14112023-ATR-01.qxd 11/14/2023 12:56 AM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune CASH INCENTIVES TO FARMERS, RESIDENTS’ SUPPORT CAN HELP Residents say we should mull phasing out paddy cultivation and transplant trees for maintaining greenery. P2 » SALMAN KHAN’S TIGER 3 DOES NOT MEASURE UP TO ITS PREVIOUS OUTINGS MissionTimePass…no,that’snotourtwo wordsummaryofthefilm.Thisiswhatoneof SalluBhaiakaTiger’smissionisnamed.P3 FORECAST MAINLY CLEAR FROM ANAND TO MASOOM, HERE ARE FILMS THAT INSPIRED CELEBRITIES I love film Anand because I am a fan of Rajesh Khanna. No one could make me cry like he did, says Somy Ali. P4 » » MAX 26°C | MIN 12°C YESTERDAY MAX 26°C | MIN 12°C SUNSET TUESDAY 5.32 PM SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 6.58 AM TUESDAY | 14 NOVEMBER 2023 | AMRITSAR Tarn Taran, November 13 Mobile phones and other prohibited articles were recovered from the premises of the Central Jail, Goindwal Sahib, in the past two days by jail authorities. The police said here on Monday that 1,438 intoxicating pills, 1,400 ml of illicit liquor, 13 keypads of mobiles phones, two touchscreen mobiles, 27 data cable, six head phones, three earphones and four adaptors were seized from the jail premises on Sunday while 375 intoxicating tablets, five 5 key-pad phones, two-each of data cable, chargers, head phones and ear phones from the jail complex were seized on Saturday. The accused have been identified as Munish Kumar and Lakhan, both residents of Tarn Taran, Punjab Singh of Mari Gaur Singh, Gurpreet Singh of Sheikh Fatta and Gurwinder Singh, sarpanch of Khawaspur. Cases under Section 52 of the Prisons Act and other relevant sections had been registered against the accused, said the Goindwal Sahib police. — OC 1 killed, three injured in group clash during gambling in city Tribune News Service Amritsar, November 13 A youth was killed and three others were injured in firing that allegedly took place between two groups members of which were trying to loot gambling money at a house in Katra Dullo area in the walled city here on Diwali night. The gambling was allegedly conducted in the house. Nevertheless, the police claimed that an old enmity was the reason behind the incident. The deceased was identified as Arun Kumar of Pandori Waraich village falling under the Kamboh police station. The injured were identified as Manpreet Singh of Bal Kalan village, Ramandeep Singh of Kotla Tarkhana village and Arjun of Dhab Khatika area, who were admitted to hospital. The police have arrested six persons of both groups in this connection. Those detained were Nitin Ashu of Gali Chah Wali, Arshdeep Singh of Pandori Waraich and Heera Singh of Guru Ki Wadali here. The Division D police station have registered a case under Sections 302, 307, 160, 323, 324, AQI level recorded at 235 on Diwali night in city Improvement witnessed over last two year’s 250-282 range Neha Saini Tribune News Service Three accused in custody of the police in Amritsar on Monday. 148 and 149 of the IPC and Sections 25, 27, 54 and 59 of the Arms Act in this connection. It seized a .30 bore magazine with two live rounds, six empty shells of .32 bore pistol, four shells of 9mm pistol, one shell of .12 bore and .30 bore revolver each and a sword from the spot. The incident occurred at around 1.30 am when indiscriminate firing between the two groups took place in Gali Chah Wali in Katra Dullo area. One group was led by Shamsher Singh, alias Shera alias Gadgaj of Pandori Waraich, who faced nine criminal cases while the other group was led by Laddi of Gujjarpura area who also had a criminal back- ground. Injured Ramandeep Singh also faced several cases. The police said both groups nurtured an old enmity that led to the incident. Senior police officials led by Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (ADCP) Abhimanyu Rana and ACP Surinder Singh reached the spot where they found Arun dead and three others injured who were taken to hospital. The ACP said the police had apprehended around six persons in the case so far. He said raids were on to nab the remaining suspects. The police were also investigating the allegations of attempt to loot gambling money. Amritsar, November 13 The Air Quality Index (AQI) for Amritsar on Diwali went down several notches this year with a maximum of 235 for Diwali night and 170 recorded the morning after. This is an improvement over the last two years when the AQI for Diwali night was recorded in the range of 250-282. The Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) today released the official data for Air Quality Index reported for a window of 24 hours from the day of Diwali to a day after. The PPCB had installed Continuous Ambient Air Quality (CAAQMS) monitoring stations in Amritsar as part of its initiative to monitor air quality in six major cities of Punjab that had been recording worse air quality over the last few years during the Diwali season. Overall, Punjab