23092023-LT-01.qxd 9/23/2023 1:10 AM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune VACANT PLOTS TURN INTO GARBAGE DUMPS IN WARD 45 AASTHA TALKS ABOUT HER ROLE IN FILM NEERJA... RAGHAV-PARINEETI WEDDING PREPARATIONS IN FULL SWING Residents urge civic body to construct parks and check menace of stray dogs and cattle. P2 Aastha Sharma says playing Neerja has been the most challenging experience for me. P3 The wedding of AAP MP Raghav Chadha and actress Parineeti Chopra to be held at Leela Palace. P4 » » » FORECAST GENERALLY CLOUDY MAX 30°C | MIN 25°C YESTERDAY MAX 34°C | MIN 26°C SUNSET SATURDAY 6.22 PM SUNRISE SUNDAY 6:15 AM SATURDAY | 23 SEPTEMBER 2023 | LUDHIANA Relocation work done, railway station upgrade picks up pace ~529-crore project to facelift British era junction by 2025 Nitin Jain Tribune News Service Ludhiana, September 22 The work of redeveloping and upgrading the Ludhiana railway station at the cost of Rs 528.95 crore has been expedited after the geotechnical investigation, survey and relocation of existing structures had been completed, the Northern Railway has said. The project, which was awarded at engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) mode to a local firm on December 19 last, has been targeted to be completed by August 2, 2025. Being undertaken through the EPC mode, the redevelopment work entails a host of new facilities and upgrade of existing services to give a new and modern look to the British era’s biggest junction in the Ferozepur Division, officials have revealed. The total project cost of Rs 528.95 crore included the contract value of Rs 472.94 crore, project management consultant (PMC) cost of Rs 4.56 crore and other allied expenditures. The development assumes significance as it will be the first major revamp of the railway station, established way back in 1860. Rajya Sabha MP from Ludhiana Sanjeev Arora, who reviewed the progress of the project recently, told The Tribune on Friday that the geotechnical investigation and survey work had already been completed while 97 per cent of the work involving relocation of existing facilities had also been completed so far. He said Northern Railway General Manager has informed him that 75 per cent of the approvals for architectural designs had already been accorded, 55 per cent of the structural design approvals had been obtained and 35 per cent of the MEP design approvals had also Work on redeveloping and upgrading the Ludhiana railway station in progress. HIMANSHU MAHAJAN ACCOMPLISHMENTS ■ Geotechnical investigation, survey work: Completed ■ Relocation work: 97% complete ■ Architectural design approvals: 75% complete ■ Structural design approvals: 55% complete ■ MEP design approvals: 35% complete ■ Master plan, relocation plan: Approved ■ General arrangement drawings of quarters (Type II, III, IV), been granted so far. Arora was apprised that slab casting and column steel binding of the third floor at block A and B had been done for construction of multistoreyed Type II quarters. While the slab shuttering and backfilling works were in progress for Type II of C and D blocks, raft steel binding and backfilling had been completed for Type III quarters in E and F blocks. Dressing work was in progress for Type IV block and the column work was also in progress for the rest house building. The plinth beam steel binding was also on to construct PROJECT REPORT officers’ rest house, multi-level parking: Approved ■ Floor plans, conceptual plans: Approved ■ Excavation: Completed ■ PCC and footing: Completed ■ Construction of multi-storeyed quarters, rest house, Type I-IV blocks: Under progress ■ Main station building, second entry, concourse, FOBs: Demolition, relocation and detailed design in progress. the hospital building. While the demolition of the main station building was in progress, the relocation and detailed designs of the second entry station building, concourse and foot overbridges were also in progress. The railway station development work involved relocation of 130 existing quarters, rest house, hospital, main station building and railway offices for clearance of the site for construction of the main and secondary entry of the new station building. What all it entails The project entails additional Expedite recovery of property tax dues: MC chief to officials Tribune News Service Ludhiana, September 22 Municipal Corporation (MC) Commissioner Sandeep Rishi directed officials to expedite the recovery of dues from residents and encourage them to take the benefit of the one time settlement (OTS) policy for paying their pending property tax. The directions were issued by the MC Commissioner during a meeting with Zonal Commissioners and superintendents at the MC’s Zone D office here on Friday. Under the OTS policy, residents can now pay the pending tax in lump sum without penalty and interest by December 31, 2023. The civic body chief said the amount recovered from the residents in the form of property tax was used for the development of the city and providing basic amenities to the people. Meanwhile, MC officials have clarified that the OTS policy was not applicable to cases of wrong assessment of property tax done by residents in the past. The tax was submitted on a self-assessment basis. The officials said the residents who had failed to pay the tax in the past could avail benefits under the OTS policy. But those who did wrong assessment of tax and paid less tax in comparison to the actual assessment, could not avail the benefits under the policy. ~528.95 cr PROJECT COST ~472.94 cr CONTRACT