29112024-JTR-01.qxd 11/28/2024 11:09 PM Page 1 c m y b Jalandhar tribune SOAR IN RIGHT DIRECTION, ACTOR PIYUSH TELLS YOUTH AR RAHMAN PRAISES LATA MANGESHKAR AT IFFI NEERAJ PANDEY’S SIKANDAR KA MUQADDAR RELEASES ON OTT His words set the tone for three-day literary festival, Kitab Utsav, a festival of stories, organised by LPU. P2 Says getting praise from her was very difficult because she had attained that level of perfection. P4 The director says the movie is a tribute to Amitabh Bachchan’s blockbuster Muqaddar Ka Sikandar. P4 » » FORECAST FOGGY MAX 25°C | MIN 10°C YESTERDAY MAX 25°C | MIN 9°C SUNSET FRIDAY 5.24 PM SUNRISE SATURDAY 7:08 AM » FRIDAY | 29 NOVEMBER 2024 | JALANDHAR INBRIEF Jalandhar logs 154 farm fires so far, AQI poor JOB LETTERS GIVEN TO SURGEONS Hoshiarpur: Local Bodies Minister Dr Ravjot Singh handed over appointment letters to 24 MBBS doctors deputed as house surgeons in the district at the local Civil Hospital. He said with the appointment of the doctors, the health services would get a boost, benefiting people not only at the Civil Hospital but also at sub-division hospitals. Of these 24 doctors, eight will be deputed at local Civil Hospital, four at sub-division hospital Garhshankar, five at Dasuya and two in Mukerian to provide healthcare facilities in the hospitals, he added. OC REVENUE OFFICERS ON MASS LEAVE Phagwara: On a call given by the Punjab Revenue Officers Association, all revenue officers of Phagwara, Goraya, Phillaur, Nakodar and Nurmahal went on mass casual leave in protest against the arrest of Tehsildar, Barnala, Sukhcharan Singh Channi by the Vigilance Bureau on Wednesday. They were protesting against the action of the vigilance. OC VILLAGER BOOKED FOR EXTORTION CALL Phagwara: The police have booked a Tarn Taran villager on demanding a ransom of Rs 2.50 crore. The accused had been identified as Satta of Naushehra village in Tarn Taran district. Harpreet Singh of Talwann village complained to the police that the accused made a WhatsApp call on his phone number on November 27 and demanded Rs 2.50 crore extortion money and threatened him to kill him if he did not pay. OC MAN HELD FOR CASTEIST REMARK Phagwara: The Nakodar Sadar police have arrested a villager on the charges of using castist remarks, criminal intimidation and blocking pathways. Nakodar DSP Sukh Pal Singh said the accused had been identified as Amrit Pal of Eeda village. OC SHAHKOT POLICE ‘SHORT’ OF STAFF Phagwara: The Shahkot police are reeling under staff shortage. There are only 55 police personnel against a sanctioned strength of 106 personnel.? All 14 sanctioned posts of head constable are lying vacant while of the 80 posts of constable, 48 are lying vacant. Sources said Home Guards were doing the job of constables and patrolling had been reduced. oc DRUG PEDDLER PO ARRESTED Phagwara: The Nakodar Sadar police have arrested a proclaimed offender (PO) absconding for the last eight months. Investigating officer Major Singh said the accused has been identified as Vijay Kumar, resident of Eeda village. The accused was wanted in a case of drug peddling registered on December 17, 2019, and was declared PO on March 27. oc ONE ARRESTED WITH LIQUOR Hoshiarpur: The police arrested a smuggler and seized 21,000 ml of liquor from him. The accused has been identified as Gurmel Kumar, alias Golu of Adamwal. oc Tribune News Service BSP leaders and family members stage a sit-in at Hoshiarpur after the death of a CRPF jawan in jail.. CRPF jawan dies in jail under mysterious circumstances Family members, BSP leaders stage sit-in, ADC assures of probe Sanjiv Bakshi Hoshiarpur, November 28 A 38-year-old CRPF jawan, lodged in Hoshiarpur Central Jail, died under mysterious circumstances. According to information, the deceased jawan Amarjit Singh, a resident of village Chakowal Shekhan, was posted in the CRPF and was now in jail on charges of being involved in a murder conspiracy. On getting information about the incident, relatives of the deceased and the Bahujan Samaj Party staged a sit-in in front of the Civil Hospital and started raising