03092024-JTR-01.qxd 9/2/2024 10:35 PM Page 1 c m y b Jalandhar tribune 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 » » » FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 35°C | MIN 28°C YESTERDAY MAX 35°C | MIN 27°C SUNSET TUESDAY 6.48 PM SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 6:05 AM TUESDAY | 3 SEPTEMBER 2024 | JALANDHAR INBRIEF THREE HELD FOR SNATCHING CASH Phagwara: The police have arrested three miscreants on the charge of snatching cash from a petrol pump salesman. The accused have been identified as Paramjit Singh of Ami Wal village, Balwindar Singh of Sahej Lal Pur village in Moga and Rajwindar Singh of Sher Pur Tiaba village in Moga. Bhagat Singh of Chanan Windi village had complained to the police that the accused had snatched Rs 64,000 from a petrol pump on August 5 by threatening the salesman. The police have impounded a motorcycle and recovered from their possession a sharpedged weapon. OC FOUR ARRESTED WITH INTOXICANTS Hoshiarpur: The police have arrested four smugglers and seized intoxicants from them. The police stopped a car on the Tanda road and during a search recovered 110 gram of heroin from it and arrested two accused, Ankit of Mohalla Valmiki and Amandeep Singh of Shastri Nagar. The police arrested Gagandeep Singh of Balala and recovered 40 gram of narcotic powder from him. Similarly, the police arrested Sansiya Mohalla Tanda resident Ruldu and recovered 10 gram of heroin from him. Separate cases have been registered against them. OC MOBILE TOWER BATTERIES STOLEN Phagwara: The police have booked unidentified persons on the charge of stealing batteries from a mobile tower. Kuldeep Singh Brar of Mohali complained to the police that some persons stole batteries from a BSNL mobile tower installed at Nangal Ambian village. A case has been registered against them. The police also booked unidentified persons for stealing batteries from a Jio tower at Kakarr Kalan village. OC TRUCKER BOOKED FOR RASH DRIVING Phagwara: The police have booked a truck driver on the charge of rash driving. The accused has been identified as Gurmail Singh of Basti Nihal Singh Wala in Moga. Harpreet Singh of Talwann village complained to the police that he and his brother were going to Phillaur in their vehicle on August 31 evening when the accused driver hit their car and injured them seriously. A case has been registered against the driver. OC BOOKED FOR ILLEGAL SAND MINING Phagwara: The police have booked unidentified persons for illegal sand mining. Junior Engineer-cum-mining inspector Mapreet complained to the police that unidentified persons were indulging in illegally excavating and stealing sand from the Sutej near Umare Wal village. A case has been registered against the accused. OC GOLD EARRINGS SNATCHED Phagwara: A motorcyclist snatched gold earrings from a woman Kiran Bala in local Patel Nagar locality in Phagwara last night. The woman was going home when the accused struck and fled. The police have registered a case. OC After NGT’s snub, MC works on waste lifting; fixes charges, fine Tribune News Service Jalandhar, September 2 As the National Green Tribunal has gone harsh against municipal corporations over the waste management, the MC, Jalandhar, has taken some decisions to ensure the effective waste lifting and processing system. It has fixed the monthly charges to be levied from each household, public and private setup. Various categories depending on the size of the house or the establishment have also been created for levying of charges. As per the plan, even a slum dweller will have to pay up Rs 30 per month for garbage lifting. There are nine categories for guesthouses/restaurants/hot els wherein the charges have been fixed from Rs 100 to Rs 5,000. The MC has also made it mandatory for everyone to seek prior approval for holding a gathering or a public COLLECTION CHARGES Category Monthly charges (~) House in 60 yards 50 House in 60-240 yards 100 House in 240 yards 200 Shop/coffee house/dhaba 500 Guest house 2,000 Hostel 1,000 Sr sec school 1,000 College/ITI 3,000 University 5,000 Restaurant 2,000 3-star hotel 3,000 Over 3-star hotel 5,000 << For anyone dumping waste in open, 24 categories have been created for finalising the penalty amount. PHOTO: MALKIAT SINGH event with waste collection arrangement, failing which helfty penalties will be imposed in the range of Rs 2,500 to Rs 2 lakh. The charges will depend upon the kind of violation committed ADCP Sandeep Sharma addresses a press conference in Jalandhar. 