07082024-ATR-01.qxd 8/6/2024 10:43 PM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune POLICE NAB THREE WITH 171 KG OF POPPY HUSK SECURITY BEEFED UP AHEAD OF INDEPENDENCE DAY The Malertkotla administration has beefed up security around the venues of the I-Day celebrations. P3 PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 34°C | MIN 28°C YESTERDAY MAX 35°C | MIN 29°C CHEF SANJYOT KEER — TURBANED TRAILBLAZER The Rawatsar police near Hanumangarh arrested three suspects and seized 171 kg of poppy husk from their SUV.P3 FORECAST Keer became the first turbaned chef to walk on the prestigious Cannes Red Carpet. P4 » » SUNSET WEDNESDAY 7.21 PM SUNRISE THURSDAY 5.50 AM » WEDNESDAY | 7 AUGUST 2024 | AMRITSAR Planned as sports nursery, School of Happiness project yet to kick off Tribune News Service Amritsar, August 6 During the Budget session of the Vidhan Sabha earlier this year, the state government announced to set up 100 Schools of Happiness, upgrading 100 short-listed elementary and primary schools on the lines of Schools of Eminence. But with half the year gone by, the project is yet to receive green light even as several reviews have been done to select the schools for upgrade in the first phase of the project. Punjab Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO has carried out inspection of various government primary schools in Gehri, Nawan Kot and other locations in the district, announcing that these will now get all facilities on the lines of convent or private schools. “Government primary schools, just like senior secondary schools, will have the best of facilities for sports and we will undertake the construction of an astroturf hockey ground, Cabinet Minister Harbhajan Singh ETO at a government school in Amritsar on Tuesday. TRIBUNE PHOTO EXTENSION OF THE SCHOOL OF EMINENCE CONCEPT Offering ideal ventilation, dedicated play areas, resource centres and activity corners for students, the School of Happiness will be an extension of the School of Eminence concept, with an established football ground, all-weather swimming pool and shooting range as part of creating sports nurseries. This will help nurture and develop sporting talent from Punjab in the early stages,” he said. sports nursery. In Amritsar, there are approximately 1,417 primary schools (as per the data compiled in 2019-20), including various clusters and zones. ETO inspected the Government Elementary School at Gehri and Government Senior Secondary School, Nawan Kot and spent time with the students. Meanwhile, the School of Happiness project took off late due to General Election conducted this year but a team of experts from the Education Department have completed inspection and identification of a handful of primary schools that will be upgraded with infrastructure and teaching faculty. While 20 schools in the district were on the list, a final report has been submitted to the department, which is yet to make further progress. The schools were evaluated on the grounds of mid-day meal programme, teaching and non-teaching faculty, availability of learning material, furniture and other aspects. Shivani, Junior Engineer in the Education Department, who is leading the project in the district shared that a holistic plan was developed by the officials to inspect and identify schools for upgrade as ‘Schools of Happiness’. “The schools that had 200 students and above enrolled, with five existing classrooms and five ETT teachers, with a minimum 10,000 square feet area available for any structural development, were reviewed. While we have done our inspections, we are waiting for any further orders on the project,” she said. GNDH bans entry of tea vendors using plastic cups Manmeet Singh Gill Tribune News Service Amritsar, August 6 In a move which could help it get rid of the problem of littering to a great extent, Guru Nanak Dev Hospital here has banned the entry of vendors selling tea and other snacks inside the premises. The vendors earlier used to roam inside the hospital including wards and served tea and snacks to patients and their attendants. Now considering that these vendors mostly use plastic cups and plates, which otherwise has been banned by the government under ban on single-use plastic items, the hospital authorities have put a ban on their entry inside the premises. The office of the medical superintendent has also written to the company managing the security at the premises not to allow such venders. Additionally, the nurses deputed at wards have also been asked to report visit of these vendors. Plastic waste scattered around the premises especially alongside the wards of the