31012024-ATR-01.qxd 31-01-2024 00:42 Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune MECHANIC SHOT DEAD IN DASUYA; SUSPECT NABBED ACTOR SHANTANU FALLS VICTIM TO CYBER FRAUD Shantanu Maheshwari took to his Instagram stories and shared that his bank account had been targeted. P3 CLOUDY SKY MAX 15°C | MIN 8°C YESTERDAY MAX 20°C | MIN 5°C THREE YEARS OF TELEVISION SHOW WAGLE KI DUNIYA A mechanic at a motorcycle agency at Balaggan Chowk in Dasuya was reportedly shot dead by its owner. P2 FORECAST Wagle Ki Duniya captures the essence of the common man’s struggles, joys and triumphs. P4 » » SUNSET WEDNESDAY 6.03 PM SUNRISE THURSDAY 7.24 AM » WEDNESDAY | 31 JANUARY 2024 | AMRITSAR 100 nursing students get degrees Tribune News Service Amritsar, January 30 The convocation of the CKD International Nursing College, being run since 2012 under the management of Chief Khalsa Diwan, was held at Kalgidhar Auditorium, Sri Guru Harkrishan Senior Secondary Public School, GT, here on Tuesday. The convocation was presided over by Chief Khalsa Diwan president Dr Inderbir Singh Nijhar. Dr Deepak Bhatti, registrar and dean of Baba Farid University of Health Sciences, attended the convocation as the chief guest to confer degrees on the students. Degrees were awarded to more than 100 nursing students during the convocation. The programme started after the school children sang a religious shabad. Principal Darshan Kaur Sohi, along with other dignitaries shared the history of the institution. Dr Deepak Bhatti praised nursing profession while talking about various other health-related professions being run in Punjab by Baba Farid University of Health Sciences. Barricades set up near BRTS bus stand lead to traffic jams Were installed recently at entrance from Pathankot side Culprits allegedly using clout to avoid action against them ROAD CAVE-IN CASE Charanjit Singh Teja Tribune News Service The barricades installed at the entrance of city near the BRTS bus stand in Amritsar. VISHAL KUMAR Tribune News Service Amritsar, January 30 The barricades set up by the police at the entrance to the city while coming from the Batala road are causing long traffic jams, especially during school timings, as vehicles have to slow down to cross the zigzag way created by setting up the barricades. As one tries to enter the city from the Pathankot side national highway, the first set of barricades can be spotted adjacent to the BRTS bus stand opposite DAV International School. It is at the same point that vehicles coming from the Pathankot side and from the bypass lane near Golden Gate converge. After a driver frustrated by the zigzag created by the barricades manages to cross the place, he is face to face with another set of barricades at the entrance of the Batala road. “To the utter surprise of commuters, the barricades remain present 24X7. Even a single cop is not present there to keep an eye on passing vehicles. At least senior officials must ensure that the barricades are removed during peak hours so that people do not have to waste petrol and time,” said Gurjeet Kaur, a daily commuter. Some other commuters stated that the purpose of the bar- PSPCL to replace old meters Neeraj Bagga Tribune News Service Amritsar, January 30 Power theft and unauthorised extensions of power lines continue unabated in the border region comprising Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Pathankot and Gurdaspur districts, compelling the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) to replace the old meters with smart meters. The PSPCL has plans to install smart meters in lakhs in these border districts. These unscrupulous activities causing losses worth crores to the PSPCL in power transmission have recording an upswing during the past two years. This was reflected in detection of power thefts and unauthorised extension of power lines by the PSPCL enforcement wing in the border region. The enforcement wing detected 7,055 cases of this nature in 2022 and the detection rose to 7,206 cases in 2023, indicating an increase of a little over 150 cases. it increased revenue from fines — from Rs 12.76 crore in 2022 to Rs 21.53 crore in 2023 — signalling an increase of Rs 8.77 crore. However, insiders in the department state that a large number of power theft cases still go unchecked and the department has been employing one measure after Special camps held to assist persons with disabilities, says ETO Tribune News Service Amritsar, January 30 Punjab Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO, while inaugurating a camp to distribute assistive devices to persons with disabilities (PWDs) at Jandiala Guru, said the special camps were organised by ALIMCO (Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India) about two months back at several places to find out about the needs of disabled persons. Speaking on the occasion, ETO said the basic needs of the disabled have been met by organising camps and distributing assistive devices as per the requirements of PWDs. He said that at today’s camp, 680 support measures worth about Rs 45 lakh were distributed to 334 peo- 16 months on, no action yet against MTP wing officials ple. Helmets have also been distributed to the disabled, besides tricycles, he said, and added that according to the needs of each person, the equipment was customised. Apart from tricycles, wheel-chairs, smartphones, smart canes, walking sticks have also been distributed. ETO also spoke about the formation of the Road Safety Force in Punjab to check road accidents and administer first aid to the injured. The minister said that 116 more Aam Aadmi Clinics are being opened with the aim of providing health facilities to the common people closer to