19062024-ATR-01.qxd 6/19/2024 12:38 AM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune CPM DEMANDS CANCELLED RATION CARDS RESUMED RATHORE STYLES DILJIT FOR DIL-LUMINATI TOUR The singer-actor has joined hands with the designer to promote Indian heritage through his ‘concert’ looks. P4 PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 42°C | MIN 32°C YESTERDAY MAX 42°C | MIN 31°C ALKA YAGNIK REVEALS SHE HAS A ‘RARE HEARING LOSS’ The CPM protested the cancellation of ration cards outside the Deputy Commissioner’s office here. P2 FORECAST Singer diagnosed with a rare sensory neural nerve hearing loss due to a viral attack. P4 » » SUNSET WEDNESDAY 7.27 PM SUNRISE THURSDAY 5:20 AM » WEDNESDAY | 19 JUNE 2024 | AMRITSAR Dist environment panel for better mgmt of waste in urban, rural areas Rural police effect transfer of over 250 Tarn Taran cops PK Jaiswar Sanitation workers protest, seek fulfilment of demands Tribune News Service Additional Deputy Commissioner (Urban Development) Nikas Kumar (centre) addresses members during a meeting of the District Environment Committee in Amritsar on Tuesday. Tribune News Service Amritsar, June 18 The District Environment Committee at its meeting held here on Tuesday emphasised on better implementation of waste management in urban and rural areas. Additional Deputy Commissioner (Urban Development) Nikas Kumar, while chairing the meeting, laid stress on better implementation of waste management. He said that wet and dry waste should be collected separately and managed properly so that the common people can also cooperate in ensuring cleanliness in cities and villages. He directed the officials to take appropriate action against those who throw garbage in public places which lie in their jurisdiction. In a related meeting, the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) sought cooperation from other departments. In addition to the management of waste generated in urban and rural areas, a review of the ongoing works of the department related to the management of plastic waste, waste water treatment, prevention of single-use plastic, air pollution and other environmental issues were taken up in the meeting. Kumar asked the officials to form teams to take action against the acrylic string, popularly known as ‘China Dor’ to ensure timely action against it. The meeting also reviewed the expenditure of funds received under the National Clean Air Programme for the city of Amritsar. In the meeting, the Additional Deputy Commissioner (Urban Development) along with the heads of the departments concerned issued guidelines for achieving the target of various works listed in the District Environment Plan in a time-bound manner. Sukhdev Singh, Environmental Engineer, Vinod Kumar, Assistant Environmental Engineer, Sandeep Malhotra, District Development and Panchayat Officer, Dr Harjot Kaur, District Malaria Officer and ACP Harpinder Singh were also present on the occasion. Amritsar, June 18 Days after the Lok Sabha polls, the Amritsar rural police today reshuffled as many as 256 cops from the rank of constable onward. Those shifted include policemen who were stationed in their home towns or at a police station or subdivision for more than three years. “As many as 256 nongazetted and enrolled police officers have been shifted as per the directions of Director General of Police, Gaurav Yadav, and Punjab Police rules,” said SSP Amritsar Rural Satinder Singh. The SSP said that the step was taken to maintain law and order and break the back of cartel involved in peddling drugs on a small scale. The transfers are part of the crackdown on drug peddling at the micro level. While alleging that the drug traffickers had nexus with the police, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had stated that around 10,000 cops from the rank of constable onward have been transferred and more reshuffle was on cards. Also want security of staff deputed on night sanitation shifts Charanjit Singh Teja Tribune News Service Amritsar, June 18 On the call of the Safai Mazdoor Union, a large number of sanitation workers led by president Vinod Kumar Bitta and chairman Surinder Tonna staged a demonstration against the Amritsar Municipal Corporation commissioner here on Tuesday. The union leaders are upset over the night sanitation drive initiated by MC Commissioner Harpreet Singh. The union leaders said they are concerned about the safety of workers who work till midnight. “Everyone is aware of the law and order situation in the city. As drug addicts do not hesitate to attack residents in broad daylight, it is not safe for the sanitation workers to return home at midnight. Addicts often attack to snatch mobile phones and bikes from poor workers. We had asked officials to also ensure the safety of workers but no one paid heed to our suggestion. So we have sent a notice to the MC Commis- Sanitation workers during a demonstration at the MC office at Ranjit Avenue in Amritsar on Tuesday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR sioner to stop night sanitation otherwise we will go on strike after 72 hours,” said Vinod Kumar Bitta, president, Safai Mazdoor Union. The sanitation workers said due to deep-rooted corruption in the MC, officials failed to address the garbage issue in the city and it was the major reason for the defeat of the incumbent government in the