23012024-CT-01.qxd 1/23/2024 1:00 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune BHAJANS & LANGARS, CITY SOAKS IN RELIGIOUS FERVOUR NO BAIL FOR DRIVER HELD FOR RUNNING OVER DOCTOR CITY GOLFER AADIL TO TRAIN ABROAD FOR PGTI SEASON City residents deck up markets, roads, temples and roundabouts to mark Ram Temple consecration. P3 City court rejects bail application of auto driver accused of causing death of a doctor by rash driving. P3 Golfer Aadil Bedi will be attending a week-long training camp in London ahead of the PGTI events. P3 » » AIR QUALITY INDEX CHANDIGARH 343 PANCHKULA 234 MOHALI 330 401-500 301-400 201-300 101-200 51-100 0-50 SEVERE VERY POOR POOR MODERATE SATISFACTORY GOOD INBRIEF MAN HELD WITH 14 GM HEROIN Chandigarh: A 28-year-old man was nabbed with heroin. The suspect, identified as Manpreet Singh of Khuda Ali Sher village, was held from near Dhanas Lake. The police seized 14.4 gm of heroin from his possession. TNS WHAT’S ON CHANDIGARH MEET: Memorial meet for Dr BN Goswamy at PU at 4 pm APNI MANDI: Apni Mandi will held at Sectors 29 and 56 and Dhanas MOHALI APNI MANDI: Apni Mandi will be held at Sector 71 PANCHKULA APNI MANDI: Apni Mandi will be held at Sector 15 Mercury 7 degrees below normal |Fog, clouds add to misery 4 FLIGHTS CANCELLED, 14 DELAYED ■ As many as four flights were Amid fog, Kalka-New Delhi Shatabdi arrives at Chandigarh railway station after a delay of over 3 hours. TRIBUNE PHOTO: RAVI KUMAR TRAIN SCHEDULE HIT ■ New Delhi-Kalka Shatabdi was rescheduled to 10.30 am, against its usual departure of 7.40 am ■ Morning Kalka-New Delhi Shatabdi was delayed by 33 minutes ■ New Delhi-Kalka Shatabdi expected to be 17°C, states a Chandigarh Meteorological Department’s forecast. On the contrary, the minimum temperature is not expected to significantly rise over the next five days. It is likely to reach 8°C by January 27. Also, it is expected to remain mainly clear sky with moderate to dense fog for three days. Following which, mainly clear sky is likely on January 26 and 27. arrived at 1.02 pm after a delay of 3 hours and 23 minutes ■ Netaji Express arrived 2 hours and 16 minutes late at city station ■ Lucknow-Chandigarh Express arrived at 10.30 am after a delay of 25 minutes cancelled due to fog and low visibility at Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport on Monday ■ Three early morning flight departures (Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad) and one flight arrival (Pune) was cancelled ■ As many as 14 flights were delayed by more than an hour. Departures to and arrival from Bengaluru stretched on for more than four hours ■ Flights to Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad have been cancelled for January 23 Extended winter break till Class V Tribune News Service Chandigarh, January 22 In view of the ongoing harsh weather, it has been decided to suspend physical classes up to Class V in all government, government-aided and recognised private schools in the city till January 25. For Class VI and above, the schools have the flexibility to c m y b choose between online or physical classes. If opting for physical classes, precautions must be taken to safeguard students from exposure to extreme cold both during school hours and their commute. Besides, schools have been told to open for students not earlier than 9:30 am and close no later than 4 pm. FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE Missing since Jan 19, 8-year-old found dead; suspect on the run Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Chandigarh, January 22 Cold conditions continued unabated in the city on Monday with the mercury hovering seven degrees Celsius below normal even as the maximum temperature, which was 11.2°C, rose by two degrees Celsius as compared to yesterday. Biting cold hit normal life in the city, which recorded the minimum temperature of 6.5°C, one degree below normal. For the entire day, the city remained devoid of sunshine. Besides, most areas remained engulfed in fog which reduced visibility to a few metres. This January has seen several days with record lowest maximum temperature. The city yesterday witnessed the coldest January day since 2013. The maximum temperature fell to 9.4°C, which was nine degrees Celsius below normal. It was 9.3°C on January 7, 2013. The lowest maximum temperature recorded in January 2014 was 14°C and in 2015, 9.9°C. In the following years, the lowest maximum temperature had remained higher than what was recorded yesterday. Meanwhile, the maximum temperature is expected to gradually rise over the next five days. By January 27, it is MAX 14°C | MIN 6°C YESTERDAY MAX 11.2°C | MIN 6.5°C SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 7.17 AM TWITTER/THETRIBUNECHD Bone-chilling cold grips city MAINLY CLEAR SKY SUNSET TUESDAY 5.51 PM » TUESDAY | 23 JANUARY 2024 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST Chandigarh, January 22 The body of an eight-year-old girl, who went missing from Hallo Majra on January 19, was found near Ram Darbar. The victim is suspected to have been sexually assaulted before being murdered. The body was found dumped near a power grid in Ram Darbar on Sunday night, following which senior police officials rushed to the spot. A forensic team also visited the spot to collect evidence. A case has been registered at Sector 31 police station. The police have identified a 35-year-old suspect, who is on the run. The police said the victim had gone to a nearby UT COPS LAUNCH SEARCH OPERATION ■ The minor girl, who resided in Hallo Majra, had gone to market on January 19 when she went missing ■ Police launched search in neighbourhood, found her slippers from the house of a painter ■ Body found dumped near a power grid in Ram Darbar; sexual assault not ruled out ■ Suspect, a native of West Bengal, absconding; cops on trail, holding raids to nab him market when she was reportedly abducted. When she didn’t return for a few hours, her family started looking for her and later informed the police. Subsequently, a search operation was launched in the neighbourhood during which victim’s slippers were recovered from one of the houses. The suspect, who works as a painter and has been missing since the day of the crime. The footage of CCTV cameras in the area was scrutinised in which the suspect is seen leaving with a bag, sources said. The suspect is a native of West Bengal and he might have escaped to his home town, the sources said, adding police teams had been sent there to nab him. In addition, raids were also being conducted in Bihar. UT SSP Kanwardeep Kaur said, “We have identified the suspect who is currently on the run. Raids are underway to nab him.” UT mulls slashing VAT on liquor Dushyant Singh Pundir Tribune News Service Chandigarh, January 22 To appease liquor contractors, the UT Administration is likely to cut VAT and excise duty in the Excise Policy for 202425. After studying the policies of neighbouring states of Haryana and Punjab and seeking suggestions from stakeholders, the UT Excise and Taxation Department has prepared its policy and sent it Readies Excise Policy for 2024-25; over to Purohit 18 VENDS UNSOLD DUE TO ‘HIGH TAX’ ■ Punjab levies 1% VAT on ex-distillery ■ UT has fixed quota of 18 lakh price (EDP), Chandigarh 12.5% ■ Excise fee in Punjab is just 1% while it ranges between ~445 and ~3,500 per case in city liquor boxes a year for contractors, who face penalty for unlifted stock ■ Contractors shun auction, 18 vends remained unsold in city in 2023-24 to UT Administrator Banwarilal Purohit for approval. To ensure that all liquor vends are auctioned in the coming financial year, sources said the department was considering lowering continued on page 2
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