14112023-CT-01.qxd 11/14/2023 12:29 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune CITY HOSPITALS SEE 177 EYE INJURY, BURNS CASES LADIES GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP TEES OFF IN CITY TODAY TEMPORARY NIGHT SHELTERS TO COME UP AT 7 PLACES 92 burns cases and 26 eye injuries treated at the GMSH-16 and civil hospitals of the city. P3 Three-day Punjab Open Ladies Golf Championship will be held at the Chandigarh Golf Club. P3 MC is going to set up temporary night shelters at seven locations for three months at a cost of ~1.33 cr. P3 » » AIR QUALITY INDEX CHANDIGARH 238 PANCHKULA 222 MOHALI 228 401-500 301-400 201-300 101-200 51-100 0-50 SEVERE VERY POOR POOR MODERATE SATISFACTORY GOOD Mobile found on jail inmate Chandigarh, November 13 One more inmate has been caught with a mobile in the Burail jail. Amandeep Singh, Additional Superintendent, Model Jail, reported a mobile was recovered from Ashwani Kumar, alias Kalu. A case under Section 52A (1) of the Prisons (Punjab Amendment) Act-2011 has been registered. Seven mobile phones have been recovered from the jail inmates in the past few months, which has raised concerns about the effectiveness of measures taken by the authorities to prevent use of mobile in the jail. In September, a mobile phone was recovered from an inmate lodged in barrack number 5. On August 16, a search in barrack number 8 resulted in the recovery of three mobile phones. On August 10, three mobile phones were found on jail inmates. — TNS MAX 29°C | MIN 13°C YESTERDAY MAX 28°C | MIN 12.3°C SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 6:47 AM TWITTER/THETRIBUNECHD FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE Curbs no deterrent, fireworks go on unabated No check, ban flouted with impunity in city Tribune News Service Chandigarh, November 13 Administration’s restrictions on the bursting of crackers went for a toss as fireworks continued before and after the two-hour window on Diwali. Even today and before Diwali, crackers were burst in the city with impunity. The UT police failed to enforce the directions on restricted fireworks as crackers continued to be burst in parts of the city beyond the permissible limit. As per the orders, only green firecrackers were allowed to be burst between 8 pm and 10 pm on Diwali. However, fireworks started in the evening yesterday and continued beyond 10 pm. The loud noise of crackers was heard till midnight. In the absence of any check, violations continued on Diwali and a day before and after. As per the orders issued by District Magistrate Vinay Pratap Singh, only green crackers certified by CSIR-NEERI were allowed to be burst during the two-hour window. Though the sale and use of joined firecrackers (laris) of any kind was banned, many residents were seen bursting the same. It was also being sold openly at the sites allocated by the UT Administration. SECTOR 22 People burst crackers in Chandigarh on Diwali night. PRADEEP TEWARI IMTECH POOR ENFORCEMENT OF ADMN ORDERS PEC-12 Fireworks continued in the city before and after Diwali as there was no enforcement of the ban orders. Intermittent bursting of crackers was heard on Monday evening too. Chandigarh, November 13 A Punjab-cadre IAS officer had a narrow escape when a bullet landed in his bedroom at Sector 24 last night. The 2009 batch officer, Varinder Kumar Sharma, was present in the bedroom when the bullet pierced through the window around 11.10 pm. No one was injured in the incident. Sharma, who is posted as MD, Punjab Health Systems Corporation, while speaking to the media, said he had no enmity with anyone and the incident could be the result of a celebratory firing on Diwali. The police were informed about the incident. A team reached the spot and started investigation. Sources said the incident was being inves- Creating nuisance Fire incidents Accidents Quarrels Miscellaneous Total besides 136 miscellaneous spot visits. Twentyone incidents of road accidents were also witnessed in the city. The police said 23 fire incidents were also reported prompting swift action by fire brigade. tigated from various angles. “Either some miscreant opened fire at the house or probably, some gunman deputed in the area fired a shot from his service revolver during the Diwali celebrations,” said the sources. A part of the fired bullet recovered from the room indicates it might be fired from a .32 or .38-bore weapon. The area has a number of government houses of various bureaucrats and judicial officers. The police have registered a case under Sections 25, 27, 54 and 59 of the Arms Act and 336 of the IPC at the Sector 11 police station. Footage of CCTV cameras installed in the area is being scrutinised. Meanwhile, the police collected the details of security personnel posted in the area. CTU to start service to IGI Airport today Tribune News Service Fare for HVAC buses fixed at ~485 DEPARTURE TIMINGS From ISBT-17: 4.50 am, 6 am, 3 pm and 4 pm From IGI Airport: 11.50 am, 1 pm, 10 pm and 11 pm am, 1 pm, 10 pm and 11 pm. The CTU has earned a record revenue. There has been an increase of Rs 35.89 crore