17072024-JTR-01.qxd 7/16/2024 10:33 PM Page 1 c m y b Jalandhar tribune POLICE BUST INTERSTATE ARMS SMUGGLING MODULE GROW FRUITS FOR NUTRITIONAL SECURITY: PAU VC TO FARMERS IN CONVERSATION WITH A CINEMATOGRAPHER Three .32 bore pistols, three magazines and six live cartridges recovered from the suspects. P2 An exhibition of mangoes and pears and Kisan Goshti were jointly organised at Dasuya. P3 Anay Goswamy says after Mr and Mrs Mahi, he is ready to sign on the dotted line for yet another love story. P4 » » » FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 37°C | MIN 30°C YESTERDAY MAX 37°C | MIN 30°C SUNSET WEDNESDAY 7.32 PM SUNRISE THURSDAY 5:35 AM WEDNESDAY | 17 JULY 2024 | JALANDHAR Washed away by floods last yr, Bypoll over, AAP minister Balkar Singh again to fore school still sans boundary wall Deepkamal Kaur Tribune News Service Aakanksha N Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Jalandhar, July 16 A year ago when floods wreaked havoc in Lohian block of Jalandhar district, several schools suffered major damages. The boundary walls of some schools also collapsed including that of Government Primary School (GPS), Bara Jodh Singh. A year later, nothing has changed for the school, and even the boundary wall hasn’t got built again. The fallen bricks are lying as they were in July last year. The students have been studying without any safety measures since then. Strangely, no grant has been received for the construction of the boundary wall yet. The school itself is situated in a desolate area, near a highway. The Tribune visited the school today and saw a stray dog roaming inside and two students present. According to the school authorities, there are 21 students in the school. The staff informed that stray cattle also roam around in the school premises which become problematic. The teachers said that they constantly keep check- The debris of damaged boundary wall; and (below) two students attend a class at Government Primary School, Bara Jodh Singh. ing the footage of CCTV cameras installed in the school to ensure that no unknown person enters the premises. There are two teachers in the school. Mother of Hargun, a Class V student at the school, said she is apprehensive in sending her daughter to the school where there is no boundary wall. “I have raised the issue with the school authorities too. I really hope that the authorities will pay heed to the issue,” she said. As per the information, a government middle school also used to run in the same premises, but it was wound up a few years ago. Anju, in-charge of the school, said they were waiting for the grants to come. “We remain quite vigilant and ensure that the studies of students do not suffer,” she said. Jyoti Nooran staff catch, Officials ordered to get handoversnatchertocops water pipelines repaired Tribune News Service Jalandhar, July 16 The Division Number 4 police have booked three persons for allegedly trying to snatch the mobile phone of a delivery boy near a petrol pump at BMC Chowk here past the midnight. Pritam Kumar, who works with Zomato, had gone to the filling station when three bike-borne youths waylaid him and tried to snatch his cellphone. Around the same time, Sufi singer Jyoti Nooran was also in the same area as she had gone with her staff to get some snacks from the adjoining ‘24 Seven’ grocery store. When they realised that the victim needed help, Miscreants attack Zomato delivery boy Jyoti’s staff tried to stop the bikers by hitting them with their vehicle. At this, the snatchers fell off the bike, but two of them fled from the spot. The singer’s staff called the police and handed over the youth to them, who is known to be a minor. Nirmal Singh, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Central Jalandhar, said the police teams got to know about the incident in the wee hours today. An FIR has been lodged under Sections 307/3(5) of the BNS, he said adding that the accused had been identified. He said the bike had also been recovered. Tribune News Service Jalandhar, July 16 To prevent water-borne diseases during the monsoon season, Deputy Commissioner Himanshu Aggarwal has asked the Jalandhar Municipal Corporation (MC) to repair water supply and sewerage pipelines across the city. The measure aims to curb the incidence of diarrhoea and other related illnesses. In a meeting attended by key officials, including MC Commissioner Gautam Jain and Additional Deputy Commissioner (UD) Jasbir Singh, Dr Aggarwal emphasised the importance of checking for leaks in both sewerage and water supply lines. He instructed the executive officers (EOs) of municipal committees and officials from the Water Supply and Sanitation Departments to address any such issues promptly. To facilitate immediate reporting and resolution of these problems, the civic body has issued a helpline 0181-2242587. Furthermore, the Deputy Commissioner has directed Health Department officials to ensure proper chlorination and implement other preventive measures to control the spread of diarrhoea and other waterborne diseases. The steps are crucial to safeguard public health during the rainy season. 15-yr-old kathak dancer holds fundraising event for prevention of cervical cancer Tribune News Service Jalandhar, July 16 Phulkari Women of Jalandhar in collaboration with city-based kathak training institute Studio Antara hosted an event Swarna Parvaha on Sunday evening at KL Saigal Memorial Hall. It was a fundraising event for spreading awareness, screening and prevention of cervical cancer through vaccination. City girl Pavit Sodhi (15), who studies at Welham Girls’ School, Dehradun, enchanted the audience with a recital, which was a cultural feat and a heartfelt appeal for the social cause. Pavit Sodhi Pavit said she was passionate about kathak since her childhood and started taking training from her guru Nidhi Mittal in Jalandhar. “Even in my school, I participate in all classical dance events. As my summer vacations approached, I had plans to do something in my hometown. I planned this kathak event to help raise funds for cervical cancer vaccination for young girls of economically-weaker families. So, I collaborated with Phulkari Women of Jalandhar and CAPED, Gurugram, who are running the Conquer Cancer Programme related to cervical cancer awareness”, she shared. The teen added, “It all started with a small wish to make a difference. I have also started my blog sage_trance to work towards raising funds for cervical cancer to support her concern for women who needlessly suffer from this deadly disease which can be easily prevented by vaccination.” She said she is also currently working for a project SHE-Thestrongerhe, which