07092024-LT-01.qxd 9/7/2024 12:19 AM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune INHUMANE CONDITIONS AT SUNET SCHOOL, 1.3K SUFFER There are only about 23 teachers to teach 1,300 students at Government Primary School in Sunet. P2 » ANIL KAPOOR FEATURES IN 2024’S TIME100 AI LIST SANGEET NATAK AKADEMI TO AWARD ARTISTES Actor Anil Kapoor has been honoured for his contributions in fighting against limitations of AI. P4 It’s for first time in 44-year history of Chandigarh Sangeet Natak Akademi that such awards have been announced. P4 » » FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 34°C | MIN 25°C YESTERDAY MAX 34°C | MIN 25°C SUNSET SATURDAY 6.37 PM SUNRISE SUNDAY 6:03 AM SATURDAY | 7 SEPTEMBER 2024 | LUDHIANA No solution in sight as waterlogging menace continues to haunt city Khanna police crack blind murder case in six hours City gets inundated even after a short spell of rainfall since it lacks alternative arrangements for stormwater drainage able to take the load. We need to plan things from a new perspective.”— Sandeep Rishi, MC Commissioner Manav Mander Tribune News Service Ludhiana, September 6 Though Ludhiana has got the tag of ‘smart city’, it has failed to find a solution to the waterlogging menace that troubles city residents every monsoon. From old city areas to posh localities, the problem persists everywhere. The city gets inundated even after a short spell of rainfall. Since it lacks alternative arrangements for rainwater drainage, waterlogging occurs every year. The existing sewer system is unable to take the load of extra rainwater which eventually flows into the Buddha Nullah. Separate stormwater drains are available only at a few places in the city, as a result, several roads get inundated every year during the rainy season, giving a difficult time to the people. Even the newly constructed underpasses in the city get filled with rainwater. The AAP government has also passed its half tenure but the problem remains intact. New projects are coming up, underpasses and flyovers are being constructed but nobody seems to be paying attention to the menace. The newly constructed underpass at South City, Pakhowal Road, and near Lodhi Club are filled with water even after a light rain. A rainwater sewer was installed on Chandigarh Road but it has failed to produce desired results and the area is flooded with water after every rainfall. The elevated road project on the Ferozepur road is also said to be having various shortcomings and as a result, the district administration also recently inspected the same. Rainwater recharge wells have been made under the elevated road but these are filled with garbage. There “Not only Ludhiana but also a majority of the Indian cities are suffering due to accumulation of water on roads after rain. The main reason is that either existing underground sewer lines are of less capacity or there is a negligible non-solid surface on roadsides even around trees. — Sanjay Goel, technical expert, Ludhiana Smart City MLAs’ take New projects are coming up and underpasses are being constructed but nobody seems to be paying attention to waterlogging. FILE are over 30 recharge wells but none is working. Instead of falling in the wells, the rainwater is falling outside, on the road, causing inconvenience to commuters and also leading to waterlogging on the road. A small spell of rain results in trouble for motorists passing under the elevated road as water spills on them from a height of around 15 m. OfficialSpeak “I have taken up the matter with the MC and the National Highways Authority of India. The NHAI has sent me compliance reports for drain works in certain areas. The corporation’s report is awaited. However, the civic body is working on a permanent solution for chronic areas. I have also taken up the matter of traffic management and some progress should be made soon on that front as well. — Sakshi Sawhney, DC “We need a separate stormwater sewer to solve the issue of waterlogging. The city has grown by leaps and bounds over the years and the existing system is not “The entire problem lies in the Buddha Nullah. Since the sewer water flows into the nullah, it overflows during rain. The industry is also discharging its waste into the tributary. The problem is serious but there is nothing that cannot be solved. We need to work with dedication and most importantly, systematically to solve the problem. I recently dismantled the foundation stone of the Buddha Dariya rejuvenation project as it has failed to yield desired results.” — Gurpreet Gogi, Ludhiana West MLA “Stormwater sewers should be laid in the entire city while at present, these are available only at a few places and their capacity is also less. New colonies, which are being built, should have a stormwater sewer system. The city has turned into a concrete jungle, which is also resulting in waterlogging. Population of Ludhiana has also increased in the past years but the sewerage system remains the same”. — Madan Lal Bagga, Ludhiana North MLA Public opinion “New colonies are coming