home and treatment will be free of cost in all government hospitals. Patients will no longer have to take medicines from outside, he added. another to reduce the losses. The situation compelled the Powercom to look for measures to plug the gaps like replacing the present set of meters with smart ones. Smart meters allow consumers to check the reading of units consumed on their mobile handsets, there is no chance for manual recording of wrong meter reading, delivery of paperless bills takes place on registered email addresses and consumers can control power consumption by daily observing meter reading. Satinder Sharma, PSPCL (Chief Engineer), said: “The Powercom holds awareness camps to educate people against power thefts and illegal drawing of power. He anticipated a similar positive response with the installation of smart meters. DLSA initiates drive to identify juvenile jail inmates Amritsar, January 30 The District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) has initiated a special drive to identify the convicted and undertrial prisoners who claimed to be juveniles at the time of committing the crime. DLSA officials stated that after identification of all such inmates, a report would be sent to the Child Care Institute. DLSA Chairman-cum-District and Sessions Judge Harpreet Kaur Randhawa said that the objective of the drive is to identify the juveniles so that they can be sent to the Child Care Institute or other such safe places where they are not allowed to mix with hardened criminals. She said the DLSA would scrutinise all inmates who are in the age-group of 18 to 22 years and if anyone is found to be a juvenile at the time of committing the crime, action would be taken accordingly. — TNS ricades should be to keep an eye on anti-social elements and not to cause traffic jams. Long queues of vehicles can be seen at these barricades, especially near the BRTS bus stand between 3 pm and 4 pm when school buses of at least four schools and vehicles of employees of a medical college leave for their houses at the same time at 3 pm and try to enter the city. Residents have urged senior police officials to take stock of the situation and at least ask the employees on duty to remove the barricades if they find that these are causing traffic jams during the daytime. Amritsar, January 30 In a case of road cave-in due to the collapse of the basement of a building along the Mall Road in September 2022, the MC had found officials of the MTP wing responsible for the negligence. Though the MC Joint Commissioner had written to the Local Bodies Department to take disciplinary action against an ATP and a Building Inspector for allowing the construction of the building without approval, no action has been taken against them so far. A major portion of the road leading to the residence of Amritsar North MLA Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh caved in due to the digging of an adjoining building opposite Eminent Mall in the wee hours of September 24. Almost 20-foot long portion of the road was damaged due to the collapse of the basement. The spot where a portion of the road caved in on the Mall Road last year in Amritsar on Tuesday. TRIBUNE PHOTO Hardeep Singh, Joint Commissioner, MC, had written to the Director, Local Government, asking him to take disciplinary action against ATP Paramjeet and Building Inspector Dheeraj Kumar. In his report, the Joint Commissioner had written that a major incident occurred at 31, Mall Road, Amritsar, on September 24, 2022, in which a major part of the road was damaged due to illegal construction of the basement. The builder had only applied on the Invest Punjab portal and without approval, he started digging the basement. The building department served a notice to stop the work, but the builder continued with his operations. In the course of work, the sewer line was damaged causing damage to the portion of the road. In this context, officials of the building branch did not act in a responsible manner and due to their negligence, the sewer line and the road were damaged. Besides, an illegal excavation was done. The Joint Commissioner recommended disciplinary action against Building Inspector Dheeraj Kumar and ATP Paramjeet. He had submitted the report within a week of incident, but the Local Bodies Department has not taken any action so far. Prathamesh Mohan, an RTI activist, said, “I have written to the Director, Local Bodies Department, to take action on the report of the Joint Commissioner as the MC had to spend funds to repair the road and the sewer line after the incident. MTP wing officials have a clout with staff of the Local Bodies Department and they have succeeded in avoiding action against them. MTP wing officials are not being transferred from the city for years and no action is being taken against them even as they were found guilty. Senior officials of the MC are unable to curb the nexus.” Floral tributes paid to Two de-addiction centres sealed Father of the Nation Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Amritsar, January 30 Tributes were paid to Mahatma Gandhi on his death anniversary by Additional Deputy Commissioner (Urban Development) Amandeep Kaur, SDM, who led a special ceremony to commemorate the day here on Tuesday. Floral tributes were paid at the Mahatma Gandhi’s photograph and the Martyrs’ Memorial at Jallianwala Bagh today. Assistant Commissioner Mankanwal Singh Chahal, Assistant Commissioner (General) Vivek Modi, former minister Laxmi Kanta Chawla paid homage to the Father of the Nation and observed silence in his memory. A large number of officials Former minister Laxmi Kanta Chawla pays tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar