23072024-ATR-01.qxd 7/22/2024 10:25 PM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune POLICE FREEZE PROPERTY OF SIX DRUG SMUGGLERS CHILD RIGHTS VIOLATED WITH IMPUNITY IN MALERKOTLA Organisers of political rallies held during the recent Lok Sabha poll exploited kids to raise slogans. P3 PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 36°C | MIN 25°C YESTERDAY MAX 36°C | MIN 26°C SHEHNAAZ KNOWS HOW TO STAY HEALTHY The Jalandhar police froze illegal property worth ~1.7 cr of 6 smugglers arrested earlier this year. P2 FORECAST Actress is ensuring she stays fit by consuming healthy and clean food during her trip to the US. P4 » » SUNSET TUESDAY 7.32 PM SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 5.41 AM » TUESDAY | 23 JULY 2024 | AMRITSAR Road dug up to lay canal water supply pipelines yet to be repaired Farmers, industry pin hopes on Budget Charanjit Singh Teja Neeraj Bagga Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Amritsar, July 22 The roads dug up for installation of 24X7 canal water supply pipelines have not been recarpeted even after a year in the city. Commuters and residents have been facing inconvenience, especially during the rainy season, when potholes and trenches get filled with rainwater. Under the Smart City project, the Municipal Corporation has to install pipes for the supply of clean potable water to the city residents. For this, pipes were laid underground by digging up at places on Batala Road around a year back. Even after laying water pipes a year ago, the road has not been recarpeted yet. Due to the digging up of road, commuters and residents have been facing a bumpy ride. The road turns into a pool after rain and vehicles get stuck. The commuters witness heavy traffic jams. Meanwhile, the shopkeepers claimed that their business Amritsar, July 22 Ahead of the Union Budget, farmers, industrialists, traders and families from the middle income group in the city have demanded special attention from the government. Dr Satnam Singh Ajnala, president of the Jamhoori Kisan Sabha, Punjab, said that last year allocation for the agriculture sector was three per cent of the entire Union Budget. He anticipated that this time, the government may reduce it further. Dr Ajnala said the only demand of the farmers was to cover the entire agriculture produce under the MSP Then the farmers will . turn to diversification of crops, he pointed out. The state government recently offered Rs 17,500 per hectare to those who replace paddy with other crops. He added that the sowing season was already over, so Commuters face inconvenience due to the dug-up Batala Road in Amritsar on Monday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR has been suffering due to poor condition of the road. Residents stated that the Municipal Corporation should levy road-cutting charges on the firm which digs up the road. They should use the funds for recarpeting. “The government didn’t pay attention to the suffering of the residents. The commuters get stuck in jams for hours whenever there is rain. The water pipeline has been laid by the company. Now, the authorities should recarpet the road,” said Gurpreet Singh, a resident of Pawan Nagar. “Despite the completion of the work, the road has not been built yet. Due to this, pedestrians and drivers face problems. The authorities should initiate the tendering process so that the road could be recarpeted before the start of winter season,” said Ravi Mahajan, a resident of Batala Road. MSP for all crops, MSME sector and jobs rank high on people’s list of priorities A good Budget ought to provide jobs to people while looking after their healthcare and educational needs. there was no need for the scheme at this juncture. He claimed that the MSP guarantee offer would force the government to shell out Rs 1.50 lakh crore whereas the country was already shelling out Rs 1 lakh crore for importing cereals and pulses, besides Rs 1.50 lakh crore on importing edible oil. He favoured introduction of direct taxation and a strict no to indirect taxation to resolve different problems. He recalled that during the Indira Gandhi government of the Congress, 33 per cent corporate tax and about five per cent wealth tax used to be levied on corporate houses. After assuming power at the Centre, the Narendra Modi-led NDA government eliminated wealth tax and brought down the corporate tax to 15 per cent. Gunbir Singh, president, Dilbir Foundation, said: “Our aspiration is that the government should discard the populous and hugely expensive programmes that give out doles and yet keep the needy poverty-stricken. A good budget ought to rather equip people with jobs, while looking after their healthcare and educational needs.” Farm economies such as Punjab need a revamp to face the challenge of climate change, including degraded soils and depleting water table. Funding towards remediation must come from the Union Budget. Those operating the MSME units say the government should shed its pro-corporate image that has been cornering the lion’s share in previous budgets. Instead, it should give priority to the MSME sector. Harjit Singh, employed as a salesman with an apparel store, said the budget should take