19072024-CT-01.qxd 7/18/2024 11:49 PM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune CHECK DIARRHOEA, CHOLERA OUTBREAK IN MOHALI: DC PATIALA EVES LOG 4-RUN WIN OVER JALANDHAR RICHA, ALI ‘TICKLED PINK’ AS THEY WELCOME DAUGHTER Deputy Commissioner Aashika Jain tells officials to gear up to tackle cases of diarrhoea & cholera. P2 Patiala beat Jalandhar by four runs to win Punjab inter-district women one-day cricket tournament . P3 Bollywood couple Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal have announced the arrival of their first child, a daughter. P4 » » CHANDIGARH-DIBRUGARH TRAIN MISHAP AIR QUALITY INDEX CHANDIGARH 66 PANCHKULA 48 MOHALI 52 401-500 301-400 201-300 101-200 51-100 0-50 TWITTER/THETRIBUNECHD SEVERE VERY POOR POOR MODERATE SATISFACTORY GOOD Helpdesk set up at railway station for info on passengers INBRIEF 2 CITY RESIDENTS CONNED ONLINE Chandigarh: Two more incidents of cyber fraud have been reported from the city with victims getting duped to the tune of Rs 40 lakh. In one of the incidents, a woman resident of Sector 63 stated that an unidentified person duped her on the pretext of providing a part-time job. The victim was told that she would have to post reviews on Google. However, she ended up losing Rs 35.24 lakh. The other incident was reported by Rajesh Mirchandani of Sector 49. He was duped of Rs 4.99 lakh on the pretext of stock trading. TNS MOCK DRILL AT LAKE CLUB Chandigarh: The Operations Cell of the UT police conducted a mock drill at Lake Club in Sector 1 here on Thursday. Information about a bomb at the club was received at the police control room following which a team of commandos, bomb squad and dog squad was rushed to the spot. The area was cordoned off and people evacuated. After conducting a search, which continued for around 30 minutes, a dummy bomb was traced. Following the protocol, it was safely taken to the Police Lines, Sector 26. TNS WHAT’S ON CHANDIGARH Film screening: ‘Dear England’ by James Graham; Alliance Francaise, Sector 36, 4:30 pm; It is based on why England’s men football team can’t shine in the sport. The screening is being held in collaboration with British Deputy High Commission, Chandigarh Live tributes to AR Rahman: Tagore Theatre, 7:30 pm onwards APNI MANDI: Sectors 24 and 46 MOHALI DJ Chetas: Prism, Mohali, Sector 62, 9 pm onwards APNI MANDI: Kumbhara PANCHKULA APNI MANDI: Sector 20 The helpdesk at the Chandigarh railway station. NITIN MITTAL Tribune News Service Panchkula, July 18 Officials at the local railway station have set up a helpdesk to deal with queries regarding passengers who were onboard the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express that derailed in Uttar Pradesh today. A total of 1,220 bookings were made from the Chandigarh railway station alone. The exact number of passengers who had boarded the train from the city could not be stated, officals said. Officials at the helpdesk said they had issued phone numbers to help people get details about their kin travelling by the train. The numbers are 0172-2639785 (Chandigarh station helpline) and 0171-2610653 (Ambala Control Office helpline). Station officials received a number of queries over phone from relatives of passengers. Helpdesk officials said, “We will raise their queries with the officials of the North Eastern Railway and reply them back.” The helpdesk would remain operative during the night and on Friday as well, they said. Meanwhile, a number of passengers who were 1,220 bookings were made from Chandigarh HELPLINE NUMBERS ■ 0172-2639785 (Chandigarh station helpline) ■ 0171-2610653 (Ambala Control Office helpline) reached out by The Tribune stated they were fine and had de-boarded the train. Gaurav Kumar, who works in Chandigarh and was on his way to Katihar in Bihar, said he escaped unhurt and was at the Malkapur railway station. Many other passengers got down at the station here, he added. Suchismita, a resident of Guwahati, said her husband Prashant was onboard the train and was safe and sound. “Railway officials arranged a ticket for him in another train and he is on the way home,” she added. Prashant Tripathi, a resident of Gorakhpur, said his brother Prabhas was onboard the train at the time of the accident. He said, “We came to know about the accident from him. He had escaped unhurt. We went and received him at the Gonda railway station.” Tribune News Service Chandigarh, July 18 In a remarkable achievement, the UT Administration has been able to reduce 1,79,455 metric tonnes (MT) of carbon dioxide (CO2) with the generation of 260 million units (MUs) of solar energy in the