people for whom they worked of their cash and ornaments. By the time the police would be informed they would flee to safer places outside the city. The accused have earned the sobriquet of “crooked cooks” in police circles. SSP Harkamal Preet Singh Khakh said the two accused — Hikmath Khadka and Dharam Raj Bohra — were part of a five-member inter-state gang. “The two were arrested after a detailed investigation that took us to several states. The accused had a history of evading the law as is evident from cases registered against them in New Delhi and various cities of Uttar Pradesh. A sum of Rs 57 lakh has been recovered from their possession. Preliminary investigations reveal that such gangs The two accused in custody of the Pathankot police. TRIBUNE PHOTO played big role in cracking ❝Technologyused to agive sedatives to theirthe case. The accused either victims before committing the heist or would spike their food. In some cases, in order to buy time till they reached a safer place, they would take away mobile phones of their victims. Harkamal Preet Singh Khakh, SSP, Pathankot ❞ of “crooked cooks” operated on a massive scale in this town. The arrests of Kahdka and Bohra is just the tip of the iceberg, that is why we always ask residents to verify the antecedents of people whom they recruit as servants,” said the SSP . Officers say such robberies were regularly being reported from the city after which a special team was formed. “Once the ‘cooks’ used to gain the confidence of the household members, they would start looking for places where the families kept their cash and ornaments. They would then inform their colleagues living in nearby cities about the value of the booty and the exact location where it was being kept in the house. Their colleagues would then rob the house. Such was the proximity they developed with the families with whom they worked that nobody ever suspected their role. They used to develop a special affinity with the members of the household,” said SSP Khakh. “On May 13 this year, the gang orchestrated a robbery in the house of an affluent businessman, Munish Pudar. The accused incapacitated some household members and decamped with a big haul of cash. A licensed pistol belonging to the owner was also taken away by the gang,” said an officer engaged in the investigations. The SSP immediately formed a team comprising DSP (City) Lakhwinder Singh Randhawa and Sub-Inspectors Mohit Taak and Sahil Pathania. Consequently, an FIR was registered at the Division No.1 police station under various sections of the IPC, including 120-B (criminal conspiracy). “We had some tangible clues which took the police team to Bengaluru where the two were arrested. Technology played a big role in cracking the case. The accused either used to give sedatives to their victim before committing the heist or would spike their food. In some cases, in order to buy time till they reached a safer place, they would take away the mobile phones of their victims,” said Khakh. The officials have appealed to residents to inform the police before hiring domestic helps, drivers or cooks. 3 arrested with 419-gm heroin Tribune News Service Amritsar, August 26 The Gharinda police have arrested Jagpreet Singh, a resident of Dhanoe Kalan village, with 400 gm of heroin. He was nabbed at a naka in Attari, a border town. He was travelling on a bike when the police team intercepted him at the naka. On search, drug was recovered from him. The suspect was produced in a court and brought on police remand for further interrogation to establish his backward and forward links. In the second incident, the Tarsikka police have arrested Pargat Singh and his wife, residents of Dehriwal village, and recovered 19 gm of heroin from their possession. Disposal panel destroys drugs Amritsar, August 26 The drug disposal committee of the city police today destroyed huge quantity of drugs by incineration at Khanna Paper Mill here today. Harjit Singh Dhaliwal, ADCP a member of the drug , disposal committee, said, “The police have destroyed 6.761 kg of heroin, 6.9 kg of charas, 3.49 kg of narcotic powder, besides 4,728 and 4,695 of intoxicant tablets and capsules, respectively.” He said the drugs were seized in as many as 90 cases registered with the police I in the past. — TNS Defunct ayurvedic wing of the ESI Hospital in Amritsar. VISHAL KUMAR Patients suffer as ayurvedic wing at hospital lies closed money ❝Somefrom myissalary deducted Amritsar, August 26 Patients willing to get treatment through the use of herbal medicines are an inconvenienced lot as the ayurvedic wing at the ESI hospital here has been lying non-functional for the past two years. Ram Avtar, a patient, said whenever he and his family visited the ESI hospital for seeking treatment through ayurvedic medicines, they had to return empty-handed. Neither Ayurvedic doctors nor medicines were available. He said patients were suffering a lot. Gulshan, another patient, said though some money was deducted from his salary towards the ESI fund every month, but they were getting no treatment here. A visit to the hospital costs dearly to a labourer as he has to forego the wages of the day, besides bearing travel costs. The Uttar Pradesh Kalyan Parishad recently handed over a memorandum each to District Ayurvedic and Unani Officer Dr Dinesh Sharma and Amritsar ESI Hospital Medical Superintendent Dr towards the ESI fund every month, but we are getting no treatment here. A visit to the hospital costs dearly to a labourer like me as I have to forego the wages of the day, besides bearing travel costs. ❞ Gulshan, A PATIENT Kirandeep to operationalize the facility. Ram Bhawan Goswami of the parishad in a communiqué to the Hospital and Punjab Ayurvedic Department said a large number of ESI card holders, a majority of whom being industrial labourers, had been complaining of not getting