03092024-ATR-01.qxd 9/2/2024 11:09 PM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY CONG ACTIVISTS STAGE PROTEST AGAINST MC AT RANJIT AVENUE BABBU MAAN RETURNS TO SILVER SCREEN WITH FILM SUCHA SOORMA BOMAN IRANI’S THE MEHTA BOYS TO PREMIERE AT CHICAGO FILM FEST The Congress leaders alleged that the municipal corporation had failed to provide basic amenities to people in the city. P2 Punjabi actor Babbu Maan says social media should not lead youngsters away from their culture and roots. P4 The Mehta Boys, which marks directorial debut of actor Boman Irani, is slated for a world premiere at the Chicago Film Fest.P4 » » » MAX 35°C | MIN 28°C YESTERDAY MAX 35°C | MIN 29°C SUNSET TUESDAY 6.51 PM SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 6:07 AM TUESDAY | 3 SEPTEMBER 2024 | AMRITSAR Two die, five hurt in explosion at illegal Jandiala firecracker unit Govt holiday in dist tomorrow Tribune News Service Amritsar, September 2 The Punjab Government has declared a holiday on September 4 in Amritsar district on the auspicious occasion of the “First Parkash Gurpurab of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji”. An official spokesperson of the state government said all offices of the Punjab Government, boards/corporations and government educational institutions would remain closed on Wednesday in the district. A notification in this regard had been issued by the Department of Personnel. Gambling racket busted, 12 held with ~62,000 Tribune News Service Amritsar, September 2 The police have busted a gambling racket being operated in a hotel room near the interstate bus terminus in the city. The police recovered over Rs 62,000 and arrested 12 suspects involved in gambling from the spot. They were later released on bail. A case under the Gambling Act and Section 223 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita was registered against the 12 suspects in this connection. Those arrested were identified as Vikram Sharma, a resident of New Golden Avenue, Honey Sehgal, a resident of Majitha Road, Saurav, a resident of Batala Road, Danesh Kumar, a resident of Gopal Nagar, Amardeep Singh, a resident of Jagdamba Colony, Shivam, a resident of Hussainpura, Kulwant Singh, a resident of 88-foot-road, Ankesh Kumar, a resident of Maqboolpura, Jivan Singh, a resident of Sharifpura, Bobby and Jaideep Singh, both residents of Sultanwind village and Narain Singh, a resident of Aman Avenue. Restaurant owner, manager held for serving hookah; released on bail Tribune News Service Amritsar, September 2 The Ranjit Avenue police have booked and arrested a restaurant owner and its manager for allegedly serving hookah to their customers illegally. They were identified as Jaswinder Singh of the telephone exchange area and Saurav Gill of the Loharaka road. Later, both were released on bail. According to the police, they received a tip-off that Smoke and Bear Restaurant in the Ranjit Avenue was running an illegal hookah bar for its customers. The police conducted a raid and recovered five hookahs from the restaurant. The owner and manager could not produce any document regarding permission for running the hookah bar. Following this, a case under Sections 21, 21-A and 24 of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act was registered against the duo. Tribune News Service Residents of colonies in vicinity of the Central Jail hold protest in Amritsar on Monday. Residentsprotestassignaljammer disrupts cellphone connectivity Say the equipment obstructs their incoming & outgoing calls have gone defunct due to the mobile phone jammer. With a view to curb activities of criminal elements operating from the Central Jail premises through mobile phones, the state government installed a cellular signal jammer inside the high security prison complex in June last year. The harmonious call blocking system blocks 2G to 5G signals. Its range covers localities situated in the jail’s vicinity. The authorities said they were compelled to take drastic steps after the Central Jail witnessed seizure of a large number of mobile phones and other prohibited material. It was pointed that unabated sneaking of forbidden goods, including narcotics and cellphones, inside the high security complex was due to its close proximity to the densely populated areas around jail. Avtar Singh Bhullar, a resident of the Jhabhal road, said the Central Jail was shifted here around eight years ago while people had been living here for generations. He said before taking such a drastic step, the government should have considered the impact of shifting jail premises on the people and their livelihood. He said the government did not consider needs and troubles of stakeholders living in the area. Ramanpreet Kaur, a teacher, said students could not contact their teachers through their social media accounts for any help. It was harming their studies, she said. Located close to the city, the Jhabhal road drew attention of home buyers with a moderate budget. Over the years, localities like BB Enclave, Dashmesh Vihar, Thakur Ji City, Shiva Vihar and Green City had come up on the road. Besides, a private and many government schools were also located on the road. Judicial probe initiated into jail inmate’s death Two nabbed for robbing woman Tribune News Service Amritsar, September 