13032024-JTR-01.qxd 3/13/2024 12:38 AM Page 1 c m y b Jalandhar tribune LPU STUDENT SHINES AT NAT’L YOUTH PARLIAMENT FESTIVAL HUNDREDS THRONG KISAN MELA AT KVK BATHINDA Huge turnout of farmers was witnessed at a kisan mela held at Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Bathinda. P3 PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 24°C | MIN 13°C YESTERDAY MAX 26.2°C | MIN 12.5°C DISHA PATANI & SIDHARTH BOND OVER GYM SESSIONS Yatin Bhaskar Duggal of LPU won the first prize at the National Youth Parliament Festival in New Delhi. P2 FORECAST Disha Patani, who plays an air hostess in Yodha, recalled playing volleyball with Sidharth during shoot breaks.P4 » » SUNSET WEDNESDAY 6.29 PM SUNRISE THURSDAY 6:33 AM » WEDNESDAY | 13 MARCH 2024 | JALANDHAR INBRIEF YOUTH KIDNAPS MINOR, BOOKED Improvement Trust fined for failing to give possession of plot Told to refund ~2.6 lakh to allottee within 30 days, pay relief Tribune News Service Phagwara: The Nakodar Sadar police have booked a youth on the charge of kidnapping a minor. Investigating officer (IO) Janak Raj said the suspect had been identified as Kuldeep Singh, alias Deepu, a resident of Jahangir village. Joga Singh, a resident of the same village, told the police that the suspect kidnapped his minor daughter on the pretext of marrying her. A case under Sections 363 and 366 of the IPC has been registered against the suspect. OC 4 BOOKED FOR HOUSE TRESPASS Phagwara: The Lohian Khas police have booked four persons, including a woman, on the charge of obstructing public way and house trespass. Investigating officer Avtar Singh said the suspects had been identified as Kulwinder Kaur, Mohinder Singh, Harjot Singh and Sonu, all residents of Kakarr Kalan village. Bhupinder Singh, a resident of the same village, told the police that the suspects encroached on a public way and threatened him. A case under Sections 283, 448 and 34 of the IPC has been registered against the suspects. OC MIGRANT HELD ON THEFT CHARGE Jalandhar, March 12 Failure to give the possession of a 153-sq yd plot at Surya Enclave Extension here to an allottee has cost the Jalandhar Improvement Trust (JIT) dear. While addressing a complaint of Sanjiv Chopra, a resident of Hoshiarpur, the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has ordered the Trust to refund the principal amount of ~2.6 lakh, along with 9 per cent interest per annum from the date of deposit till realisation, within 30 days of the date of pronouncement of the judgment. The Commission said if the Trust failed to pay the amount within 30 days, it would be liable to pay an additional 3 per cent interest on the principal amount to the allottee. In its orders, the Commission also asked the JIT to pay ~25,000 as compensation for mental harassment Residents face inconvenience as essential public services disrupted Avneet Kaur Tribune News Service The Commission said if the Trust failed to pay the amount within 30 days, it would be liable to pay an additional 3 per cent interest on the principal amount to the allottee. FILE PHOTO and agony suffered by the complainant and the cost of litigation. In his complaint, the allottee said he bought a 153-sq yd plot at Surya Enclave Extension in 2011 at a cost of ~26 lakh. He paid as earnest amount of Rs 2.6 lakh. As per the terms and conditions of the allotment letter, the JIT was supposed to hand over the possession of the plots within two years of allotment, but it miserably failed to do so. The complainant said in 2015 he found that the farmers had filed a writ petition against the JIT in the Punjab and Haryana High Court regarding the disputed land of Surya Enclave Extension. Realising that no construction work would take place, he approached the JIT again, but received no response. Consequently, he filed a complaint with the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission 2 drug smugglers land in police net Phagwara, March 12 The police have arrested a drug peddler and recovered 6,650 intoxicant tablets from his possession last night. Vatsala Gupta, Senior Superintendent of Police, Kapurthala, said the suspect, identified as Mandip Kumar, a resident of Wazid- Farmers’ protest affects work at Saanjh Kendras owal village near Phagwara, was nabbed at a check-point on the Maal Godaam road. A case under the NDPS Act has been registered against the suspect. In another case, Superintendent of Police Rupinder Kaur Bhatti said the police arrested a drug smuggler and recov- ered one kilogram of opium from his possession last night. The suspect, identified as Mandip Yadav of Bihar, and presently residing in Sahni village here, was nabbed near Law Gate, Miherru. The police have registered a case under the NDPS Act against the suspect. — OC Jalandhar, March 12 Residents of the city have been enduring a lot of inconvenience as essential public services provided at Saanjh Kendras, managed by the police department, have been disrupted for the last over 25 days. The cause behind this disruption is the deployment of police personnel from