12082024-CT-01.qxd 8/12/2024 12:10 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune RAIN RENDERS MOHALI IN TROUBLED WATERS VEDANT WINS CHESS TITLE IN U-19 OPEN CATEGORY SHAH RUKH TALKS ABOUT UNIVERSAL NATURE OF ART Downpour turns roads in various parts of Mohali district into streams. Road users face a harrowing time. P2 Vedant Garg scores 4.5 points to win the final of U-19 open category at Chandigarh chess meet. P3 Bollywood megastar Shah Rukh Khan conferred a career achievement honour at the 77th Locarno Film Festival.P4 » » TWITTER/THETRIBUNECHD PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 33°C | MIN 26°C YESTERDAY MAX 27.8°C | MIN 25.3°C SUNSET MONDAY 7.06 PM SUNRISE TUESDAY 5.49 AM » MONDAY | 12 AUGUST 2024 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE 110-mm rain in 3 hours throws life out of gear INBRIEF At 129.7 mm, UT records wettest August day in 4 years |‘Very heavy rainfall’ floods roads | Water enters houses Downpour spells chaos on city roads R’STHAN NATIVE DUPED OF ~35L Chandigarh: The UT police have registered a cheating case on the complaint of Ganesh Mal, a Rajasthan resident, who alleged that he was duped of Rs 35 lakh by unidentified persons on the pretext of sending him abroad. A case has been registered at the cybercrime police station and an investigation has been initiated into it. TNS Commuters stuck in snarl-ups for hours Tribune News Service MAN HELD FOR IMPERSONATION Chandigarh: A 28-year-old man was arrested for impersonating during an exam. The police said Kuldeep, a resident of Hisar district, was caught while impersonating as candidate Nishant. A case has been registered at the Sector 19 police station. TNS 24-HOUR RAINFALL 129.7 mm on August 11, 2024 84 mm on August 23, 2023 57.9 mm on August 15, 2022 55.4 mm on August 5, 2021 133.5 mm on Aug 12, 2020 Vehicles make their way through the waterlogged Madhya Marg near Sector 26 in Chandigarh on Sunday. TRIBUNE PHOTOS: NITIN MITTAL Sandeep Rana TEAMS FORMED TO HELP OUT RESIDENTS: MC Tribune News Service WHAT’S ON CHANDIGARH Independence Day Show: ITBP to present Equestrian Show, Mahila Pipe Band, Jazz Band Show, Dog Show and Janbaz Daredevil; PU cricket ground; 10 am Art Exhibition: The Real Van Gogh Immersive Experience; Nexus Elante; On till August-end; Entry with tickets Chandigarh, August 11 The “very heavy rainfall” in the city today made it the wettest August day in four years. According to the Chandigarh weather department, the city today witnessed 129.7 mm of rainfall in a single day and 110 mm of it was recorded in just three hours — from 11:30 am to 2:30 pm. While last year, the highest 24-hour rainfall was recorded at 84 mm on August 23, it was 57.9 mm on August 15 in 2022 and 55.4 mm on August 5 in 2021. This month’s normal rainfall is 284.8 mm and the city has already received 221.4 mm in just a span of 11 days. Owing to good amount of rainfall today, the maximum temperature fell by 6.2°C making the weather cooler. The day’s temperature << Vehicles break down on a flooded road in Chandigarh. dropped from 34°C yesterday to 27.8°C today, which is six degrees below normal. “In three hours only, 110 mm of rainfall was recorded. There was circulation over Haryana. Monsoon was active in Himachal Pradesh comprising Sirmaur and Shimla. Monsoon condition improved at Bay of Bengal. All these combined factors led to good rainfall in the city,” Surender Paul, Director, Continued on page 3 Chandigarh: Rain played a spoilsport for the MC’s annual Teej celebrations. The evening musical programme scheduled for Sunday had to be postponed due to heavy rain. If weather remained fine, then it would be held on Monday at the same venue, said officials. — TNS AREAS AFFECTED ■ Major roads like Dakshin Marg and Madhya Marg turned into rivers of rainwater, leading to massive traffic jams that stretched for kilometers. ■ The situation was worse between the Sector 20 gurdwara chowk and the Tribune chowk. COPS SEND ALERTS ON SOCIAL MEDIA ■ The UT traffic police took to their social media handles and posted alerts to inform commuters about the situation on various roads. trated citizens, but there was little that could be done. PCR vehicles and tow vans of the traffic police were dispatched to manage the situation. However, the sheer volume of stranded vehicles made it impossible to ease the congestion. The situation was worse between the Sector 20 gurdwara chowk and the Tribune chowk. Among Continued on page 2 13 Rupnagar schools flooded Mohali: As many as 13 government primary and secondary schools of Nangal, Salora, Jhaj, Rupnagar and Anandpur Sahib blocks have been closed for August 12 as the buildings were flooded with rainwater on Sunday. — TNS A conked out vehicle leads to a traffic jam on the road separating Sectors 40 and 55 in Chandigarh on Sunday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: VICKY Close shave for women, kids as bus hits caved-in patch Autobiography of philanthropist Saboo released on his 90th b’day Incident takes place on stretch separating Sectors 31, 47 Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Exhibition: Cotton Fab Rakhi Special Edition with fabric, jewellery, readymade and more; Kisan Bhawan, Sector 35; On till August 15 The MC claimed to have swung into action to clear rainwater accumulated in the city. Following the orders of MC Commissioner Anindita Mitra, engineering teams led by Chief Engineer NP Sharma pumped out rainwater from different parts of the city by deploying machinery and manpower. Trees, which fell during the rain, were lifted immediately to restore traffic in the city. The control centres