is a medium to showcase the talent of needy women who are skilled and helps them sell their products, thus empowering them. Adwaita Tewari of Phulkari Women of Jalandhar said each person present praised the efforts and hard work of Pavit Sodhi. c m y b Jalandhar, July 16 Having been kept completely sidelined in the recentlyconcluded Jalandhar West (reserved) bypoll owing to his controversial video, Local Bodies Minister Balkar Singh has once again started getting prominence in political circles. Despite holding the most important portfolio and representing the SC section, Balkar Singh was not roped in for the election campaign by the AAP Just three days . since the announcement of the result, Balkar on Tuesday went to the Municipal Corporation (MC) office where he reviewed the progress of ongoing development works in the city and directed the officials to ensure that projects be completed swiftly. With MC poll on mind, the party perhaps now realises the need to engage the local bodies minister. At the meeting, the newly-elected MLA Mohinder Bhagat also joined in as the new Dalit representative of the party. The AAP government had been the target of the BJP and the Congress in the bypoll for delaying the MC poll by 1.5 years and doing nothing for the development of the city. The issues of contaminated drinking water and overflow- Local Bodies Minister Balkar Singh holds a meeting at MC office. ing sewage had been raked up repeatedly and the MC machinery from entire Punjab had to be pressed into service to win over the voters in the bypoll area of the city. In the presence of MLA Raman Arora, MC Commissioner Gautam Jain and other senior officials, Balkar Singh reviewed the construction of roads, including Garha Road and Jamsher Road, and the ongoing development work at Dr BR Ambedkar Park Bootan Mandi. The minister stressed on the importance of maintaining the quality of development works. He instructed officials to inspect the sites regularly. The minister also assessed the MC’s arrangements for handling monsoon season challenges, including water drainage, sewer cleaning, and mosquito control measures. He urged special attention to sewer cleaning and preemp- tive arrangements, including necessary machinery, to resolve sewer blockage issues. He emphasised on the effective drainage of rainwater during the monsoon to prevent inconvenience to the public. Additionally, he reviewed the performance of the eight sewage treatment plants operating in the city. The minister also stressed on the need for property tax collection. He instructed MC officials to ensure 100 per cent property tax collection and warned that any negligence in this regard would not be tolerated. He asked officials to submit a report on this matter by August 1. During the meeting, the Cabinet Minister listened to the issues related to the respective constituencies raised by the MLAs and instructed the officials to prioritise and address them. Cong begins preparations for MC poll Finding ‘trustworthy’ candidates tough task as most councillors leave party Aakanksha N Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Jalandhar, July 16 While the Lok Sabha election was won by Charanjit Singh Channi from the constituency, Surinder Kaur, party candidate in the Jalandhar West bypoll, got votes less than the candidates of AAP and the BJP mak, ing the party stood third. Now, with the municipal corporation elections next on schedule, it has become a major challenge for the Congress as almost all party councillors switched the sides. It will be difficult for the party to find “trustworthy” candidates. Those who left the Congress enjoyed respect and trust among residents in their wards because of the work they did, so it will be a painstaking task for the Congress to give reliable faces. There was a time in 2017 when the Congress enjoyed a majority in the municipal corporation here and there were above 65 councillors backed by the party. Everything changed when AAP formed the govern- Congress leaders and workers during an election campaign at Jalandhar West constituency. FILE ment in the state two years ago and Congress councillors started switching parties. Now, the party is hardly left with less than 10 councillors. Balraj Thakur, a senior leader and five-time councillor from the party, said people would vote where they have hope. “Even though councillors have left the party, it’’s not that we are short of candidates. People know who can work for them and we know that no matter what, things will be in our favour in the MC elections. Also, every election is different from the other,” he said. Another leader from the Congress said the preparations were already started. “We have started meeting ward residents. We will have to ensure that we manage to retain our position. Everything was smooth earlier, we wish that the upcoming MC House should also be led by the Congress only,” he said. Admn holds special camp at Sahni village to resolve public grievances Ex-K’thala DC is power panel secy SARKAR AAPKE DWAR PROGRAMME Phagwara, July 16 Following the instructions of state government to organise camps under ‘Sarkar Aapke Dwar’ programme, the district administration today held a special camp at village Sahni to receive and resolve public grievances on the spot. DC Amit Kumar Panchal, who personally heard the plaints of people gathered from different villages, directed the officials to address the issues within minimal time. He said that the state government had directed to form a cluster of villages and hold special camps at one suitable location to facilitate villagers by resolving their grievances. The district administration has started a series of camps in all sub-divisions, said Panchal, adding that the admin- istration was fully committed to resolving issues pertaining to people in a time-bound manner. During the camp at village Sahni, six applications related to the Sewa Kendras, 49 of food and civil supplies and four of revenue department were received and addressed on the spot. He said that a case of pension was also approved. Panchal also handed over certificates for various citizen-centric services to the applicants. — OC Phagwara, July 16 Days after former Kapurthala DC Captain Karnail Singh’s request for voluntary retirement was approved by the state government, CM Bhagwant Maan has approved his appointment as Secretary in Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission. After joining the new assignment, Captain Karnail Singh told The Tribune that the tenure is initially for a period of three years, which could be extended up to five years. — OC
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