in the financial year 2022-23 compared to 2021-22. The revenue increased by Rs 8.93 crore in the financial SECTOR 22 NOISIEST IN CITY On Diwali, the highest noise levels were observed at Sector 22 at 79.2 dB(A) and the lowest at Sector 17 at 64.4 dB(A) from 8 pm to 10 pm blowing. The air quality was “moderate” next morning. The Air quality index and 2019 Location Chandigarh, November 13 The police received 75 complaints about nuisance due to bursting of crackers in the city yesterday, which was more than 51 calls made Diwali last year. The Police Control Room handled 1,070 calls and visited the spot with regard to 466. Many residents complained to the police about the bursting of crackers beyond the permissible limit. The police said of the total calls they attended, 75 were related to nuisance due to crackers. Additionally, 35 calls regarding general nuisance were also attended by the PCR staff. There were quarrels in parts of the city as 155 spots were visited by the police, 2023 2022 51 35 47 23 14 21 37 155 129 136 138 445 416 Smog engulfs a road in Chandigarh on Diwali night. PRADEEP TEWARI noise levels at all observatory stations increased on Diwali in comparison to normal days. The weather conditions led to an improvement in the AQI after 3 am on November 13 and are likely to continue further. The monitoring of ambient air quality and noise levels were conducted on a normal day, i.e. about one week before Diwali, and on the day of festival. The air was monitored on November 6 (normal day) and on Diwali at six locations. The trend of air quality during the normal day was satisfactory or moderate (AQI levels below 150) at all stations. On Diwali, it was “satisfactory” up to 6 pm. As this time Diwali fell in November, climatic conditions and stubble burning already had an impact on the air quality, which sometimes hit the “very poor” category. HIGHEST AQI IN FIVE YEARS OBSERVED AT THREE MONITORING STATIONS Tribune News Service Nuisance due to crackers 75 Hits ‘severe’ level at Sec 53 around 10 pm Chandigarh, November 13 The city’s air quality deteriorated to the “very poor” and “severe” levels on Diwali night. According to the Chandigarh Pollution Control Committee, the air quality got worsened after 6 pm on Diwali. Around 10 pm, it was “severe” at the Sector 53 monitoring station and “very poor” at the Sector 22, PEC (Sector 12) and IMTECH stations where the Air quality index (AQI) reached 453, 392, 301 and 360, respectively. The highest AQI in five years was observed at three of the six monitoring stations in the city. However, there was an improvement in the AQI after 2-3 am and it further improved as wind started Tribune News Service CALLS ATTENDED Air quality takes a hit on Diwali night Tribune News Service 75reportnuisancedue Close shave for officer, to bursting of crackers bullet lands in bedroom Chandigarh, November 13 To promote simple, efficacious and reliable public transport, the Chandigarh Transport Undertaking (CTU) is going to start its HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning) bus service for the IGI Airport, New Delhi, from tomorrow. “The fare from the ISBT-17, Chandigarh, to the IGI Airport will be Rs 485 per passenger,” said Pradhuman Singh, Director Transport, UT. At present, the CTU has been providing the bus service for various destinations in the neighbouring states of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Rajasthan, UP and Uttarakhand. He said the proposed bus service would start from the ISBT-17 at 4.50 am, 6 am, 3 pm and 4 pm, and from the IGI Airport, New Delhi, at 11.50 MAINLY CLEAR SKY SUNSET TUESDAY 5:27 PM » TUESDAY | 14 NOVEMBER 2023 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST year 2023-24 against 2022-23 collection despite the condemnation of 20 buses. In a bid to curb the revenue loss, the UT Transport Department has intensified its efforts against travelling without ticket. From Novem- ber 2022 to October 2023, the department had imposed a total fine of Rs 3.56 lakh in 1,597 cases of ticketless travel. The CTU operates approximately 580 buses from various depots across the city, including 178 vehicles from depot number 1, 170 from depot number 2, 138 from depot number 3 and around 100 from depot number 4. All 80 electric buses with depot 3 are running on local and suburban routes. Similarly, long route buses are running from depot no. 1. The UT Transport Department introduced an intelligent transport system at a cost of Rs 23 crore, equipping buses with CCTV cameras and GPS systems to track their movements. It also offers passengers features like real-time electronic displays at bus stops, providing information on routes and arrival times. c m y b SECTOR 17 SECTOR 25 2020 2021 2022 2023 NORMAL DAY DIWALI NORMAL DAY DIWALI NORMAL DAY DIWALI NORMAL DAY DIWALI NORMAL DAY DIWALI DAY 110 78 90 110 — 371 352 280 247 — 270 260 230 180 127 213 314 217 227 140 90 91 66 53 59 167 207 207 120 115 113 73 137 69 88 320 307 101 167 177 147 110 82 89 126 392 360 301 138 267  401-500 SEVERE  301-400 VERY POOR  201-300 POOR  101-200 MODERATE  51-100 SATISFACTORY  0-50 GOOD