up but the sewer system remains old. The capacity is increasing but the system remains the same. Separate sewer treatment plants should be set up for every colony. We need to replan things as we are still working according to plans that were made 50 years ago”. — Badish Jindal, bizman “The problem of waterlogging has been increasing as the green cover is decreasing. The entire city is made of concrete and interlocking tiles have been installed even around trees. Besides, the duration of rain has decreased but the intensity has increased, which leads to accumulation of water on roads shortly after rainfall.” — Dr Jaswinder Brar, Scientist, PAU “New roads, underpasses and flyovers are being constructed but we need to maintain quality. Concrete roads can be built in Focal Point areas. Stress should be laid on quality of construction material and work as many times we see roads develop cracks and potholes after brief spells of rainfall.” Ranjodh Singh, businessman Two peddlers arrested with 350 gm heroin Tribune News Service Ludhiana, September 6 The Ludhiana police claimed to have nabbed two persons in separate incidents and seized 350 gm of heroin from their possession. ADCP (Crime) Amandeep Singh Brar in a statement issued stated that on September 5, SI Satnam Singh after getting a tip-off about a heroin smuggler conducted a raid and nabbed Rama Singh, a resident of Janta Colony, and seized 200 gm of heroin from his possession. A case under Four-yr-old boy hurt in stone pelting on train Ludhiana, September 6 In a late night incident, some mischievous elements pelted stones on Sutlej Express at Baddowal, about 10 km from the Ludhiana railway station. The incident rendered serious head injuries to a four-year-old child, who was travelling with his parents. The injured was initially taken to the Civil Hospital, Ludhiana, from where he was referred to the PGI, Chandigarh. A few other passengers reportedly suffered minor injuries in the incident. After the incident, the child was given first aid at the city railway station and afterwards, taken to the hospital. Savita, the mother of the child, Prince, said they boarded the Sutlej Express from Ganganagar for Ludhiana. When the train reached near Baddowal in Ludhiana on Thursday night, somebody started pelting stones on the train and one of the stones hit her son’s head. Two other passengers were also hit by stones. She said passengers were not being provided safe travel due to the negligence of GRP personnel and demanded that they should conduct patrolling on railway tracks to check the presence of anti-social elements. Meanwhile, the railway authorities have launched a probe to identify the suspects. — TNS the NDPS Act was registered against him and further investigation was launched in the case. Brar said in another case, SI Mohan Singh, along with his team, conducted a raid and nabbed Mohit, a resident of Vijay Nagar. The police seized 150 gm of heroin from him. After registering a case against the man, further investigation was launched by the police to bust the entire drug supply line. In further probe, more smugglers involved in the network would be nabbed. Sources said the police had identified some big heroin smugglers with whom the two suspects were in touch. Mohit has a criminal past as two cases, including of drug smuggling and cheating, were registered against him in the past. Police personnel address mediapersons in Khanna on Friday. Ludhiana, September 6 The Khanna police today claimed to have cracked the blind murder of a woman within six hours. The victim was found dead at an isolated place in Malaud near Khanna on Thursday night. The suspect has been identified as Bablu Yadav (45), a native of Bihar, at present staying at Malaud. The deceased was identified as Satpal Kaur (45). The SSP Khanna, Ashwini , Gotyal, addressed a press conference in this regard on Friday. As per information, the suspect had been working at the house of Jasvir Singh at Malaud where the woman was also working. Both had developed an illicit relationship. As the house owner came to know about the matter about three Deceased woman had illicit relationship with Bihar native months ago, he fired both of them from job. Even the husband of the woman had also got to know about the illicit relationship, and he too objected to it. On September 5, the victim had left home for some work but did not return home till 8.30 pm. As the woman’s husband Gulraz was searching for her, he got a call from the village sarpanch who informed him that the body of the victim was found in the village. The deceased had strangulation marks on her neck and blood was oozing out from her mouth. The SSP said after the police came to know about Youths attack family, one dies; four nabbed Tribune News Service Ludhiana, September 6 Several youths carrying sharp weapons barged into a house in Sunet village here on Thursday night and attacked a family with sharp weapons and baseball bats. Three members of the family had suffered injuries in the attack. One of them succumbed to the injuries