13022024-ATR-01.qxd 2/13/2024 12:56 AM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 24°C | MIN 7°C YESTERDAY MAX 22°C | MIN 4°C SHOPKEEPERS TOLD TO AVOID ENCROACHING ON FOOTPATHS ZEENAT AMAN COMPLETES FIRST ANNIV ON INSTAGRAM RACHANA STEPS INTO THE SHOES OF ARYA IN DABANGII The police have urged shopkeepers not to encroach on pedestrians’ paths by extending their shops. P2 Veteran actress Zeenat Aman has completed one year on the social media platform Instagram. P3 Viewers will witness a 14-year leap in Sony Entertainment Television's, Dabangii - Mulgi Aayi Re Aayi. P4 » » » SUNSET TUESDAY 6.14 PM SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 7.14 AM TUESDAY | 13 FEBRUARY 2024 | AMRITSAR One nabbed with 200 gm of contraband Farmers leave for Fatehgarh Sahib, set to march towards Delhi today Tribune News Service Manmeet Singh Gill Tribune News Service Amritsar, February 12 The Amritsar Rural Police have arrested a drug peddler and confiscated 200 gm of heroin from his possession. He was identified as Sukhdev Singh of Sohian Khurd village. The police said a police team on patrol on Monday reached Wadala Bhitewad colony from Dhingra Colony in Mahal village located on Ram Tirath Road when they noticed a car with headlights off. A youth in the car had kept the interior light on and on seeing the police party, he it switched off. The police got suspicious and searched the car. During the search, it found the contraband. The suspect was identified as Sukhdev Singh of Sohian Khurd village. A case under sections of the NDPS Act was registered against him by the Kamboh police. He was produced in a court today and brought on police remand for further interrogation. Amritsar, February 12 A day ahead of the march towards Delhi, a massive group of farmers left for Fatehgarh Sahib from Beas here on Monday. A cavalcade of farmers led by Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee general secretary Sarwan Singh Pandher had over one thousand tractors. The protesters also included a large number of women. The farmer leaders stated that they would stay at Fatehgarh for the night and would move towards Delhi on Tuesday morning. The trolleys were covered with tarpaulin sheets and mattress were kept inside them so that farmers could sleep and take rest in them. Each of the trolleys also had ration for cooking langar on the way. The experience of the farmers during the previous Delhi morcha is coming handy this time in organizing such a mass movement of persons and goods. Even as most of the unions, which had participated in the previous morcha in Delhi, are 3 yrs after facelift, repairs on Jallianwala Bagh begin again Monument was beautified at a cost of ~20 crore in 2021 Neeraj Bagga Tribune News Service A cavalcade of tractors carrying farmers on way to Fatehgarh Sahib from Beas ahead of the scheduled march towards Delhi. not united this year due to various political issues, the support of farmers for the cause has not thinned as they feel that the government had cheated them. Political pundits observed that the enthusiasm of the farming community towards the Delhi morcha might force other unions to change their stance. Sarwan Singh Pandher, general secretary, KMSC, said, “Today BKU (Doaba) has lent support to the protest. We appeal to all the farmer unions to come and join the protest.” He said they were are hopeful that other unions too would soon feel the need to reach Delhi. Pandher said farmers would move peacefully. He added that the government was trying to gag the voice of farmers by installing barricades, suspending the internet services and imposing a curfew like situation in Haryana. He said the farmers were determined to wage a long battle and would not end their protest till their demands regarding legal guarantee for MSP implemen, tation of Swaminathan Commission report, sacking of cabinet minister Ajay Mishra Tenny, justice in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case and others are accepted. Amritsar, February 12 About three years after the historic Jallianwala Bagh, housing the National Martyrs’ Memorial, was inaugurated following a revamp, the place is once again in need of repair. Its plaster is coming off at several places while the paint work has faded, exposing the wood to vagaries of nature. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had virtually inaugurated the Bagh on April 13, 2021 to mark 102 years of the massacre. A visit to the historic Bagh by the Amritsar Tribune team revealed that the upper layer of plaster on the ceiling, situated just before the Amar Jyoti, has come off. Dampness on the ceiling was visible at several places. Similarly, a projector in the first gallery showcasing historic developments in the wake of the massacre in the Cracks visible in a ceiling of the Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar on Monday. PHOTO: SUNIL KUMAR historic Bagh, was also lying non-operational. A wooden railing installed around the green area in the Bagh has got damaged at several spots. Artisans have been engaged to replace the broken part with new wood. An artisan said Kapur Sal, a hardwood, was now being used to replace the already used Kail and Marandi (white cedar wood) and diyar (cedar wood) in the wooden railing. Shubhneet Singh, a tourist from Nabha, said the wooden railing has been used for the railing installed in the open sky. They were unlikely to weather the vagaries of nature for a long time, he said, and added that in the given scenario, metal railings