has observed an average AQI Orders on restricting crackers Minister celebrates go up in smoke; no case filed Diwali in dist schools PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR Mobile phones, illicit liquor seized from Central Jail Firecrackers emit a huge quantity of smoke in Amritsar on Diwali night. reduction of 7.6 per cent over the last year (2022) and 22.8 per cent as compared to 2021. Addressing the development, Environment Minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer also said that the AQI of five cities — Amritsar, Ludhiana, Khanna, Mandi Gobindgarh and Patiala — have observed a reduction in AQI during this Diwali (2023) as compared to the last two year’s Diwali days (2022, 2021). The average AQI of Punjab this Diwali was 207 (which is marginally higher than the maximum AQI value of 200 for the moderate category) as compared to 224 in 2022 and 268 in 2021. Meet Hayer said that the maximum was recorded in Amritsar this year with an AQI value of 235. Also, last year, the maximum value of AQI (262) was observed in Amritsar. In 2021, the AQI in city had hit 302 and in 2020, it was recorded at 386. While the PPCB termed the overall improvement in AQI as a community effort, the current levels of AQI still count as unhealthy. The city was listed, along with Ludhiana and Jalandhar, in the non-attainment cities under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), which means the holy city does not meet the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). The Amritsar Municipal Corporation received Rs 19 crore to improve air quality in the city under NCAP and make city-specific action plan, which included checking industrial/vehicular emissions, installing air monitoring systems, air purifiers and creating public awareness regarding air quality control. While the action plan was tabled, it never reached the implementation stage. Celebrating Bandi Chhor Divas PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR Tribune News Service Manmeet Singh Gill Tribune News Service Amritsar, November 13 Even as the government order regarding bursting of crackers on Diwali went up in smoke with people failing to adhere to the time window of 8 pm to 10 pm, not a single case of anyone being penalised for creating pollution and disturbing people has come to notice. In most parts of the city, Diwali enthusiasts started bursting high-decibel firecrackers around 6 pm and continued till late in the night. The loud noises started again in the morning on Monday as some of them could not finish their stock of fire-crackers last night. “The government had allowed bursting of green fire-crackers for two hours but did nothing to ensure 2 robbers who snatched phone from girl held Amritsar, November 13 The police have arrested two robbers who had snatched a mobile phone from a girl in Ranjit Avenue area two days ago. The police also seized with a pistol and a sharp-edged weapon from them. They were identified as Amritpal Singh, alias Amrit, and Akashdeep Singh, alias Jolly, of Bhoewal village, Mehta Road. The police recovered a .32 bore pistol, five live rounds, a sharpedged weapon and a bike. ACP (North) Varinder Singh Khosa said a police team from Faizpura was going from Circular Road to Dasehra Ground towards Mental Hospital when two bike-borne persons came from the hospital side. However, they tried to slip away on seeing the police party. The police team got suspicious and arrested them. — TNS Diwali enthusiasts started bursting high-decibel crackers around 6 pm and continued till late in the night. that the same is implemented with strictness,” said Rajinder Singh, a local resident. He said that every time the administration fails to implement its own orders, it increases the chances of future violations. “If the administration has failed to implement the ban orders now, it is likely that people would not take these orders seriously even on Gurpurab, Christmas and New Year,” said another resident, Kewal Sharma. While announcing the two-hour window for bursting crackers on Diwali, the government had also fixed timings for Gurpurab, Christmas and New Year. As per the orders, bursting of firecrackers on Gurpurab is allowed from 4 am to 5 am and 9 pm to 10 pm. On Christmas, the timings for bursting crackers would be from 11.55 pm to 12.30 am and on New Year eve, it has been allowed from 11.55 pm to 12.30 am. Amritsar, November 13 Cabinet Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO urged people to light the lamps of education, awareness as he celebrated Diwali by lighting lamps at School of Eminence in Jandiala Guru on Sunday. Visiting his alma mater on Diwali, he shared how he did his schooling and taught for 17 years as a teacher before embarking upon his political journey. “All we need is to kindle the flame of education in our children, only then our society can progress,” he said. He lit diyas in schools with students and staff at School of Eminence