2 Backed by leaders of the BJP , residents of colonies around the Amritsar Central Jail today held a demonstration against the prison authorities for installing a mobile phone signal jammer inside the high security complex which obstructed their incoming and outgoing cellphone calls. Residents participated in a protest, which was also attended by BJP district president Harvinder Singh Sandhu along with party workers. Over 15,000 residents of localities, including Waheguru City, Dream City and two villages on the Jhabhal road, were affected after the Central Jail authorities increased the range of cellular signal jammer. People of all agegroups, including shopkeepers, students, teachers, housewives, agriculturists and others, are perturbed as their social media accounts Amritsar, September 2 Adding a twist to the mysterious death of a jail inmate identified as Rahul, a resident of Chhota Haripura, the police have registered an FIR against the deceased on charges of assaulting public servants and violating the jail norms. The case was registered following a complaint filed by Prabhdayal Singh, Assistant Superintendent (Jail), under Sections 132 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharging his duty) and 221(obstructing public servant in discharging of public function) of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 52 of the Prisons Act was registered against Rahul. As per the complaint, Rahul quarrelled with jail staff and tried to forcibly come out of the barrack. The family members of the deceased held demonstration outside the Amritsar Central Jail on Sunday. They alleged that a jail official had physically tortured Rahul which led to his death. They alleged that Rahul was picked up by the police on frivolous grounds and sent to judicial custody over a month ago. Rahul’s kin alleged that he called them and told that a Deputy Superintendent had tortured him. A few days later, Rahul demanded Rs 7 lakh from his family members as he was being harassed and tortured in jail. Rahul was also not allowed to meet the family, his kin alleged. They alleged that Rahul was killed on Saturday night. Meanwhile, a judicial probe was initiated into Rahul’s death. A post-mortem of the body of the deceased was conducted by a medical board comprising doctors in the presence of Judicial Magistrate Garima Gupta. — TNS Our Correspondent Tarn Taran, September 2 The police arrested two suspects on Sunday for committing robberies in the town and nearby areas. The suspects had created panic among residents of the area. The police said the suspects were identified as Gursewak Singh, a resident of Rataul village, and Gurlal Singh, a resident of Khara village. ASI Bishan Das said the suspects had robbed one Gurinder Kaur, a resident of Kotli village, at gunpoint on August 30 when she was on way back to her village on a moped. The suspects had looted earrings from her. The victim being resident of the area identified the suspects and informed the police. The police registered a case under Section 303 (2) of the BNS against suspects in this connection. Amritsar, September 2 Two persons, including a woman, was killed while five others were injured in an explosion at an illegal firecracker unit at Nangal Guru village in the Jandiala area on the intervening night of Sunday and Monday. The incident left village residents shocked and panicked as they did not know about illegal firecracker unit being run in an outer house owned by one Kuldeep Kaur. She had given the house on rent around two months ago two several persons of Bhinder village. Besides Kuldeep Kaur, German Singh of Bhinder village succumbed to injuries at a hospital. Confirming the deaths, Ravinder Singh, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), said a case had been registered against Ninder Singh and his brother Binder Singh, both residents of Bhinder village, and Gaurav, a resident of Jandiala Guru, who were illegally running the firecracker factory in the house. Giving details, the DSP said Kuldeep Kaur was a widow and The firecracker unit at Nangal Guru village where a blast occurred on the intervening night of Sunday and Monday. used to live alone in the house. She had given her house on rent around two months ago. She did not know about the illegal activity. Last night, there was an explosion apparently due to some spark that fell on potash, used for making firecrackers, the DSP said. Walls and roof of the house collapsed blocking the entry and exit points of the premises, the DSP said. The victims sustained critical burn injuries in explosion, the DSP added. Fire brigade personnel and the police immediately rushed to the spot and sent victims to a hospital where two of them succumbed to injuries while five others were undergoing treatment, the DSP said. Their condition was also stated to be serious, the DSP added. Amarjit Kaur, former village sarpanch, said Kuldeep Kaur’s husband had died a few years ago. She had rented her accommodation to several residents of Bhinder village two months ago. Kuldeep Kaur did not know that they were involved in illegal storing of potash used for manufacturing firecrackers, she said. When the explosion was heard last night, villagers thought it was some kind of cylinder blast, she said. Later, they learnt about