set up by the MC were operational round the clock in three shifts. These centres can be reached out by citizens in case of emergency due to waterlogging, etc. Rain-hit MC Teej event deferred Chandigarh, August 11 The heavy rainfall that lashed Chandigarh today brought the city to a standstill, creating a chaotic situation on the roads. As the downpour continued for several hours, major roads like Dakshin Marg and Madhya Marg turned into rivers of rainwater, leading to massive traffic jams that stretched for kilometers. The waterlogged streets not only slowed down traffic, but also caused numerous vehicles to break down, exacerbating the situation. Commuters found themselves trapped in the gridlock, with many spending around two hours in the jam. The situation was no different in other parts of the city where long queues of vehicles were seen with drivers anxiously waiting for the water level to recede. Sources said the police control room (PCR) was flooded with distress calls from frus- Chandigarh, August 11 Around a dozen women and toddlers had a miraculous escape when the bus they were travelling in plunged into a road cave-in near the road separating Sectors 31 and 47. Passersby said this was the second instance within an hour as an LPG cylinderladen truck too had got stuck here, but was extricated. A dozen woman and their children from Mubarikpur had come to a Sector 45 church in the morning today and were returning home. Chandigarh Police personnel reached the spot and called for an crane to bail out the Manav Mangal School, Zirakpur, bus carrying the passengers. Police officials did not comment on the incident, but gestured at the caved-in drainage pipe indicating the cause of the accident. Shocked women and kids had to stand under a tree as a salvage operation began to get the bus out of the cave-in. Road users tried to push the vehicle out, but failed. The crane summoned by the UT police too had a tough time extricating the vehicle. An underground drainage pipe near the roudabout has become a bane of the road users as it crumbles repeatedly year after year. The Municipal Corporation had carried out digging work here last year and the roundabout remained out of bounds for months. However, the same problem has resurfaced after the repair work. Art Exhibition: Colours of Freedom: Artists’ workshop on August 13, 14; Underpass connecting Sector 17 and Rose Garden APNI MANDI Chandigarh: Sectors 43 and 45, and Maloya Mohali: Phase V Panchkula: MDC, Sector 5 Please send information about events in tricity at: whatson@tribunemail.com The spot where the school bus got stuck on the Sector 31/47 road in Chandigarh on Sunday. VICKY c m y b Chandigarh, August 11 An autobiography of the city’s noted philanthropist, businessman and former world president, Rotary International, Rajendra K Saboo was released on his 90th birthday here today. The autobiography, titled ‘My Life’s Journey: A Personal Memoir,’ was released by Justice SS Sodhi (retd), former Chief Justice of Allahabad High Court and member of The Tribune Trust. Conferred with the Padma Shri by former President Dr Abdul Kalam in 2006, Saboo has been honoured by numerous organisations, including honorius causa by many universities. He shifted to Chandigarh in 1960 and set up a factory in collaboration with German collaborators to make hosiery needles. He contributed immensely to the city’s growth, right from the time when the first serai for attendants in the PGI was built and status of Rotary Peace City to Chandigarh was awarded. He galvanised Rotarians to initiate many humanitarian service projects, including setting up of lepers’ colony, free heart surgery for needy children, besides leading medical missions to African continent and Indian tribal areas among others. Justice SS Sodhi (retd), former Chief Justice of Allahabad High Court, releases the autobiography of Rajendra K Saboo, a businessman and philanthropist, in Chandigarh on Sunday. PHOTO: NITIN MITTAL “The book is a testimony to his contribution to selfless humanitarian work. Saboo is one of the oldest residents of the city. We often call him Raja of Chandigarh. Over the years, he has built an industrial empire, which is provid- ing employment to hundreds of people. He met Mahatma Gandhi twice in 1946 and wrote numerous articles — a priceless work to read,” said Justice Sodhi. Saboo, accompanied by his Continued on page 2 City mishaps snuff out lives of two scooterists Tribune News Service Chandigarh, August 11 Two scooter riders lost their lives in separate accidents in different parts of the city. In the first incident, Hardeep Singh, a resident of Hallo Majra, reported that a truck driven by Rantej Singh collided with a scooter near the Poultry Farm Chowk, resulting in injuries to the scooter rider, Narendra Kumar. The victim, a resident of Sector 21, was rushed to the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) in Sector 32 where doctors declared him dead on arrival. A case has been registered at the Sector 31 police station. The truck driver was arrested and later released on bail. The second accident occurred at the Sector 32/33/45/46 roundabout wherein an e-rickshaw and a scooter had collided. According to the police, the e-rickshaw driver, Neeraj Kumar, was driving negligently and took a turn without using the indicator, causing the scooter to crash into the rickshaw. The scooter riders, identified as Ajay Kumar Tiwari and Pratik Tiwari, were injured and rushed to the GMCH-32 where doctors declared Ajay dead on arrival. A case has been registered at the Sector 34 police station and an investigation initiated into it.