21022024-LT-01.qxd 21-02-2024 01:08 Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune KINNOW REPLACES BANANA IN MID-DAY MEAL AT SCHOOLS IRRIGATION FACILITIES TO BE IMPROVED, SAYS MINISTER ACTRESS KIARA ADVANI JOINS RANVEER SINGH IN DON 3 Kinnow will replace banana in the midday meal of students on Tuesdays at government schools across state. P2 Horticulture Minister Chetan Singh Jouramajra laid stone of reconstruction work of Azamwala Minor Canal. P3 Kiara Advani, who was last seen in film Satyaprem Ki Katha, has come on board for the third instalment of Don.P4 » » » FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 23°C | MIN 12°C YESTERDAY MAX 24.6°C | MIN 16.6°C SUNSET WEDNESDAY 6.18 PM SUNRISE THURSDAY 7:01 AM WEDNESDAY | 21 FEBRUARY 2024 | LUDHIANA Collision between trucks leads to major traffic jam on NH at Ladhowal Rain likely in next 24 hours, maximum temp reaches 24.6 Commuters bear brunt as traffic affected for hours, injured drivers taken to hospital Ludhiana, February 20 The maximum temperature recorded on Tuesday was 24.6°C while minimum was 16.6°C. It was a partly cloudy and sunny day. According to the Department of Climate Change and Agricultural Meteorology, Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), the weather is expected to remain partly cloudy with the possibility of thundershowers over Ludhiana and its adjoining areas during the next 24 hours. A farmer from Begowal vil- Tribune News Service Ludhiana, February 20 A collision between a truck and a container truck led to a major traffic jam on the national highway at Ladhowal here on Tuesday. Traffic was affected for hours due to which commuters faced huge inconvenience. A two-kmlong traffic jam was reported on the highway. As per information, the accident occurred around 7 am when a truck and a container truck collided with each other. After the collision, the container overturned on the road due to which the highway was blocked. The truck was heading towards Sahenwal from Haibowal while the other vehicle was going to the Phillaur side from Ludhiana. After the accident, the Ladhowal police reached the spot. The injured drivers of both vehicles were taken to a hospital and their condition was stated to be stable. Police officials, who were managing traffic, said ini- Vehicles stuck in a traffic jam after the mishap on the NH in Ladhowal on Tuesday. ASHWANI DHIMAN CONTAINER OVERTURNS AFTER COLLISION As per information, the accident occurred around 7 am on Tuesday when a truck and a container truck collided with each other. After the collision, the container overturned on the road due to which the highway was blocked. tially, a small crane was called to remove the truck and container truck from the highway but it could not remove the vehicles from the scene. Later, a big hydraulic crane shifted the vehicles to the roadside, following which the traffic movement was eased. Drivers of both vehicles blamed each other for the accident. The truck driver said the container truck was being driven at a high speed which caused the accident while the container driver said the truck entered the highway from the village side, which became the cause of the accident. Meanwhile, sources said talks were on between the owners of the vehicles to reach a compromise in the matter. Ravinder Kumar, a resident of Jalandhar, said he was going to Sahnewal from Jalandhar for a business meeting. After crossing the Ladhowal toll barrier, he got stuck in a traffic jam at Ladhowal and after over one-and-a-half hour, he managed to reach the Jalandhar bypass. Another commuter Ashish Singh said the police were trying to man the traffic but motorists in panic started commuting on the wrong side of the road from the Ladhowal side which further slowed down the traffic. ASI Vishwinder Sharma of the Ladhowal police station said investigation was on in the case and action would be taken as per law. Tribune News Service lage said thank the almighty that there was no thunderstorm in Ludhiana today as it could have caused damages to the standing wheat and mustard crop. The PAU has advised farmers to do crop operations in view of weather forecast during coming days. Giving advise to the farmers for wheat crop, experts have advised that in case of timely sown crop, they need to apply two sprays of 2 per cent potassium nitrate by dissolving 4 kg potassium nitrate in 200 litres of water. “Regularly survey wheat crop for the occurrence of yellow rust. If symptoms appeared, then spray custodia/caviet/opera/tilt/stilt/ bumper/shine/markzole @0.1 % or nativo @ 0.06 % after weather clears up,” said an expert. For management of pink stem borer, apply 7 kg of Mortel/Regent 0.3 G or 1 litres of Dursban 20 EC mixed with 20 kg of moist sand before first irrigation. To produce karnal bunt free seed of wheat, give single spray of 200 ml tilt per acre, using 200 litres of water at ear emergence stage. Motorists commute amid windy weather conditions on a road in Ludhiana on Tuesday. ASHWANI DHIMAN Farmers continue protest Beware! City residents falling prey to deepfake videos attoll plaza in Ladhowal After getting several complaints, police begin awareness drive on social media to caution people