these centres for the ongoing farmers’ protest at Shambhu border. A random check by Jalandhar Tribune revealed that Saanjh Kendras across the city were either closed or understaffed, leaving citizens unable to access necessary services. “I came here for my police clearance certificate (PCC), but everything is closed, and the authorities seem unconcerned about public services,” lamented Renuka, a newlywed who applied for the PCC a month ago. She explained that she needed the certificate for her Canada visa application, as her husband is a permanent resident there, and they were married just last month. “I’ve visited this Saanjh Kendra in police division number 5 three times in the past 20 days. Sometimes I find it A random check by Jalandhar Tribune revealed that Saanjh Kendras across the city were either closed or understaffed. PHOTO: SARABJIT SINGH deserted, and when I do find someone, they just say that the staff is on duty for the farmers’ protest,” she added. Similarly, a school teacher seeking police verification at the division number 4 Saanjh Kendra expressed dismay over the lack of staff, deeming the situation ridiculous. “It’s absurd that the operations at these centres are moving at a snail’s pace due to staff shortage. I’ve been informed that most of the staff has been assigned for the ongoing farmers’ protest. There’s uncertainty as to when things will Admn all set for smooth conduct of LS elections: DC Phagwara: The police have arrested a migrant from Uttar Pradesh for committing a theft in the factory on Nangal road, Chachoki, in Phagwara. The suspect, identified as Rahim Sudama of Nahari (UP), was presently residing in Jalandhar. He confessed to have stole valuables worth lakhs from the factory, Chadha International. On the complaint of Kulwinder Singh, a resident of Sarhala Ranua village, the police have registered a case against the suspect under Sections 457 and 380 of the IPC. OC Says youth must be encouraged for voting; 16.17L voters to exercise franchise at 1,951 polling booths Tribune News Service Jalandhar, March 12 The district administration claims to be fully geared up for the Parliamentary elections 2024 saying all preliminary arrangements have been made by the administration for free and fair polls. Vishesh Sarangal, Deputy Commissionercum-DEO, Jalandhar, while taking part in a videoconferencing with the ECI, along with SSP Mukhwinder Singh Bhullar, DCP Ankur Gupta, ADCs and ROs, today said the district administration was all set for the smooth conduct of the Lok Sabha polls. He said the Jalandhar Parliament constituency had nearly 16.17 lakh voters who will exercise their franchise at 1,951 polling booths. He said teams had already been constituted to implement the Model Code of Conduct in true spirit. Besides, C-Vigil monitoring teams and IT teams had also been constituted. Sarangal said to provide necessary approvals to candidates in an easy manner, Suwidha permission team at the DEO and ARO level with nodal officers had also been deputed. To keep a hawk’s eye on expenditure during the elections, various teams would work round the clock besides ensuring webcasting monitoring at booth level for more transparency in voting process. Advocating strengthen- ing SVEEP activities in the district, Sarangal asked the officials to increase daily activities with an aim to achieve the target of more than 70 per cent polling in elections. He said youth, especially those in the age group of 18-19 years, must be encouraged to play a significant role in voting. The DEO said districtlevel complaint monitoring team and district-level media monitoring teams had also been constituted. Meanwhile, Jalandhar (Rural) SSP Mukhwinder Singh Bhullar and DCP Ankur Gupta said arms deposition arrangements had been made. Adequate security arrangements were also in place. Later, the Deputy Commissioner also visited the Director Land Records office here to check the proposed counting centres. He asked the officials to work with dedication for the smooth conduct of Parliamentary polls as it was the biggest festival of democracy in the country. MAN HANGS SELF TO DEATH Our Correspondent Garhshankar (Hoshiarpur), March 12 The police have recovered the body of a migrant woman labourer from the motor room of a tube well in the fields at Panam village. The deceased had been identified as Nimiya Devi, alias Munni. The police took the body into their possession and were waiting for the family members to arrive to get the post-mortem done. Harjinder Singh, alias Khawda, a resident of Panam village, informed the police that the body of a woman was lying inside the motor room. After getting information, Gurinderjit Singh Nagra, Station House Officer (SHO) of the Garhshankar police sta- Cops carry out an investigation at Panam village in Hoshiarpur. tion, reached the spot with a police party. Harjinder told the police that Sumeet was living with Nimiya at his old house in the village for the past four months. Day before yesterday, Sumeet came to him and took his outstanding amount of Rs 