could have been more durable. The historic Bagh was beautified at a cost of Rs 20 crore after over one and a half years of renovation by the Ministry of Culture in 2021. The revamp project included the setting up of four new museum galleries, sculpture installations along the historic narrow alley, alterations in the entry and exit, development of a lotus pond, glass enclosures around the victim’s well, and arrangements for a light and sound show about the events of the tragedy. Simranjit Singh, manager of a private company which has been tasked with the maintenance of the Bagh, said the small ceiling portion was repaired by evening today. He said the projector required servicing and the company concerned has been asked to carry it out at the earliest. He added that woodwork was in progress to replace the railing with hardwood. ~2.50 cr recovered byRlys from Unaware of basic rules, motorists Admission awareness ticketless travellers in January responsible for traffic snarls in city campaign launched Amritsar, February 12 The railway authorities of the Ferozepur Division realised an estimated Rs 2.50 crore from ticketless travellers, including Rs 24 lakh from Amritsar, during January. In addition, 478 passengers were penalised for littering at railway stations in the region. The ticket checking teams of the Ferozepur Division have been continuously trying to prevent unauthorised passengers from travelling in trains. A total of 28,140 passengers were found travelling without tickets or irregularly during ticket checking drives in January, 2024. About Rs 2.49 crore revenue was collected from them as fine, which is 25 per cent higher than the figure for the same period last year. Divisional Rail Manager (DRM) Sanjay Sahu said in order to keep the railway stations of the division clean and Tribune News Service FLOUTING Tribune News Service TRAFFIC RULES Manmeet Gill Tribune News Service A railway official checks tickets of passengers at the Amritsar railway station. TRIBUNE PHOTO to prevent the general public from littering besides making them aware of the need for cleanliness, regular checks are carried out at the main stations. As a result, in the month of January, 478 passengers were fined over Rs 74,000 for littering in the station premises. He said the main purpose of checking was to improve the sale of railway tickets and collect fines from passengers so that they travel with proper tickets in future. The Divisional Railway Manager, while appreciating the ticket checking staff, said this was possible due to their collective efforts and hard work. Amritsar, February 12 The tendency to drive on the wrong side of the road is such that even if the designated Uturn is only a few meters away, vehicles can be seen coming from the wrong direction on as busy a stretch as Lawrence road. A large number of drivers can be seen driving so as to enter the open parking space of Nehru Shopping Complex. Even those who have visited the area for shopping and have parked their vehicles on the stretch of the road from the turn towards DAV School to BBK DAV College can be seen coming on the wrong side to find an exit towards the DAV School. Though the traffic cops are mostly available at both ends of the road — at Novelty Chowk and near Income Tax Colony — the drivers tend to A vehicle being driven on the wrong side on the Lawrence Road in Amritsar on Monday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR flout every possible rule including parking at roadside, rash driving and driving on the wrong side as they know that no one is there to issue a challan to them. “It is for us people to understand that the traffic laws are for the greater good of all. If everyone follows traffic rules, the city roads would be a better place to drive on. But as some people feel entitled to break the laws, city roads continues to be in a mess,” said Mohinder Singh, a resident adding that the government cannot spare one traffic cop for each driver. The other common problem witnessed is that most drivers are not even aware of the basic traffic rules. Even when they have to take a right turn at the traffic signals, they halt their vehicle at the extreme left at the traffic signals. In doing so, they force the vehicles which have to go straight to slow down and thus cause a traffic jam. Amritsar, February 12 The admission campaign was on Monday started in all government schools across the district under the new initiative, “Punjab Shiksha Kranti”. Amritsar (West) MLA Jasbir Singh and DC Ghanshyam Thori addressed an event at Government Elementary School, Putlighar Gawal Mandi. District Education Officer (Elementary), Amritsar, Jagwinder Singh and DEO (Secondary) Rajesh Kumar along with officials of the district education office were present. MLA Jasbir Singh Sandhu said all the government schools in the state were being transformed to instil a sense of confidence in people to enrol their kids in government schools. He appealed to the parents that they should enrol their children in government schools for a better future. An awareness van was also flagged off, under the admis- sion campaign, which will go to different villages and urban centres in the district from February 12 to 14. “During the tour, the parents of children and other people will be made aware of the quality education along with other facilities being provided in government schools,” said DEO Rajesh Kumar. Recently, while announcing the commencement of admissions for academic year 202425 in all government