past nearly 12 years. The Administration has planned to make Chandigarh the country’s first carbon-free city by 2030. According to officials of Chandigarh Renewable Energy and Science & Technology Promotion Society (CREST), the nodal agency for implementation of green energy projects in the city, the UT Administration has already installed 66.066 MWp (Megawatt peak) grid-connected rooftop solar power plants on 4,815 government and private sites in the city. While 37.354 MWp of power is generated from rooftop solar power plants installed on 952 government sites, the remaining 28.712 MWp come from those installed on 3,863 private buildings. Since 201112, this has helped in production of 260.08 MUs of power and reduction in 1,79,455 MT of CO2 till June 30 this year. Against the ambitious target to achieve 75 MWp of solar power in the UT by Rooftop solar power plants installed on government houses at Sector 22 in Chandigarh. TRIBUNE PHOTO: RAVI KUMAR 75 MWp TARGET GENERATION FOR THIS YEAR ■ The UT Administration has ■ While 37.354 MWp of power ■ Against the ambitious target to achieve is generated from plants installed on 952 government sites, the remaining 28.712 MWp comes from the units installed on 3,863 private buildings. 75MWp of solar power in the UT by December this year, the Administration has planned to install rooftop solar power plants on all government buildings by the year-end and on all private buildings by 2026. already installed 66.066 MWp (Megawatt peak) gridconnected rooftop solar power plants on 4,815 government and private sites in the city. December this year, the Administration has planned to install rooftop solar power plants on all government buildings by the year-end and on all private buildings by 2026. The officials stated that all government departments planned to achieve ‘Net Zero’ emissions by the year 2030. The long-term aim is to run the city entirely on renewable energy by 2047. Paryavaran Bhawan, the Burail Jail complex and all government schools are ‘Net Zero’ in terms of fulfilment of their energy requirement through solar power. Paryavaran Bhawan is the first five-star rated building in the city as per the Bureau of Energy Efficiency Standards. The city was honoured with the first prize in the State Energy Efficiency continued on page 2 2 arrested for snatching phone Tribune News Service The suspects in custody of Chandigarh Police. Chandigarh, July 18 Two snatchers have been arrested by the Operation Cell of the UT police. Complainant Tannu Dutta, a resident of Zirakpur, had reported that two motorcycleborne miscreants had snatched her phone in Sector 44 on July 16. A case was registered at the Sector 34 police station. Dur- ing the investigation, two youths, namely Anil Kumar (21) and Jasbir Singh (21), both residents of Sector 56, were arrested. The snatched phone and the motorcycle used in the crime have been recovered from them. Both the suspects have a criminal past. Anil was earlier booked in two cases, including one for attempt to murder, while Jasbir has a snatching case registered against him. Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Vendors encroach upon a pavement at the Sector 19 market in Chandigarh. PHOTO: PRADEEP TEWARI MC deputes more staff to curb encroachments in Sectors 19, 22 Chandigarh, July 18 In view of complaints about a large number of illegal vendors operating from Sectors 19 and 22, the local Municipal Corporation (MC) has for the first time ordered deployment of eight more subinspectors of its enforcement wing, who will work in the areas two hours each. The MC has posted a subinspector each in all major markets of the city to curb FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE Dushyant Singh Pundir MC proposes to fix onus for joyride mishaps Tribune News Service SUNRISE SATURDAY 5:35 AM Produces 260 million units of solar power, reducing 1.79 lakh metric tonnes of CO2 Ex-Army officer duped of ~10L by cyber cheats Sandeep Rana MAX 37°C | MIN 28°C YESTERDAY MAX 37.3°C | MIN 27.6°C In 12 yrs, a big green leap by UT HOUSE MEET ON JULY 26 Chandigarh, July 18 The MC has proposed to fix responsibility of officials in cases of accidents related to joy rides in the city. An agenda to appoint officials to inspect the swings at such places and hold them responsible in case of any mishap will be tabled in the House meeting scheduled for next Friday. This table agenda was placed in the last House meeting as well, but it could not be discussed as the meeting ended abruptly following an altercation between AAP and BJP councillors. The issue was taken up after the death of 