illegal firecracker manufacturing unit in the house, she added. The house was badly damaged and victims were buried under debris, she said. Charanjit Singh, SSP , Amritsar (Rural), said a case had been registered in this connection and efforts were on to nab the suspects. Five arrested for theft, robbery Employees of the municipal corporation prepare notices that are to be sent to hotels in Amritsar. Property tax: MC tells 10 hotels to submit self-assessment documents Charanjit Singh Teja Tribune News Service Amritsar, September 2 The municipal corporation (MC) today issued notices to 10 hotels in the walled city area to submit documents in order to scrutinise their selfassessment of property tax. Officials of the MC suspect that a large number of hotels in the walled city area are paying less than their actual dues by submitting wrong information in self-assessment of the property tax. The main objective of the move is to enhance the revenue of the MC. Officials suspect that most hotels in the walled city area are operating on lease or rent. But to save tax, owners claim that they have self-occupied hotel premises. As per property tax rules, if an owner occupies his building and operates a hotel from the premises himself, then the MC collects tax as per the size and covered area of the property. In case of rented or leased hotels, the MC collects 7.5 per cent property tax from its owners. The MC started issuing notices to owners as it wants to maintain record of hotels. Officials of the civic body have asked hotel owners to submit registered documents of their property, lease and rent deeds, income tax and GST returns and previous property tax receipts. The notices were issued to 10 hotels after the MC Secre- tary held a meeting with field superintendents. Sushant Bhatia, MC Secretary, said, “We have sent notices to 10 hotels to provide all documents for the scrutiny of their self-assessment for the property tax. After checking documents, we will assess their actual tax dues and send notices to them if any anomaly is found. Besides hotels, other properties will also be checked. Municipal Commissioner Harpreet Singh has instructed officials to collect data of all properties in a time bound manner.” Officials claimed that the MC was earning much less property tax due to such ongoing practices. Amritsar, September 2 The Gate Hakima police have arrested five robbers who used to steal and rob on point of sharp weapons from residents in the city. Recently, these miscreants had attacked Sukhraj Singh of Fatahpur village falling under the Islamabad police station. He tried to nab suspects while they were stealing from his house. Those arrested were identified as Rachhpal Singh, Akashdeep Singh, Arshdeep Singh, Rajat Singh and Sahil, all residents of Mullechak village. The police recovered four datars (sharp weapons), besides a bundle of electric wire from their possession. While giving details, subinspector (SI) Balvinder Singh of the Anngarh police post said Sukhraj, along with his brother, had gone to their Haveli in Fatehpur village where they found the suspects committing theft. They tried to catch the suspects, but the latter attacked them with sharp weapons and fled from the spot. The incident occurred on August 28 evening. The police registered a case and started probe during which the suspects were identified. The SI said the suspects were produced in a court and brought on police remand for further investigation. — TNS Underage driving goes unabated despite police tightening noose on violators PK Jaiswar Tribune News Service Amritsar, September 2 Has underage driving in the holy city witnessed a decline? The traffic cops recently tightened the noose around schoolchildren indulging in underage driving. During the campaign, the traffic police laid nakas near schools and even issued challans to offenders, besides warning them of legal action. Nevertheless, children can still be seen driving vehicles, which are prevented under the Motor Vehicles Act for underage drivers, while going to schools and tuition centres. “Steps taken by the Punjab Police are appreciable, but it’s very difficult for working parents to pick and drop their children from schools and tuitions centres. Besides, the city does not have safe public transport,” said Pritpaul Singh, a resident of the Amar Kot area. “After attending school, children go to tuition centres for attending classes of vari- ous subjects. How can it be possible for parents to pick and drop their wards from every tuition centre? Even using school vans is neither safe nor economical. School transport vehicle charges are exorbitant,” said Deepak Sharma, a resident of the Guru Arjan Dev Nagar area. Harpal Singh, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Schoolchildren indulge in triple riding in Amritsar on Monday. PHOTO: SUNIL KUMAR c m y b Police (ADCP), Traffic, said, “The rules are meant for the safety of the people and should be followed diligently. We gave enough time to residents to make alternate transport arrangements for their children to go to schools and tuition centres. Residents should follow the norms and those who fail to do so, would face the law.” School managements are also discouraging children from bringing bikes and scooters to their respective institutions.