Nikhil Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Ludhiana, February 20 The protest by farmers at the Ladhowal toll plaza here continued for the fourth day today. The toll barrier was set free for commuters by the protesters. Saudagar Singh, general secretary of the Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) said toll plazas would remain free till February 22 and protest outside houses of BJP leaders would also be continued. “We will intensify the stir in coming days as the government is not ready to accept our demands. We are simply asking the government to fix minimum support price (MSP) of crops according to the Swaminathan Commission report. Farmers are marching ahead towards Delhi,” he said. A leader of the Bharti Kisan Union (Kadian) said they had outrightly rejected the proposal made by Union ministers at Chandigarh to have a five-year contract with farmers to procure five crops namely maize, cotton, arhar/tur, Massar and Urad at minimum support price of A2+FL+50 per cent and promote crop diversification. “The decision has been taken to divert and dilute the demand of MSP@C2+50% for all crops with guaranteed procurement, which was promised in the BJP manifesto in 2014 Lok Sabha elections and originally recommended by the National Commission on Farmers, chaired by MS Swaminathan, and submitted in 2006,” said Harmeet singh Kadian, president, Bharti Kisan Union (Kadian). Ludhiana, February 20 After deepfake videos of renowned businessmen, film stars and sportspersons went viral in which fraudsters are seen luring unsuspecting individuals into online scams, the trend of this cyber fraud has now spread its wings in the industrial hub. Cyber crooks have targeted many people of Ludhiana in the past weeks and duped them of several lakhs on the pretext of giving huge returns on investment. As complaints have been pouring in with the cyber crime unit of the Police Commissionerate, the police have PEOPLE EVEN LOSE OVER ~50 LAKH Complaints being investigated by the cyber wing show that gullible people of the industrial hub have lost lakhs of rupees to online fraudsters. There are cases in which people even lost more than Rs 50 lakh to the cyber crooks as they fell prey to deceptive videos. started an awareness drive on social media to caution people about the prevalent trend so that people should not lose their hard-earned money. In-charge, Cyber Crime, Inspector Jatinder Singh, said several complaints pertaining to deepfake scams were received by the cyber wing in which people lost lakhs of rupees to cyber crooks. During preliminary investigation in the complaints, it was found that peo- ple were lured by showing them deepfake videos of some celebrities or business tycoons and assuring multiple returns on investment. Investment plans were related to share markets, some renowned companies, firms or related to some business models. Since a layman cannot easily identify a video generated with artificial intelligence (AI), he or she easily falls prey to the fraudsters and deposit money expecting multiple returns. Cyber crooks after getting money transferred into their bank accounts would time to time also show huge returns on the investment virtually and sometimes fraudsters would even return some money back into the accounts of people to make them believe that they have invested on some credible platform. “The cyber criminals have also created their fake apps or websites to showcase to the people that they are on a right platform. Some even created fake Initial Public Offering (IPO) and also give minor returns to the investors to win their trust. They have been advertising on social networking sites by creating deepfake videos of Bollywood stars, sportspersons or business magnates and gullible people are easily falling prey to such fraudsters and loosing their life savings,” Inspector Jatinder said. He said the fraudsters had been either using bank accounts of some migrants or some accounts opened on fake names in which they receive money from people. People should avoid such investments and on being cheated, they must lodge immediate complaints at toll free number 1930. No accredited driving training centres despite demand in city 2 motorcyclists lose Harshraj Singh Tribune News Service Ludhiana, February 20 Despite passing of over twoand-a half years since the issuance of guidelines for setting up of accredited driving training centres (DTCs) in states, none have been established in the industrial city. This gap persists despite the substantial demand for such centres among aspirants seeking to acquire driving skills. Furthermore, the alarming rate of road mishaps in Ludhiana each year accentuates the pressing need for such institutes. In August 2021, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (Road Safety Cell) wrote to principal secretaries (transport) and transport commissioners of all states, informing them that the ministry had prescribed rules under the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989, for the accreditation of driving training centres in the country via a notification dat- Over 2 yrs ago guidelines were issued to set up DTCs ADMN TOLD TO OPEN INSTITUTE IN FEB 2023 The alarming rate of road