note of lower middle income group families who fall in the General category. They cannot enjoy the benefits of the schemes being rolled out for the reserved classes while their financial condition is pathetic. Drug peddler nabbed During surprise visit, MC chief finds RMPI workers stage with 3.12-kg opium motors out of order at Chattiwind STP dharna over poor law & order situation Tribune News Service Charanjit Singh Teja Amritsar, July 22 The Verka police have seized over 3 kg of opium and ~21,300 of drug money from alleged drug peddler, identified as Hitesh Mehra, of Bhagtanwala Gate are here. Police Commissioner Ranjit Singh Dhillon on Monday said he was arrested from the Verka bypass area following a specific input that the accused was involved in drug trafficking. “Yesterday, Verka police team intercepted Mehra near Nanda hospital on the Verka bypass road and seized a huge quantity of opium from his possession,” he said. Besides opium, the police also impounded the scooter he was riding. As per a preliminary probe, he used to bring the consignments from Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh and used to sell it in Amritsar and adjoining areas. Earlier, he used to supply Tribune News Service The accused in custody of the Amritsar police on Monday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR “Bhujia and Namkeen” packets in shops. But during the Covid-19 pandemic, he suffered losses and could not sustain his business. At that time, he came in contact with drug peddlers involved in smuggling of opium from UP He . joined hands with them and entered into the illegal trade. The police have registered a case under the NDPS Act and a further probe was on to establish his backward and forward linkages. Amritsar, July 22 In wake of complaints of manholes overflowing due to choking of sewer lines in the Kot Mit Singh area, Municipal Commissioner Harpreet Singh conducted a surprise check at Chattiwind Sewerage Treatment Plant along with the Superintending Engineer, Operation and Maintenance wing, Surjit Singh here today. The Executive Engineer of Punjab Water and Sewerage Supply Board (PWSSB) Harpreet Singh and an official of the operating company Shapoorji Pallonji Group was also accompanying them. During the visit to STP the MC Commissioner , found that only two motors were functional whereas four motors were out of order. The MC Commissioner took a serious note of the irregularities and issued instructions to get the motors repaired MC Commissioner Harpreet Singh during the inspection of the Chattiwind Sewerage Treatment Plant in Amritsar on Monday. immediately and put to work without delay so that people do not face any problem. MC Commissioner Harpreet Singh said that with the start of the rainy season, he had instructed the MC staff to deploy all the workforce and machinery of the operation and maintenance wing to clear the main sewerage lines in all parts of the city. The staff has been instructed to redress the complaints of the residents regarding choking of sewers on priority basis. He said when it came to his notice that sewerage water was overflowing in some streets of Kot Mit Singh area on Tarn Taran Road and people were facing hardships, he took a serious notice of the situation and visited the Chattiwind Sewerage Treatment Plant which has a capacity of 27 MLD and is being maintained by the Punjab Water Supply and Sewerage Board. There are six motors which run continuously to clear the sewerage water. It was found during the visit that only two motors were working and the remaining motors were out of order. He instructed the officials of PWSSB and Shapoorji Pallonji company to immediately get the motors repaired and put to work without delay. The MC Commissioner said that addressing the problems of residents remains a priority of the civic body. He also visited the Kot Mit Singh area and reviewed the situation there, assuring the residents that their problems will be redressed without delay and they will not face any inconvenience again. Our Correspondent Tarn Taran, July 22 Expressing concern over the poor law and order situation in the district, the Revolutionary Marxist Party of India (RMPI) organised a day-long dharna in front of the local Sadar police station. Party activists and people from all parts of the district participated in the dharna. Pargat Singh Jamarai, state secretary of the party, while addressing on the occasion, said the state government had failed to control the drug menace, as a result of which, there were daily reports of death of youngsters due to overdose of drugs. He alleged that incidents of theft, looting, snatching and killing had been taking place almost daily. He said it was a serious thing that youngsters (18 to 20 years) were falling prey to drugs. He said thieves targeted the party office a month ago in Tarn Taran too and the police have failed to trace the culprits till date. Lalit Kumar, DSP (HQs) reached the dharna site and called the party leaders to his office to discuss the issues raised by the party leaders on today. Chaman Lal Darajke, Daljit Singh Dialpura, Baldev Singh Pandori were among others who addressed on the occasion and condemned the poor law and