LS elections. “The solid waste management company hired by the MC has been collecting ~100 and ~50 per house. They are also col- lecting money from all the commercial establishments. The MC pays huge funds to the firm, but garbage is not being lifted properly. The tractor trolley and mechanical sweeping machines are being used for misappropriation of diesel,” said Bitta. The union leaders said sanitation staff are not getting their salaries on time and the government is not recruiting new workers against vacant posts. Meanwhile, MC Commissioner Harpreet Singh said all sanitation staff are part of our family and the civic body is committed to their welfare. He said since the day he joined as the MC Commissioner, his main focus was on sanitation and staff of the municipal corporation are very dedicated and doing their job very well. He said being the head of the organization, it is his duty to make efforts to provide salary to the staff on time. He said he assured the staff that the municipal corporation is making efforts to give salaries to its staff by the first week of each month. He further said all other demands of the union would be taken up with the government as the recruitment process is the prerogative of the government. Commissioner Harpreet Singh said, “Since the start of the night sanitation of various important roads in the city, many citizen welfare organisations, business associations and NGOs called him personally and appreciated the MC’s step.” However the security and wellbeing of staff is the responsibility of the corporation. Despite incentives, direct seeding Two dupe city resident MLA Central asks MC officials to of rice has not many takers of ~9.5 lakh on pretext improve civic amenities in city of job as TTE in Rlys Tribune News Service Amritsar, June 18 Despite the state agriculture department setting a mammoth target and continuing its scheme to provide monetary incentives to promote the direct seeding of rice (DSR), it has failed to elicit the required response from the agrarian community. Agriculture department officials stated that DSR has been used on nearly 1,500 hectares in the district. In comparison, the department estimates that a total of 1.80 lakh hectares of land would come under paddy cultivation this season. The government is offering a monetary incentive of Rs 1,500 per acre to the farmers who use DSR technique in their fields. These farmers are required to register on the agriculture department’s online portal. The government has been offering the scheme for the last three consecutive seasons but it has Tribune News Service Tribune News Service The DSR method is used much before paddy transplantation. failed to convince the farmers. Sukhjinder Singh, a local farmer, said, “Weed management is the biggest and most common problem faced in fields which are sown with DSR. Given the uncertainty of weather, even if it rains moderately in three weeks after sowing, the weed would germinate and overpower plant saplings which are then too small.” He said that though DSR is much convenient as it does not require any labour, it is a risky idea. Another farmer Joginder Singh said, “DSR is a bit more technical method of growing rice. First of all, farmers have to sow the seed at optimum moisture level. Secondly, they have to spray weedicide soon after sowing the seeds and then they have to hope that there is no rain until the saplings are strong enough.” He said that many farmers are still learning the new technique and are not ready to take any risk. The DSR has been touted as a less labour-intensive and water conserving technique by agriculture experts. Amritsar, June 18 A local resident was duped of ~9.5 lakh by a father-son duo on the pretext of getting him recruited in Indian Railways as TTE (travelling ticket examiner). The police have registered a case in this regard but no arrest has been made so far. A case was registered following a probe conducted by Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (ADCP)rank official who recommended registration of an FIR in this connection. Those booked were identified as Bakshish Singh and his son Lovepreet Singh, both residents of Ajnala, and who are now residing at Kot Khalsa here. The complainant, Manish Kumar, alleged that the Security reviewed at Amritsar airport after hoax bomb threat Three arrested with 150 gm of heroin Tribune News Service Tarn Taran, June 18 Three arrests were made from different places on Monday by the police and 150 grams of heroin seized. In the first incident, a team led by Sub-inspector Dilbag Singh, SHO, Harike, arrested Kala Singh with 100 grams of heroin on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Dharampal Singh Dhamma, a resident of Muradpur locality in Tarn Taran, was arrested with 20 grams of heroin and an electronic weigh-bridge (Kanda) by the city police, Tarn Taran, headed by ASI Kirpal Singh. In another case, Sarhali police arrested Tarsem Singh, a resident of Chaudhriwala with 30 grams of heroin. The police booked the accused. — OC Amritsar, June 18 The authorities at Shri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport beefed up security after hoax bomb threats were received at various airports in the country. VK Seth, Director, SGRD held a meeting with the security agencies on Tuesday and seriously considered the threat call. He gave instructions