22,000 and said he was leaving for Jharkhand. Yesterday, he came to know that after taking money from him, Sumeet went to a liquor vend and c m y b later to the fields of Surinder at Panam village, where he beat up the woman. He told the police that Saloni, a resident of the village, witnessed the incident. “Sumeet had murdered the woman. She had injury marks on her head and neck. An iron rod and scissors were found near the woman’s body with which she was murdered. The woman was living with Sumeet for the past four months after the death of her husband. Efforts are on to trace him and he will be nabbed soon,” said SHO Gurinderjit Singh Nagra. The police said a murder case had been registered against the suspect. They were making efforts to trace him. Man arrested for raping minor Jalandhar, March 12 The Rural police have arrested a person for allegedly raping a 14-year-old girl. The suspect has been identified as Harpreet Singh. The police said on March 9, the victim’s parents lodged a complaint with them that last year stating that one of their relatives raped their daughter. “She got pregnant. Harpreet’s parents hired a nurse who took ~15,000 from them and gave pills to my daughter for abortion,” they said. The police also arrested the nurse. A case has been registered. — TNS The suspects in police custody. ing police verification for three to four police stations, leading to a severe decline in overall functionality. Surinder Kaur, in-charge, Saanjh Kendras in the city, acknowledged the staffing challenges, noting that approximately 30 personnel are currently deployed for the farmers’ protest. She said the orders were received from higher-ups in Chandigarh, so the staff had no option but to go and join their duties there. However, efforts are underway to expedite work and things will get back to normal soon. ILLEGAL MINING IN VILLAGES 12 suspects held, 14 cases registered, claim police Cong leadership terms SSP’s statement eyewash Cops act against illegal mining in Phillaur on Tuesday. MALKIAT SINGH Tribune News Service Migrant woman found murdered Phagwara: A marriage palace owner reportedly committed suicide by hanging himself from the ceiling in the kitchen on Monday night. Aashu Sharma (55), owner of Shri Nath Palace, who also ran another property, Basra Palace, on lease, went to Basra Palace on scooter and hanged himself in its kitchen. The reason behind him taking the extreme step was not known yet. No suicide note was recovered from the spot. Ashu is survived by his wife and three daughters. Station House Officer (SHO) Jatinder Kumar said the incident came to light when security guards went to close of Basra Palace late on Monday night. OC get normal here,” she said. About 30 services are provided at these centres, with a total of 14 such centres across the city, each staffed by three to four individuals. As per sources, operations at these centres have been disrupted since February 18, and essential tasks such as police verification for tenants, domestic workers and school staff have been significantly impacted. Sources said that the remaining staff at the centres is overwhelmed with work, with one staff member responsible for cover- Jalandhar, March 12 A day after Congress MLA Pargat Singh took up the issue of illegal mining in the villages falling in his Jalandhar Cantonment constituency, the Jalandhar Rural Police released a data saying 14 cases of illegal mining had been registered and 12 suspects had been arrested in the past one year. The Congress leadership, however, termed today’s statement by Jalandhar Rural SSP Mukhwinder S Bhullar mere eyewash. Bhullar stated that rural police teams, in collaboration with the Mining Department, are keeping a close eye on any illegal mining along the Sutlej. Raids are being conducted to arrest those involved in these activities, he said. Bhullar said 10 cases had been lodged by the Phillaur police, while Bilga police had registered four cases. The police have seized several tractor/trolleys, a Poclain machine, two JCBs, and tippers. The police are working diligently to punish the suspects indulged in mining cases as per the law. He has entrusted the DSPs with ensuring timely presentation of the challans. Pargat Singh yesterday took along media teams to Diwali, Jamsher and Hardophrala villages of his constituency showing how digging was being done up to a depth of 56 feet by the mining mafia in these villages leading to a massive environmental damage and risk to the lives and properties of villagers. When Pargat was about to reach the sites, mining teams had fled from the site leaving behind the machinery, including tippers, JCBs and Poclain machines. He took pictures of the spot to the Vidhan Sabha to make the point as he had said that the administration and the police had turned a blind eye to the repeated requests of the villagers. Meanwhile, there are reports that an MLA from Malwa area was involved in rampant illegal mining in Phillaur and Shahkot areas, including Chak Bahmanian, Kaimwala, Pwadra and Jhandi Peer.