Indoor Patients Department (IPD) has remained unresolved. The officials said the tea and A view of the Emergency Ward at Guru Nanak Dev Hospital. PEOPLE THROW PLASTIC CUPS AFTER USE cups ❝Usually, people throw the plasticinto theand plates in the corridors. Sometimes, they throw it open places from the upper stories and this way the entire green areas have been turned into garbage dumps. An employee ❞ snack vendors mostly use single time plastic cups and plates which has also been banned by the government. The stated that most of the garbage scattered alongside the wards include plastic cups plates and other items used by these vendors. The authorities stated that the move to ban entry of tea vendors is not to take away anyone’s livelihood but to ensure that no one is throw- ing plastic waste here. “Usually, people throw the plastic cups and plates in the corridors. Sometimes they throw it into the open places from the upper stories and this way the entire green areas have been turned into garbage dumping sites,” said an employee. He said that vendors should use glass or steel cups which are more eco-friendly. Drone, 547 grams of Commuters bear the brunt as construction Three NRIs booked heroin seized by BSF work on Loharka, Valla overbridges stalled for ~40 lakh fraud Tarn Taran, August 6 In a search operation conducted in the border village of Kalia, the Border Security Force (BSF) personnel recovered a China-made DJI Air 3 drone along with a packet of heroin weighing 547 grams in the early hours on Tuesday. The BSF said that on the intervening night of August 5-6, a drone movement was observed by BSF troops on duty and countermeasures were activated to neutralise it, followed by an extensive search. The search culminated at around 4 am with the recovery of a drone along with a packet of suspected heroin with gross weight of 547 grams. The drug was wrapped in red and yellow The recovered drone with 547 grams of heroin. GURBAXPURI adhesive tape and the packet was attached to the drone with a metal ring. An illuminating stick was also found attached to the packet. The recovery took place near the road junction adjacent to village Kalia in Tarn Taran district. The BSF has initiated further proceedings. — OC Amritsar, August 6 Work on the Loharka road and Valla overbridges has been stopped for the last few months. Even a wild growth of weeds has covered the under-construction bridge on the Loharka road overbridge. The construction material lying along the road stretch is causing inconvenience to commuters. Owing to a delay in the project, residents, especially commuters, have been facing a lot of inconvenience. The alternative roads witness major potholes due to the diversion of traffic. The National Highways Authority of India has been constructing two flyovers on the bypass road — on Loharka road and Vallah — for the convenience of commuters since A wild growth of weed engulfs construction material near the under-construction Loharka road overbridge in Amritsar. VISHAL KUMAR January 2022. Owing to inappropriate diversions, residents have been facing inconvenience at the Loharka road cut and the Vallah bypass chowk. During the morning and evening peak hours, commuters face traffic jams. With the authorities concerned taking no proper safety measures like putting up warning signs for commuters at the road construction project sites, cases of road accidents have been reported many times. Manpreet Singh Aulakh, a resident, said, “The NHAI should ensure that the projects are completed within the set time frame. The project had been moving at a slow pace before it came to a halt a few months ago. Thousands of residents have been facing inconvenience on a regular basis due to a delay in the project. The government should take note of the delay.” “The construction companies and the NHAI should be vigilant about the damage being caused to alternative roads during the rainy season. The diversions and side lanes should be re-carpeted so that commuters do not face any inconvenience. Signboards should also be installed to alert commuters,” said Saurabh Sharma, a resident of Pawan Nagar. — TNS Our Correspondent Tarn Taran, August 6 A family of Aladinpur village here has been duped of ~40 lakh allegedly by an NRI family by luring the victim family to adjust their son in Australia. Three members of the NRI family were booked by the local Sadar police on Monday. The accused have been identified as Karamjit Kaur, her son Anmol Singh and her Australia-based daughter Soniapreet Kaur, who were residents of Dialpur village. Four years ago, Karamjit Kaur had contacted Maninderjit Kaur, a