on Friday. Complainant Kala Singh told the police that his younger son Birpal Singh was standing outside a medical store in the village on Thursday night where the youths came and started thrashing his son. When he got information, he went and brought his son home. About 20 minutes later, the miscreants again came and barged into the house and attacked all family members with swords and baseball bats. He said in the attack, he suffered injuries on his head and mouth while his elder son Gurvinder Singh got deep injuries on his head and was undergoing treatment at the CMCH, where he succumbed today. While his younger son Birpal also suffered injuries on his head. He said his sons had a fight with the youths about one-and-a-half years ago and a compromise was also reached in the matter. It seemed that they orchestrated the attack due to the old reason only. Sarabha Nagar police station SHO Inspector Pawan Kumar said based on the statement of Kala Singh, a murder case was registered against the suspects, identified as Gagandeep Singh, Hardeep Singh, Shammi, Jagga, Kala Singh and some unidentified persons. Gagandeep, Hardeep, Shammi and Jagga were arrested by the police. the recovery of the body, a probe was launched. After identifying the suspect, police teams conducted raids and nabbed Bablu, who was trying to flee to Bihar. The suspect admitted that the woman had started blackmailing him. She had already taken more than Rs 1.25 lakh from him and now, she was asking for more money. She threatened to lodge a rape case against him if her demands were not met. Angry over the woman’s behaviour, the suspect strangled her to death and afterwards, hit her face with a wooden plank. The police said since the body was found half naked, a report was also sought from doctors to ascertain whether the victim was sexually assaulted or not. — TNS MC chief hands over appointment letters to six clerks, firefighter Tribune News Service Ludhiana, September 6 Municipal Corporation (MC) Commissioner Sandeep Rishi handed over appointment letters to newly appointed six clerks (general) and a firefighter at the MC’s Zone D office in Sarabha Nagar on Friday. The staff were appointed by the state government and they have been deputed in the MC, Ludhiana. Accompanied by MC Joint Commissioner Inderpal, the civic body chief congratulated the newly appointed staff and motivated them to work with transparency and efficiency. Rishi said the employees had been posted in different zones of the corporation, as per requirement. He also directed officials to organise training sessions for new employees to apprise them of their works. Dengue spreads tentacles, 54 test +ve, 632 challaned so far Tribune News Service Ludhiana, September 6 The dreaded dengue fever has started spreading its tentacles in the district. With no check on breeding of mosquitoes and flies, vector-borne diseases are on the rise. At least 54 patients have so far tested positive for dengue in different parts of the district. The number could be much higher as most of the patients tested positive and undergoing treatment with private hospitals and doctors were not reported to the Health Department. Taking note of the situation, Deputy Commissioner Sak- Mosquitoes and flies breeding in stagnant water is a common sight in Ludhiana. HIMANSHU MAHAJAN shi Sawhney has pulled up the Health Department and the Municipal Corporation (MC) authorities to take all possible steps to combat the spread of dengue and other vector-borne diseases in the c m y b district. Reviewing the ongoing efforts being made by the district administration and the Health Department while chairing a multi-departmental meeting here, Sakshi said 54 dengue cases had been reported so far and district teams were extensively working to control the spread of dengue. She said 632 challans had also been issued by the civic body against breeding of mosquitoes. She asked officials to leave no stone unturned to intensify steps against dengue by making people aware across the district. The Deputy Commissioner also urged the public to take all necessary precautions against dengue. “Teams are conducting fogging and going door-to-door to ensure safety,” she claimed. Sakshi highlighted the importance of educating the public about places where mosquitoes breed, such as clear water in homes, flowerpots, refrigerators, coolers, tyres and bird feeders, in addition to stagnant water. She stressed the need to inform the public about all potential mosquito-breeding sites to effectively prevent future dengue outbreaks and mentioned that the Municipal Corporation, along with the Health, Education, and other departments concerned, had formed collaborative teams to educate the public about the breeding areas in high-risk zones. In rural areas, teams from panchayats and Health Departments were conducting awareness campaigns in every village to inform the rural population about dangers of dengue and how to prevent it. The Deputy Commissioner stressed that it was everyone’s duty to maintain clean and healthy environments.