and Government Elementary Smart School at Jandiala Guru. He said the day would come when children studying in government 11 fire incidents on Diwali night, no casualties reported Charanjit Singh Teja Tribune News Service Amritsar, November 13 On Diwali night, fire incidents were reported from 11 places in the city. A major fire which caused significant damage broke out at a house in Ajit Nagar and also in a house at Jandiala Guru. Goods worth lakhs were gutted in two different factories in Islamabad area. The fire brigade remained vigilant on Diwali night. On the directions of Municipal Commissioner Rahul, a roster had been prepared with separate teams being constituted for various areas. Guided by the roster, the teams promptly reached the sites upon receiving information about the fire outbreak. Additional Divisional Fire Officer (ADFO) Dilbagh Singh said incidents were reported in different areas A factory in Islamabad and a shop in Misri Bazaar near Papadan Wala Bazaar were also gutted on the night of Diwali. and teams from separate fire stations reached to douse the flames. The fire incidents were reported at a hotel in Maha Singh Gate, Chhel Mandi, a shop near gate number 2 at Airport Road and ABS Dharam Kanda on the backside of a warehouse on Mehta Road. Fire was also reported at a vacant plot in Dayanand Nagar on Lawrence Road. Another incident was reported at a fac- tory near Kalsi Hospital in Ajit Nagar. A fire took place in a house at Katra Dulo near Hindu College. A factory in Islamabad and a shop in Misri Bazaar near Papadan Wala Bazaar were also gutted. A power transformer got damaged in fire at Loharka Road. Other fire incidents were reported from a house in Ajit Nagar on Sultanwind Road and near Chura Bazaar in Jandiala Guru area. Fortu- c m y b Harbhajan Singh ETO lights lamps at School of Eminence in Jandiala Guru. schools would be able to break the glass ceiling. He urged teachers to ensure that maximum students were given the benefit of the welfare schemes being provided at SoEs. He said the standard of teaching in government schools should be at a level so that students could crack competitive exams without having to pay for hefty coaching. Vishwakarma Day observed Amritsar, November 13 Vishwakarma Day was celebrated with gaiety here on Monday. Cabinet Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO while addressing a function organised in memory of Baba Vishwakarma here said there is a description of Baba Vishwakarma in the ancient scriptures that he played an important role in incorporating technology in the lives of humans. ETO said he had given a new direction to craft and development of technology, due to which he was recognized as an important creator worldwide. Today, events were being held all over the world to remember him, he said. The Cabinet Minister was speaking at a function organised by the Rashtriya Bihar Vikas Manch dedicated to Baba Vishwakarma, the founder of Shilap Kala. Addressing on the occasion, he said Baba Vishwakarma, founder of the art, had given a great gift to the world.— TNS Devotees light candles on the occasion of Bandi Chhor Divas at the Golden Temple in Amritsar. Festive season sees discharge of worship material in UBDC Charanjit Singh Teja Tribune News Service Amritsar, November 13 Though the state government is setting up a treatment plant and installing supply line to provide 24x7 canal-based water to city dwellers, a large number of people can be seen throwing puja (worship) material like garlands, clothes, plastic waste and sacks into the Upper Bari Doab Canal (UBDC) at Taran Wala Pul and Vallah. During the ongoing festival season, the flow of litter has increased. Heavy littering can be seen near all the bridges over Upper Bari Doab Canal (UBDC). The residents dumped earthen pots, garlands, puja material, gunny bags, plastic material, pictures of and idols of gods and goddesses. The practice of throwing these in running water has ruined all the efforts being made by Baba Kashmir Singh, Dera Kar Sewa Bhuri The festival-related waste on the banks of Upper Bari Doab Canal in Amritsar on Monday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR Wale, for the beautification of canal. The volunteers of Dera Kar Sewa have been trying to motivate people against polluting river bodies but local residents appear to have been apathetic towards the same. Polluting a water body is an offence but the district administration doesn’t take action. Most people immersing puja material were not aware that putting any such material in a water body is an offence. “The irrigation department has reduced supply in the canal as there is no use of water in the fields. As soon as the irrigation department releases water in the canal, plastic bags and sacks would reach the fields with the flow of water. The plastic is nondegradable and harms the crops. The government should strictly stop littering in the canals,” said Hardev Singh, a farmer.