resident of Aladinpur, and offered to marry her daughter Soniapreet Kaur with her (Maninderjit Kaur’s) son Onkardeep Singh to settle him permanently in Australia. Both sides agreed to the marriage proposal of Karamjit Kaur. Karamjit Kaur, her son Anmol Singh and daughter Soniapreet Kaur received the amount, but turned down the marriage proposal. Maninderjit Kaur lodged a complaint with the police. SP (Investigation) Ajayraj Singh investigated the complaint and on the report of the inquiry, Karamjit Kaur, her son Anmol Singh and daughter Soniapreet Kaur have been booked under Sections 420 and 120-B, BNS, by the Sadar police. The accused were yet to be arrested by the police. Booklet, teaser on tallest Tricolour at Attari released In special MC drive, historic Ram Bagh garden gets facelift I-DAY CELEBRATIONS Tribune News Service Amritsar, August 6 To mark the upcoming 76th Independence Day celebrations, a teaser and booklet on the tallest National Flag installed at Attari was today launched by BSF Deputy Commandant Devender Pal Singh at the Attari border. The teaser, made by independent filmmaker Harpreet Sandhu, highlights the 418 feet flagpole with India’s Tricolour standing on a four-feet pedestal, considered a significant landmark for tourists, who visit the Attari-Wagah border. The National Flag, weighing about 200 kg, 130 feet in length and 80 feet in width, was installed last year with Union minister Nitin Gadkari hoisting it for the first time in a grand ceremony. This monument is 18 feet taller than Pakistan’s flagpole, Parcham-e-Sitarah-oHilal, visible across the bor- A teaser and pictorial brochure by BSF officials and jawans depicting the tallest Tricolour installed at JCP, Attari, being released to mark the 76th Independence Day on Tuesday. der. Interestingly, this flagpole was the result of a ‘flag war’ between India and Pakistan at Attari-Wagah as in 2017, a Tricolour, 360 feet in height, was installed at the check-post after which Pakistan installed its flagpole, 400 feet in height on the Wagah side the same year to mark its independence day. In 2023, this flagpole, 418 feet tall, was installed by India. Harpeet Sandhu, who c m y b has captured the flag in all its glory through camera lens, has compiled its significance and story in the form of a teaser. “It is an attempt to highlight the nation’s tallest flagpole for tourists, who visit the Attari border daily in thousands. The teaser and pictorial brochure will be a source of great enthusiasm and pride for the citizens of Amritsar as well as Punjab as people across the country will witness its glory through the teaser. It will be available for tourists visiting Attari border to witness the beating retreat ceremony,” he said. Devendrapal Singh, BSF Deputy Commandant, JCP Attari, called it a positive initiative towards promoting the monument, dedicated to the 76th Independence Day, which will further generate enthusiasm among the citizens to have a preview of this colossal structure at JCP Attari. Amritsar, August 6 The Amritsar Municipal Corporation launched a special drive to give a facelift to the historic Ram Bagh garden, in which teams of the Sanitation, Civil and Horticulture Departments participated here this morning. All the roads in the Company Bagh were cleaned by sanitation staff. The curve channels on roadsides were painted and tree trunks were painted white. Workers of the civil wing removed the debris and sanitation staff removed garbage from the corners of the bagh. People out on a morning walk applauded this step of the MC and thanked the workers for the cleanliness drive. Residents were appealed to lend their support to maintaining cleanliness in the gardens. Commissioner Harpreet Singh said the Company Bagh is a heritage property of Amritsar where all sections of society enjoy morning and MC staff during the special drive at Ram Bagh in Amritsar. evening walks and also a number of tourists visit Maharaja Ranjit Singh Panorama, Summer Palace Museum and other sites. Most of the families enjoy picnic in the open parks. He said it is the duty of the municipal corporation to maintain cleanliness and ensure garbage-free surroundings in the gardens. He said he will visit the Company Bagh regularly as well as parks in other areas of the city to check cleanliness and other issues pertaining to basic amenities. He issued directions to the officials to keep all the parks, public places green and garbage free. Streetlights should be installed along the walking routes. The MC chief directed the medical officer to issue challans to all those who throw waste food and plastic in the Company Bag. — TNS