mishaps in Ludhiana each year accentuates pressing need for driving training centres. PHOTO: ASHWANI DHIMAN ed June 7, 2021. Such institutes not only aim to impart scientific and systematic training to driving aspirants but also inculcate good behaviour among road users and promote road safety. According to the guidelines, the state government would be responsible for the development of a mechanism for granting accreditation to eligible driving training centres and ensuring effective utilisation of the accredited DTCs through legislative provisions. Any company, non- governmental organisations (NGOs), private enterprises, etc., are eligible to apply for the accreditation of a centre by meeting the criteria, which include possessing premises with the necessary infrastructure/facilities on the land specified under the CMV Rules, 1989. Kapil Arora, a civil engineer from the city, highlighted the alarming frequency of fatal road accidents occurring every year. He emphasised the urgent necessity to enhance road safety by The State Transport Commissioner had written to the district administration and the Regional Transport Authority of Ludhiana in February 2023 to open an institute of automotive and driving skills jointly with Red Cross Society in Ludhiana. establishing dedicated DTCs. Arora advocated for the opening of centres catering to various vehicles, from cars to heavy vehicles, where comprehensive theoretical and practical training could be imparted. He also stressed the importance of issuing driving licenses based on scientific and systematic training. Furthermore, he stressed on the need to ensure transparency in functioning of such centres. Jasbinder Singh Grewal, general secretary of The c m y b Small Scale Bus Operators (Welfare) Association, Punjab, pointed out the absence of any DTC in compliance with the government guidelines. Highlighting the city’s significance, he said it was the main centre in the state, housing the largest number of vehicles and drivers. Grewal highlighted challenges faced by individuals aspiring to learn heavy vehicle driving skills due to the absence of adequate training institutes in Ludhiana. They are compelled to travel to distant locations for the same. He stressed the urgent need to establish DTCs in the city, particularly for individuals aiming to acquire proficient driving skills for heavy vehicles. He urged the Transport Department to prioritise the matter. The State Transport Commissioner had written to the district administration and the Regional Transport Authority of Ludhiana in February 2023 to open an insti- tute of automotive and driving skills jointly with Red Cross Society in Ludhiana. In the letter, the commissioner had instructed the authorities to open such an institute to provide a refresher course for new or renewal of driving licenses for commercial vehicles. However, the institute has yet to be realised, leaving many aspiring individuals who wish to acquire driving skills in a state of uncertainty. Such training institutes (for commercial vehicles) were available at some locations, including Mahuana, Hoshiarpur and Ropar in the state, as per an official. Regional Transport Officer, Ludhiana, Randeep Singh Heer, said he would look into the matter and take necessary measures. The State Transport Commissioner, Moneesh Kumar, said there was no driving training centre in the city. He said they had earlier written to the DC, Ludhiana, to open an institute to provide a refresher course. lives in road mishaps Ludhiana, February 20 Two persons died in separate road accidents reported in the district. In the first incident, a headon collision between a Honda Activa scooter and a motorcycle killed the motorcyclist in Jagraon. The deceased has been identified as Lakhwinder Singh, a resident of Akalgarh, near Sudhar. The complainant, Pritam Singh, father of the deceased, said on February 18 his son went to his tent shop in Jagraon. Later in the night, when his son was returning home on his motorcycle, a speeding and rashly driven Activa collided head-on with his son’s motorcycle. The incident occurred at Kothe Pona village near Jagraon. “I was also going behind my son on a motorcycle and was an eyewitness to the accident. He suffered serious head injuries and breathed his last on the spot. The incident occurred due to the negligence of the scooter driver and strict action should be taken against him,” he alleged. Sources said the scooterborne person, Gagandeep Singh, of Akalgarh village was also hospitalised as he also suffered injuries in the accident. A case was also registered against him. In the second incident, a truck rammed into a motorcyclist at Jandiali village and killed the two-wheeler rider on the spot. The deceased has been identified as Chote Lal Yadav. The complainant, the deceased’s son, Yogesh Kumar of Jhabewal, told the police that on February 18, his father was heading home on his motorcycle when he was hit by a rashly driven truck. He suffered serious injuries and was rushed to the Civil Hospital where doctors declared him brought dead. A case has been registered against the truck driver, Mohd Junaid, of UP — TNS .
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