11-year-old Shahbaz in a toy train mishap at Elante Mall last month. The tragic incident had made parents worried in the region. Another agenda item to be tabled again is related to amendment in the approved guidelines for the execution of ward development scheme. Most councillors want the amount of the ward development fund raised from Rs 80 lakh per year to Rs 90 lakh per year. Councillors continued on page 2 PARTLY CLOUDY SUNSET FRIDAY 7:24 PM » FRIDAY | 19 JULY 2024 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST encroachments. Now, the civic body has deputed eight sub-inspectors from other sectors to work in these areas for two hours a day. “For these two major markets, more staff is needed. Thus, more sub-inspectors have been posted,” said an enforcement sub-inspector. According to the MC order, sub-inspectors Bhupinder Kaur and Rattan Singh will work in the Sector 19 and 22 markets, respectively, from 11 am to 1 pm, Rajesh Kumar c m y b and Ved Parkash from 1 pm to 3 pm, Sahil Bhola and Nirmal Singh from 3 pm to 5 pm and Lalit Tyagi and Rajat Sharma have from 5 pm to 7 pm. “This arrangement will certainly have some impact as those coming for duty for just two hours may be able to ensure transparency in the area where an area SI is already stationed. However, in the light of deep nexus, we will have to wait to see its full impact,” said a shopkeeper at continued on page 2 Panchkula, July 18 In an incident of cyber fraud, a retired Army Colonel was duped of Rs 10 lakh by miscreants posing as police and CBI agents. Col Debasis Chaudhary (retd), a resident of Sector 2, Panchkula, said he had received a call regarding his bank credit card. He said the call was transferred to a police station where an individual posing as a cop from the Bandra (Mumbai) police station asked him about his connections with a man arrested in a money laundering case. The scammers also shared with him a fake letter of the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) with his photograph and told him about an ongoing investigation in a case against him. He also threatened him and his wife of dire consequences in case they informed about it to anyone. The miscreants then asked him to make a call on a phone number and demanded Rs 10 lakh posing as CBI agents. They also sent him other fake government documents. The police have registered a case under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Year on, PU Dept of French Studies sans regular faculty Akashdeep Virk Tribune News Service Chandigarh, July 18 The Department of French and Francophone Studies in Panjab University (PU) is without a regular teacher for the past nearly one year now. The last regular teacher in the department had retired in August 2023. At present, the department has eight guest faculty members. According to Prof Rumina Sethi, Chairperson of the department as well as the Dean, University Instructions (DUI), a post each of associate professor and assistant professor was advertised in November last year. “The French Department shall soon have two regular teachers. In case of other language departments, the process of hiring new faculty is going on,” said Prof Sethi. The department authorities informed that the classes for second-year students would commence on July 23. From August 3-9, the department would conduct document verification of the newly admitted students. The department offers four courses — Masters in French (4 semesters), One-year Advanced Diploma in French, One-year Diploma in French and One-year Certificate Course in French. With around 350 students enrolled in the four courses, the Nearly 350 students enrolled in four courses offered by dept TWO POSTS ADVERTISED ❝ A post each of associate professor and assistant professor was advertised in November last year. The department shall soon have two regular teachers. ❞ — Prof Rumina Sethi, CHAIRPERSON, DEPT OF FRENCH AND FRANCOPHONE STUDIES absence of a regular faculty is a matter of concern. Ramnik Aurora, who was the chairperson of the department from 2014-2017 and remained the academic incharge for a few months prior to her superannuation, was the last regular faculty to retire. When asked when the department would have a regular faculty member, Prof Yog Raj, chairperson of the Punjabi Department, who has also been serving as the academic in-charge of the French Department since September last year, said, “We are trying our best to hire regular faculty members for the department. The advertisement was issued last year itself and we are going by the process.”
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