to make strict arrangements for the security of the airport and passengers. Seth said that a threatening message has been circulated at airports all over India due to which the security at Amritsar airport is also being taken seriously. In this regard, he held a meeting today with the CISF and Punjab Police officials. Security arrangements were discussed during the meeting. The airport authorities issued guide- lines for a thorough checking of every visitor coming to the airport. VK Seth said that the CISF and Punjab Police have been asked to increase vigilance at the airport. c m y b accused took ~3 lakh on February 24, 2022, ~4 lakh and ~2.5 lakh on March 10, 2022, and March 24, 2022, from him through cheques. He said the accused provided him the railway recruitment form and the medical certificate of East Central Railway Hospital, Danapur (Patna), and the identity card issued by DRM OfficeI of Bilaspur in his name which were later found to be fake. Investigations suggested further probe into the role of Ranjit Singh of Khushipur (Kotla Khurd) village and Jaswinder Singh of Verka in this case. Following the DA’s legal opinion, the police booked Bakshish and his son Lovepreet under Sections 420 and 120-B of the IPC against them. Amritsar, June 18 MLA from Amritsar Central Assembly constituency Dr Ajay Gupta held a meeting with Municipal Commissioner Harpreet Singh, Additional Commissioner Surinder Singh, Assistant Commissioner Vishal Wadhawan, Superintending Engineers Sandeep Singh, Surjit Singh, Executive Engineer Sunil Mahajan and Municipal Town Planners Narinder Sharma and Mehrban Singh at the Corporation office in Ranjit Avenue. In the meeting, MLA Gupta asked the MC officials to improve the basic services being provided to the city residents. He said that in the last two and half years, no major improvement was made. Gupta said the sanitation system, especially in the Walled City, was in a bad state. He said that every day, 70,000 to MLA (Central) Ajay Gupta (2nd from left) during a meeting with MC officials in Amritsar on Tuesday. one lakh devotees come to visit Darbar Sahib and the present state of cleanliness affects the image of the holy city. He asked the MC Commissioner to take action against the waste management company for not following the rules as per the contract with MC. He clearly said that the Municipal Corporation should look for more options to improve the sanitation system. The MLA said that supply of contaminated drinking water was a huge problem in the Doctor booked for dowry, criminal breach of trust Amritsar, June 18 After nearly nine months of investigations, the Amritsar Rural Police have booked a doctor, Dr Karamvir Singh Dhillon, posted at a private hospital in Rajpura on charges of dowry and criminal breach of trust. Dr Dhillon, who originally hails from Ghumar Mandi in Ludhiana, was booked under Sections 498-A and 406 of the Indian Penal Code. A case was registered on June 15. He is yet to be arrested though further investigations are underway, said the police. He married the complainant, Arshpreet Kaur, also a doctor and resident of Bhure Gill village here, around three and a half years ago. The case was registered following a probe got conducted by an SP-rank official. The probe carried out by the police official pointed out that the accused doctor demanded dowry and five acres of land. He threw the victim out of the house when she failed to fulfill the dowry demand. The allegations against other members of in-laws’ family could not be substantiated during investigations. In her complaint to the Amritsar Rural Police on September 2023, Arshdeep Kaur said she was married to Karamvir on November 2020 as per the rituals and her fam- ily had given dowry as per their capacity. She said she did her MBBS from Sri Guru Ramdas Institute of Medical Sciences and Research at Vallah while her husband was posted at the hospital associated with the college. Later, he left his job at Vallah and joined a private hospital at Rajpura and the couple shifted there. She said she also started working at the hospital. The accused then started demanding dowry and transferring of five acres of land to his name which she refused. She said the accused subjected her to physical and mental harassment and got her removed from the hospital. — TNS Central assembly constituency. He said that this problem should be solved on priority basis and instructed desilting of sewer lines at the earliest. MC Commissioner Harpreet Singh and Additional Commissioner Surinder Singh said due to non-availability of funds from the Central and Punjab governments for a long time, they have not been able to pay the contractors, who are undertaking development works in the city. Security beefed up at city rly station Amritsar, June 18 In wake of threats issued by J-K based terrorist organisations to bomb railway stations in Punjab, security has been beefed up in and around the Amritsar railway station. Railway officials said that the personnel of the Railway Protection Force (RPF) and Government Railway Police (GRP) are keeping round the clock vigil. They are keeping a track of passenger movement through CCTV cameras and checking the suspicious movement of people besides their bags and baggage. So far, nothing incriminating has been found. — TNS
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