on Tuesday. of the district commissionerate and several members of civil society too were present on the occasion. Several other organisations also remembered the Mahatma. Amritsar, January 30 The local police on Tuesday sealed two illegal private drug de-addiction centres where inmates were being subjected to inhuman conditions, including physical torture. Officials stated that the centres were being operated in Chheharta and Sultanwind areas. The team was comprised of ADCP Dr Darpan Ahluwalia, ACP (South) Maninder Pal Singh and Dr Bharti Dhawan from the Health Department among others. During the visit of the team officials, inmates complained of torture and inhuman treatment at the hands of those running the centres. ADCP Dr Darpan Ahluwalia said a total of 40 inmates were rescued from the two centres and shifted to Government Rehabilitation Centre for prop- An illegal de-addiction centre being sealed by the police in Amritsar on Tuesday. TRIBUNE PHOTO er care and treatment. The officials stated that the centres were being operated without procuring any licence from the Health Department and without employing trained medical professionals. The officials also noted New Pathankot DC has his task cut out Ravi Dhaliwal Tribune News Service Pathankot, January 30 The outgoing Deputy Commissioner (DC) Harbir Singh will be remembered for courting a controversy, inadvertently or otherwise, revolving around a land scam. The state government had even issued a show-cause notice to him. His shifting to some other post was on the cards ever since his links with a real estate businessman came out in the open. Top officials in the loop claim that he was a victim of power politics with a Chandigarhbased senior IAS officer said to be holding a grudge against him. The best part of Harbir Singh’s story is that he took on the encroachment lobby. So, the first task for the incumbent DC Aditya Uppal is to restore the confidence of the people. He brings with him ample experience and expertise in solving civic problems that matter to the public the most, because of his tenure as Commissioner of Patiala Municipal Corporation (MC). Here in Pathankot c m y b Aditya Uppal, the new Pathankot Deputy Commissioner. too, he will have to tackle the numerous civic problems which have been awaiting a solution for years. Like his predecessor, he too has been given the additional charge of MC Commissioner. Old-timers, who have been a witness to the rather painful decay of this once scenic township, say the most arduous task Uppal will be facing is the problem pertaining to the nine narrow gauge railway crossings. These crossings simultaneously close for a dozen times a day, thus dividing the city into two parts for long periods of time. The economy, and with it the prosperity of the area, has taken a severe hit. Property rates are refusing to rise and a sense of despondency seems to be all pervasive. Agreed, the DC has no direct role to play in a project which belongs to the Railways, but he can certainly put his views across when it comes to the crunch. And being the executive head of the city, his views and opinions will certainly carry weight. These days, the issue has been relegated to the sidelines because the Chakki railway bridge, which connects the city with the mountains, is being repaired. Consequently, the trains have stopped coming but sooner or later, when the bridge is declared open to rail traffic, the problem will again crop up. The railways have grappled with the project for decades ever since ex-MP and film icon Vinod Khanna took up the issue with the Central government. The railways have failed to come up with a solution. So have the residents. Several MPs have come and reaped the rich political benefits accruing from the controversial task. However, nothing tangible has been done as of yet. One solution the DC has is to convince the state government to release funds to construct a flyover. It should start from the St Joseph’s Convent School and end somewhere near Simbal chowk. If this venture is completed, commuters can take the flyover route instead of meandering their way through the railway crossings. This will be the greatest gift Aditya Uppal will give to the local residents. It will not only restore the once pristine glory of this British-era town but also ease the traffic congestion. Pathankot will definitely get a brand new look but having said that, the effort required is tremendous. “The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide you are not going to stay where you are. It is high time the flyover takes concrete shape. Our DC is the perfect person to give the project a perfect start,” said academician Dr Samrendra Sharma. glaring shortcomings in infrastructure and felt the need for trained manpower required for technical work. They stated that the centres had been sealed and legal action would be initiated against their owners. New civic body Commissioner assumes charge Tribune News Service Amritsar, January 30 Harpreet Singh took charge as the new Municipal Commissioner of Amritsar here today. He assured of providing all basic amenities to the residents. He was accorded a warm welcome by Joint MC Commissioner Hardeep Singh along with the heads of various MC departments. The MC Commissioner said he had got the opportunity to serve the holy city and would work with dedication. Harpreet Singh said he was aware of major problems and issues being faced by residents. One of the major problems is of poor sanitation and non-lifting of garbage on a daily basis. “A meeting will be held with the officials of Health Department and the solid waste management continued on page 2
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