order situation in the district and alleged that some police officials are drunk while on duty and higher officials are taking no action against them. Sultanwind Road, other areas Malik welcomes lifting Vegetable prices skyrocket in city of ban on government cleared of encroachments employees joining RSS Tribune News Service Amritsar, July 22 An anti-encroachment drive was launched by the Amritsar Municipal Corporation in collaboration with Traffic Police on Sultanwind Road and in areas surrounding Gurdwara Shaheedan Sahib here on Monday. Teams of Traffic Police led by Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (ADCP), Traffic, Harpal Singh and the Estate Department led by Estate Officer Dharminderjit Singh cleared all the roads by removing encroachments. The estate wing of the MC had pressed into service trucks and ditch machines for carrying out the operation and seized the material used for encroachment and deposited it in the MC store. MC Commissioner Harpreet Singh said they were bombarded with lots of complaints regarding encroachments on Ramsar Road and other areas surrounding Gurdwara Sha- Tribune News Service MC staff remove encroachments on Sultanwind Road in Amritsar on Monday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR heedan Sahib and Sultanwind Road as a result of which pilgrims and citizens were facing problems while moving on the roads. Keeping in view the complaints of citizens, an antiencroachment drive was launched today by teams of the estate wing of the Amritsar Municipal Corporation and Traffic Police. The MC Commissioner said anti-encroachment drives will continue in other parts of the city. People should not encroach on approach roads and footpaths as commuters face inconvenience due to traffic jams. The MC will not tolerate the encroachments along roadsides and goods will be seized. “The shopkeepers should not display their goods outside the shops and footpaths. The footpaths area meant for the movement of pedestrians and the movement of pedestrians suffer due to the encroachments on the footpaths,” said Estate Officer Dharminderjit Singh. Amritsar, July 22 While welcoming the decision of the Central government to lift the ban on government employees becoming members of the Rashtriya Swyamsevak Sangh (RSS), former BJP MP and state party unit president Shwait Malik said that the ban imposed by the Congress government in 1966 was undemocratic. Malik said that the basic principle of the Sangh is to be ‘karma pradhan’, which means that the Sangh’s work is beyond the expectations of anonymity and publicity. Shwait Malik said that the RSS is the largest volunteer organisation of the country which does not have any corporate office or public relations agency c m y b Says ban imposed by Congress was undemocratic to promote it. The Sangh is against the glorification or worship of a person, that is why the flag is worshipped here, he said. “The thinking of the Sangh is to fulfill its responsibilities towards society selflessly. No project of the Sangh works with any motive or for publicity,” he added. Malik said that any responsible worker of the Sangh never introduces himself publicly or with a visiting card, nor any unauthorised person appears in the media. Banners, posters, name and designations, all this is forbidden in the Sangh, he said. Amritsar, July 22 The prices of almost all vegetables continue to spiral with the cost of one kilo of tomato reaching ~100 and of onions ~50. As the production of vegetable has gone down due to rain, the prices of other vegetables too have soared. Local vegetable sellers said the prices of tomato started increasing for the last one week when it was selling for around ~40 per kilo. Shopkeepers claimed that as the supply from other states has decreased, the prices of tomato would increase further. Tomato and onions are the basic ingredients of almost every vegetable during the summer months. Even locally, the production of vegetables has gone down after rain. The fall in the supply of vegetables from fields have affected common people as buying vegetables is burning a hole in their pockets. “Pumpkins, bitter gourd and ladyfinger have suddenly PHOTO: SUNIL KUMAR Tribune News Service Residents buy vegetables from a cart in Amritsar on Monday. gone beyond the buying capacity of common people who cannot afford them,” said Surinder Kaur, a homemaker. In the local retail market, pumpkins are selling at ~80 per kilo, bitter gourd at ~60 per kilo and ladyfinger ~70 per kilo. Farmers stated that the supply of local vegetables have gone down as farmers had uprooted the plants after the first rain to cultivate paddy. “Most farmers grow vegetables as a third crop between rice and wheat,” said Satnam Singh, a vegetable grower, adding that controlling weeds in veggie fields during the monsoon season become a headache, as a result of which farmer go for basmati. They stated that after the monsoon is over, the cultivation of early sown winter varieties would start. “Locally grown winter vegetables would be available in the market by the mid of October for which sowing would start by the end of August,” said another farmer.
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