schools, Education Minister Harjot Bains had also launched toll free number (1800-180-2139) to make information available regarding online admission in government schools, through official website (www.epunjabschool.gov.in) to provide access to education in government schools and online information available. He said with the public school enrolment graph rising, it’s among the special steps towards education reforms being carried out in the state. Amritsar, February 12 Under the ongoing cleanliness drive, the MC Additional Commissioner initiated a cleanliness drive outside Durgiana Temple here on Monday. The Amritsar Municipal Corporation had initiated the drive around religious and historical places after the joining of Harpreet Singh as the MC Commissioner this month. Additional Commissioner Surinder Singh initiated a cleanliness drive around Durgiana Temple and Gol Bagh this morning. MC health officer Kiran Kumar and Chief Sanitary Inspector deployed sanitation staff for this purpose. The Additional Commissioner stated that there are clear instructions from the government to keep the holy city clean because lakhs of devotees visit the city daily. “Apart from visiting prominent religious places, tourists and pilgrims visit his- Tribune News Service MC staff during a cleanliness drive at Gol Bagh in Amritsar. torical places of Amritsar. The MC is committed to keeping the city clean,” said the Additional Commissioner. MC officials stated that they had issued instructions to the solid waste management company to collect garbage from every corner of the city on a daily basis. The task of garbage lifting from collection has been assigned to the MC workers too. The Additional Commissioner also appealed to the citizens to cooperate with the MC employees and keep their wet and dry waste in separate dustbins. The MC motivated visitors in public places to use the dustbins to dump waste. It is worth mentioning here that a few days after joining, Harpreet Singh inaugurated the cleanliness drive around the Golden Temple and adjacent roads. A similar campaign was launched at Company Bagh last week. The move of the MC has been appreciated by the residents. — TNS Amritsar, February 12 Amritsar Improvement Trust (AIT) Chairman Ashok Talwar did an encore of visit to Nehru Shopping Complex on Lawrence Road for inspection which is marred by massive encroachments on public space, but seldom could any change be witnessed. After the appointment of Talwar as the Chairman of Amritsar Improvement Trust , he has visited the Nehru Complex several times and repeated the same promises. Today again, Chairman Ashok Talwar said the issues of Nehru Shopping Complex would be addressed soon. “The building would get repaired and whitewashed. The market would be free of encroachments. The arrangements for cleanliness would be c m y b streamlined. Lifts would be installed for the ease of commuters,” said Talwar. However, the Amritsar Improvement Trust has recently restored the old toilets and urinal but still the night staff ease themselves on the roof of Nehru Shopping Complex building. The visitor’s attend nature’s call in the stairs and balconies. Instead of making some arrangements for open parking, the Amritsar Improvement Trust Chairman again warned only tea sellers and asked them to stop placing chairs in the open, failing which the Amritsar Improvement Trust will give space to a parking contractor. The shopkeepers alleged that the AIT Chairman targeted tea sellers but ignored major encroachments by prominent bakery and restaurants. Amritsar, February 12 Celebrity jewellery designer, socialite and former model Queenie Singh along with wellness expert Dr Dinyar Workingboxwala shared some secrets to good health and a radiant skin with the members of FICCI Flo Amritsar chapter. Speaking at the special session ‘Revel in Radiance’, held at Holiday Inn, Dr Dinyar, who has recently launched his beauty brand, ‘Beauty by BiE’, provided insightful inputs into skincare and wellness as Dr Simrat Sandhu, aesthetician and member of FICCI FLO, moderated the discussions along with city-based make-up artist and model, Pranati Bhalla. Delving into various aspects of beauty and skincare, which has become a rapidly growing industry now, Queenie and Dr Workingboxwala, with characteristic flair, slowly unsolved the mysteries of skincare, VISHAL KUMAR Cleanliness drive held around AIT Chairman visits Minimalist approach best for shopping centre again skincare, say wellness experts Durgiana temple, Gol Bagh Famed jewellery designer Queenie Dhody (3rd from right) and Bollywood aesthetician expert Dinyar Workingboxwala (4th from right) in Amritsar. unravelling insights into effective skincare routines. His emphasis on a minimalist approach and the use of natural products resonated strongly with the audience, advocating for a shift away from harsh chemical treatments towards gentler, nature-derived alternatives. With years of experience into wellness and beauty industry and with a long list of Bollywood A-listers as his clients, Dr Dinyar stressed on focusing on food and nutrition along with skincare, as key to great skin and body. Queenie Singh’s latest opulent creations in fine jewellery were showcased at an exhibit as she shared the latest trends in jewellery. Chairperson, FICCI FLO Amritsar chapter, Himani Arora said the session was high in information and trending skincare and wellness routines, as the members got first-hand knowledge about how to stay healthy from industry experts. — TNS