VALUE ■ PMC cost: ~4.56 crore ■ Project awarded: December 19, 2022 ■ Completion date: August 2, 2025 entry from the elevated road for smooth traffic flow, arrival and departure segregation in the station area, new multilevel car parking and 12,600 sq m surface parking area, provision of proper second entry, iconic station buildings with green building certification (gold rated), new signage and digital displays for all travel-related information and spacious 72-m wide departure concourse with world-class amenities. The existing main side station building spread over 3,780-sq m would be segregated into two station buildings, including the main side continued on page 2 Devp works: Panel approves 50 proposals Ludhiana, September 22 In a meeting of the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) held at the MC’s Zone D office today, about 50 proposals related to development works were approved. The proposals include estimates related to road and street projects for different parts of the city. The meeting was headed by MC Commissioner Sandeep Rishi while officials of different branches were present. Discussions were also held regarding projects under the Smart City Mission, Swachh Bharat Mission and the NCAP — TNS . 11 fresh dengue cases reported, count 252 Ludhiana, September 22 As dengue cases continue to surge, 11 fresh cases of the disease were officially confirmed in the district on Friday. Among these, eight persons who tested positive for dengue are residents of city areas, including Kali Sadak, Haibowal Kalan, Model Town, Dashmesh Nagar, SBS Nagar on Dhandra Road, Bahadur Ke Road, BRS Nagar and South City. season, a total of 252 positive dengue cases have been reported from different parts of the district so far. However, there are still 30 active cases in the district. Awareness campaigns Health staff during an awareness drive against dengue in Doraha. In rural areas, three cases have been reported in Khera, Lasara in the Malaudh area and Mohalla Molvian in Raikot. This Doraha: The Payal Civil Hospital is conducting awareness campaigns and holding inspections to prevent further spread of dengue in Doraha. continued on page 2 c m y b Collision between two cars claims elderly woman’s life Ludhiana, September 22 A collision occurred between two cars near a gurdwara in Sarabha Nagar here on Friday morning. The impact of the collision was so severe that vehicles were badly damaged. Hearing the sound of the collision, residents gathered at the scene and after a lot of efforts managed to take out occupants from the cars. An elderly woman was badly injured in the mishap. She was rushed to a hospital but was declared brought dead by doctors. The woman has been identified as Sukhwinder Kaur (62) of Raikot. After getting information, police personnel reached the spot. Sukhwinder Kaur, along A CCTV grab of the mishap occurred in Sarabha Nagar, Ludhiana. with her kin, was going to her home in Raikot on Friday morning after taking medicines from the Civil Hospital. Meanwhile, when they reached near Sarabha Nagar gurdwara, a speeding car driven by a youth, coming from the other side hit their vehicle. The collision was so severe that the car overturned on the road and was also dragged by the other vehicle. The woman suffered major injuries. Though she was rushed to Deep Hospital, she was declared brought dead. SHO, Sarabha Nagar, SI Amarinder Singh, said a compromise was reached between the errant driver, who was driving rashly, and the deceased’s kin. Hence, no case was registered. 20-year-old found dead in Barewal canal Ludhiana, September 22 A youth was found dead in the Barewal canal. He was missing for the past three days. The deceased has been identified as Ramesh (20). Some passers-by informed the police after noticing the body entangled in a net in the canal. Victim’s father Pradeep said his son was staying alone for the past five years. He used to consume ‘chitta’. For the past three days, he had not seen him in the area. Following which, he started searching for him. On Thursday night, his body was found in the canal. The police said the deceased’s father had not been suspecting any foul play in his death. Hence, inquest proceedings were initiated. — TNS Four travel agents dupe three of ~43L Ludhiana, September 22 The city police yesterday registered separate cases against four travel agents who duped three residents of Rs 43 lakh on the pretext of sending them abroad. In the first incident, two travel agents duped a city resident of Rs 30 lakh on the pretext of sending him to Canada. The suspects after taking the money handed over a fake visa to the complainant. The duo had been identified as Dharminder Singh of Manjit Nagar and Balvir Singh of Dugri. Complainant Abhishek Gabha, a resident of SBS Nagar, told the police that the suspects had taken Rs 30 lakh to arrange work permit for him. Later, they handed him visa. But during inquiry, it was found to be fake. Now, they refused to return the money. The agents had also cheated other people in a similar way. The Dehlon police registered a case against Bhupinder Singh of Pakhowal road for swindling Rs 4.75 lakh from Satnam Singh on the pretext of sending him to Dubai. After taking the mon- ey, he failed to arrange the visa of the complainant. The Haibowal police also booked a travel agent, Jagjit Arora, of City Enclave on the charges of duping Komalpreet Kaur of the Sodal road, Jalandhar, of Rs 8.29 lakh on the pretext of sending her son to Canada on a study visa. After taking the money, the suspect failed to fulfil his promise.— TNS