treatment at the ayurvedic wing. Dr Dinesh Sharma, District Ayurvedic Officer, said the OPD of ayurvedic medicine was functional at all ESI hospitals across the state. He said the parishad needed to write to the Secretary, Health Department, to get an ayurvedic doctor deputed. — TNS MC removes encroachments from Heritage Street 9 dengue, 16 chikungunya cases in dist Tribune News Service Amritsar, August 26 After getting several regular complaints, the estate wing of the municipal corporation cracked whip on illegal encroachments at the iconic Heritage Street near the Golden Temple here today. Though it was Saturday and the MC offices were closed, a team led by Estate Officer Sushant Bhatia inspected the Heritage Street and seized goods of encroachers. The MC team had removed some encroachments from the Heritage Street on Wednesday, but these were back on footpaths the very next day. On weekends, the Heritage Street witnesses heavy footfall. More than one lakh devo- An employee of the MC estate wing removes encroachments from the Heritage Street in Amritsar. tees visit the Golden Temple every Saturday. Due to encroachments in the street, they face inconvenience. The encroachers sell goods laid on folding beds on the footpaths in the street. It blocks the movement of commuters which further leads to heavy congestion in the surrounding areas. The MC officials found that some shopkeepers of the Heritage Street had sublet footpath in front of their shops to vendors on rent. The nexus between vendors and shopkeepers continues despite MC’s directions against encroaching the Heritage Street. Whenever, the MC removes encroachments, vendors return with their goods to the same footpath after a few hours. Estate Officer Sushant Tardy pace of Amritsar-Ferozepur rail track work irks businessmen Amritsar, August 26 Ten years after the approval of 25.47 km rail link between Amritsar and Ferozepur in the Rail budget, the state government has failed to hand over the land procured for the ambitious project to the authorities concerned. A notification to acquire the land was published long ago and the Social Impact Assessment (SIA) of the project was completed over three years ago. The SIA stated that 230 households would be affected during the land acquisition. Manufacturers and traders are annoyed at the government for tardy pace of work to complete the railway line between Amritsar and Ferozepur. It would bring down the distance between Amritsar with western parts of the country. PROJECT BENEFITS ■ Traders expenses for procuring raw material & transporting finished goods would go down ■ Ferozepur-Amritsar travel distance would reduce from 118 km to 86 km ■ Distance between Jammu & Mumbai would reduce by 267 km & Amritsar-Mumbai by 240 km If this rail link is established, it would bring down traders expenses incurred on procuring raw material and transporting finished goods. The 25-km railway line requires over 140 hectares between Patti and Mukhu to ply trains between Amritsar and Ferozepur. The railway line includes a key railway overbridge (ROB) of one-and-ahalf kilometres to be constructed over the Sutlej river starting from Kot Buddha village. The project would drastically reduce the distance between Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab and western states, including Maharashtra and Gujarat. The project would herald social and economic transformation of around 2.5 lakh people, besides providing another line of transportation to defence forces along the International Border. From the commercial point of view, the rail link is anticipated to shorten the distance between Ferozepur and Amritsar from present 118 km to 86 km. Similarly, the railway link would reduce the distance between Jammu and Mumbai by 267 km and from Amritsar to Mumbai by 240 km. — TNS c m y b Bhatia said, “We have received complaints about shopkeepers, who are paid by vendors, for encroaching the footpath in front of their shops in the Heritage Street. How can a trader sublet the government property to other person? We visited the Heritage Street today and seized goods kept on the ground and folding beds. We have increased surveillance in the area. Our teams would take action against encroachers on weekends too.” He further said after removing illegal vendors, the MC would keep a watch on the street so that no one encroaches government property. Action would be taken against violators under the Punjab Municipal Act, 1976, he added. Amritsar, August 26 The district Health Department has reported nine dengue and 16 chikungunya cases during the last 24 hours. Now, the total count of dengue and chikungunya cases has reached 222 and 179, respectively. Officials of the Health Department said the district had a total of 36 dengue and 63 chikungunya cases. In a fresh advisory issued by the department, the residents have been asked to get their tests conducted from diagnostic labs at government hospitals instead of private labs. The health officials said the tests for dengue and chikungunya were conducted free of cost. The government hospitals also provide free of cost treatment to patients. Municipal corporation employees conduct fogging in Amritsar. Civil Surgeon Dr Vijay Kumar said teams of the department were regularly visiting different areas of the city to take stock of the preventive measures taken in view of the spread of the viral infections. The Civil Surgeon said all programme officers had been asked to visit railway stations, bus stands, workshops and other public places to ensure that residents were made aware of the causes of the mosquito-borne diseases. Dr Vijay Kumar said mosquito-borne diseases could be easily prevented. He said people could use mosquito repellents and cover their bodies to avoid mosquito bites. He said the municipal corporation was regularly conducting fogging in all areas of the city. — TNS