2 arrested in Sabzi Mandi firing case Jalandhar, September 2 The Jalandhar Commissionerate Police has arrested two suspects involved in a shooting at Maqsudan Sabzi Mandi on Sunday night. The incident unfolded when a dispute at a food stall escalated, resulting in one man being shot at. The altercation began when victim Udham Singh, a resident of Kalia Colony, was eating snacks at the market and accused Kartik and Mohit Malhotra started fighting with him over parking issue. The confrontation quickly turned violent, with the accused reportedly brandishing illegal firearms. During the scuffle, a shot was fired, hitting Udham’s right hand. Following the incident, Commissioner of Police Swapan Sharma ordered immediate action, leading to the registration of an FIR. On the basis of information provided by complainant Udham Singh and other evidence, the police arrested the duo on Monday. The arrest also led to the recovery of two illegal .32 bore pistols and two rounds used in the attack. Sharma noted that Kartik had a prior case pending against him, while Mohit is involved in three other cases. “The investigation is ongoing”, he said. — TNS such as use of plastic or thermocol crockery, no provision of segregation of waste and burning of waste. Another factor will be the size of the gathering for which four categories have been formed. For anyone dumping waste in open, 24 categories have been created for finalising the penalty amount which could vary, depending on whether it is domestic waste, hotel waste, domestic animal Demands not met, doctors on warpath Immigration owner sent to 2-day remand Gang of thieves busted, 9 in cops’ net Sanjiv Kumar Bakshi Jalandhar, September 2 Sukhchain Singh, owner of RS Global Immigration, has been sent to two-day police remand following his arrest by the Navi Baradari police yesterday in connection with a rape allegation. Sukhchain was produced in the local court today, which granted the remand to facilitate further investigation. The 24-year-old woman accusing Sukhchain had alleged that he raped her in a hotel on August 31, where he had invited her to attend a seminar. After the assault, she attempted suicide and left a detailed three-page note. While being escorted for a medical examination at the Civil Hospital, Jalandhar, today, Sukhchain spoke to the media, maintaining his innocence. He claimed that the charges against him were baseless and suggested that business rivals were using the victim to frame him. Meanwhile, police stated that the investigation was ongoing, with a thorough review of all evidence and details. “Sukhchain will be questioned in-depth as part of the investigation”, they added. — TNS Hoshiarpur, September 2 Despite the ongoing talks between the government and doctors for the last 15 days, the government has neither issued any notification on the issue of ACP (time-bound promotion), nor any security guard has been appointed in hospitals. The is anger brewing among doctors seeing no arrangements on the ground level despite the assurance of security arrangements by the Health Minister. The Punjab Civil Medical Service Association has written a letter to the Director and warned the department that the doctors will boycott monthly reports, benchmark indicators and other office work starting from today even before the proposed strike on September 9. They would not participate in any departmental meeting till the demands were met. A memorandum of demands was handed over to the Civil Surgeon, Hoshiarpur, Dr Pawan Kumar Shagotra. Association members Dr Harpunit Kaur, Demanding security in hospitals, time-bound promotions Dr Jagdeep Singh, Dr Sahildeep, Dr Sanam Sandhu, Dr Navjot Sandhu, Dr Sushant, Dr Saurav Sharma and Dr Hitesh Aggarwal were present on the occasion. Health Minister Dr Balbir Singh, during a one-day strike across Punjab, had assured the doctors that security arrangements would be ensured in every government hospital this month. The department had prepared the expenditure budget and sent it to the Finance Department, but till now, the additional security arrangements at the ground level were still not made. The association said at the meeting that the department had also assured them that the already issued timebound ACP system would not discontinue and the government would soon decide on a notification to restore it, but the silence of the government showed that it was not serious about health workers. 11 stolen motorcycles, nine weapons recovered | All belong to Phillaur Tribune News Service Jalandhar, September 2 The Jalandhar Rural police have arrested nine members of a notorious gang involved in a spate of thefts and looting incidents across the region. The operation led to the recovery of 11 stolen motorcycles and nine deadly weapons. The arrested persons include Lakhwinder Singh, alias Lakha, Surinder Singh, alias Sonu, Mahendra Kumar, alias Monu, Ravi Kumar, alias Ravi, Jaspreet, alias Jassa, Neeraj Kumar, alias Sabi, Mathew Masih, alias Gona, Tarlok Kumar, alias Bundi, and Paramjit, all of Phillaur. Speaking to the media, Senior Superintendent of Police Harkamal Preet Singh Khakh said under the leadership and direction of Sarwan Singh Ball, DSP of Phillaur, a police team, led by SHO Sukhdev Singh, had effectively dismantled this notorious criminal network. He said the operation was initiated based on a tip-off received by Inspector Sukhdev Singh about the presence of the gang members in the Jakhira area of Phillaur. The Preparations begin for Sodal Mela Will kick off from Sept 14 Tribune News Service Jalandhar, September 2 As there are just two weeks left for Sodal Mela to start, Chadha and Anand biradaris associated with Siddha Sodal Temple have reportedly begun preparations. The mela will commence on September 14 with September 17 as the main day, which is also a local holiday in Jalandhar. An estimated 10 lakh people will visit the mela from across the region. Surinder Chadha, secretary of the trust, said, “We have begun preparations for the mela, the first step for which is sowing barley seeds (khetri) which will be offered at the site on the main day.” He said, “Men, women and anyone who has faith in the deity keep fast around the mela. This fast is broken after mathi or topa prepared for Baba Sodal is offered at the temple. Mathi is the main prasad for the occasion. On the main day, no tawa roti is prepared in our houses. We can have either pooris or just have fruits.” Giving an insight into the historical account, Surinder Chadha said the incident on which Sodal Mela is based dates back to 1865. “I am the fourth generation in my family to be custodian of the tem- ple. It was my family that had donated the land for setting up the temple. Now this temple is built up in an area of 26 kanal and 60 marlas. The administration now takes care of the premises”, he said. About Baba Sodal Baba Sodal’s mother was from the Chadha clan while his father was from the Anand clan. While the Chadhas have been more closely associated with the festivities, the Anands too participate in these. There was a pond at the temple site in 1865. Baba Sodal, who was then threeyear old, had followed his mother for washing clothes near the pond, despite her instructions on not doing so. c m y b waste, hospital waste, etc. The charges for the first time offence will range between Rs 250 and Rs 25,000 and become double as the same offence will be committed for the second time. Upon seeing Sodal having reached the site, his mother admonished him and asked him to take a plunge into the pond. As the story goes, Baba Sodal then asked his mother to repeat her sentence three times, which she did. He jumped into the pond and was not seen again. It is said Baba Sodal gave his life for his mother’s wish. There is a belief that he transformed into a snake. A samadhi of the child deity has been set up at the site which is decorated and offerings are made here. An annual mela is held at the site in the month of Bhadon for the past several years with people of all castes and sects visiting here. Nine members of a gang involved in a spate of theft and looting incidents in Jalandhar police custody. police team swiftly surrounded and arrested the accused. The gang had been carrying out robberies and stealing motorcycles in Phillaur, Nagar, Appra, Guraya, Bilga and Ludhiana areas for several months. The gang members would hide in a secluded area and take drugs before going out to commit their crimes. During these incidents, they would steal cash, jewellery and other valuables. The police conducted a swift and strategic operation and surrounded the gang’s hideout near Garha village on Nawanshahr Road, where the accused were allegedly planning to rob a petrol pump. The operation culminated in the arrest of all nine members and the seizure of the stolen motorcycles and weapons. During their interrogation, the accused confessed to committing over 25 thefts and robberies in Phillaur. The accused were found to be habitual criminals with a long history of involvement in various criminal activities. The gang members had mul- tiple FIRs registered against them at different police stations. The police are now in the process of linking these suspects to several unsolved cases, further strengthening their case against the gang. The accused will be produced in the local court for their remand to investigate the case and to check their links. SSP Khakh issued a clear warning to those involved in criminal activities, stating that the Jalandhar Rural police were resolute in their efforts to eliminate crime from the region. Don’t shut level-crossing gates for 4 days over mela, DC urged Tribune News Service Jalandhar, September 2 The Royal Club, representing residents of Ram Nagar and Gandhi Nagar, in a letter addressed to DC Himanshu Aggarwal has urged to reconsider the four-day closure of level-crossing gates in their area during the upcoming Sodal Mela. The closure will isolate their locality from the rest of the city. Suraj Birdi, general secretary of the Royal Club, outlined the severe impact of the annual closure of Railway Crossing S-62, located on the Amritsar line in Ram Nagar. He said this closure cut off the access to essential areas and created a logistical nightmare for the densely populated neighbourhood of Ram Nagar and Gandhi Nagar. The areas, he said, were already surrounded by multiple barriers, including the Bist Doab Canal, DAV institutions and the busy Amritsar and Ferozepur railway lines. “The closure of this gates will leave us stranded, cutting off our only route to the railway station and the industrial zone,” Birdi stated. “What used to be a one-day inconvenience has now become a four-day ordeal in recent years, disrupting our daily lives and making it nearly impossible to manage during emergencies”, he added. They acknowledged the need for the enhanced safety measures during the event but suggested that instead of a full closure, the administration could consider other way out. These could include deploying additional security personnel and restricting larger vehicles like cars and tractor-trailers on the route. In their letter to the DC, residents emphasised the urgency of finding a balanced approach that addressed their concerns.