slogans against the police and the jail administration. Giving information on this occasion, the wife of the deceased Pooja Rani said her husband was posted in the 2 arrested with 10 quintal poppy husk Tribune News Service Jalandhar, November 28 The Nawanshahr police arrested two ‘drug smugglers’ with 10 quintals poppy husk today. They have been identified as Gurvinder Bhatia (25) and Shingara Singh (44) from Mahilpur, Hoshiarpur. SSP Mehtab Singh held a press conference and said the police had a tip-off that Davinder Kumar, who used to smuggle drugs from other states, was here and he was going to smuggle poppy husk. “He was taking help from Gurvinder Bhatia and Shingara Singh. They both were in the truck when the police personnel asked them to stop. On checking, 50 huge packs were found which had 10 quintals of poppy husk in these,” the police said. The truck was also impounded. Further investigation in this case is on. WHAT HIS WIFE SAYS ■ In 2020, a fight took place in Chakowal Shekhan village during which one person died ■ Her husband had also come to the village on leave ■ He was falsely implicated in this fight case and was lodged in Hoshiarpur Central Jail for the last 2 months. JAIL ADMN BLAMED ■ Kin of the deceased allege that Amarjit Singh CRPF She said in 2020, there . was a fight in the village during which one person died. During this time, her husband had also come to the village on leave. She said her husband was falsely implicated in this fight case and he was lodged in Hoshiarpur Central Jail for the last 2 months. Amarjit died due to the negligence of the jail administration. She said her husband was ill for some time. Due to which the court had also issued an order to the jail administration to admit him to the hospital, but the jail administration did not do so, as a result of which Amarjit died today. The family members of the deceased allege that Amarjit died due to the negligence of the jail administration. Present on the occasion, BSP district president Mahendra Singh Sandhar and other BSP leaders Sukhdev Singh, Dinesh Kumar Pappu, Dr Ajay Mall, Jagmohan Singh said they would stand in support of the victim’s family. DSP City Devdutt Sharma said the police would investigate the matter and if negligence of the jail administration was found, then action would be taken accordingly. After several hours of protest, Additional Deputy Commissioner Rahul Chaba arrived at the spot and assured the protesters that a magisterial inquiry would be conducted into the incident and appropriate action be taken after which the protest was called off. Jalandhar, November 28 As many as 154 stubble fires reported in Jalandhar so far. Three farm fires were reported today. Jalandhar had logged 151 farm fires until yesterday. While Jalandhar farm fires peaked recently - with a single day tally recorded at 30 farm fires there has been a relative dip in the farm fires with these being currently reduced to single digits. However coupled with vehicular pollution, the city continues to breathe very poor quality of air almost on a daily basis. The city recorded a poor average AQI of 205 today. The city’s AQI was marginally better yesterday with the average AQI was 183, the maximum 261 and minmum AQI 90. In the district this year, 113 FIRs have been registered against those setting stubble on fire. There have been 115 red entries and environmental compensations of Rs 4,72,500 have been imposed on farmers indulging in stubble burning. As much as Rs 4,62,500 has been recovered. Call to shut Jyoti Nagar garbage dump Tribune News Service Jalandhar, November 28 The Welfare Association of Urban Estate, Phase 1 and Phase 2, along with the Market Association of Phase 2, has demanded the immediate closure of the garbage dump in Jyoti Nagar, citing serious health and environmental hazards. Residents held a meeting today at Urban Estate, Phase II near petrol pump, and decided to submit a memorandum to the Municipal Corporation Commissioner tomorrow, warning of further action, including approaching the High Court and the National Green Tribunal (NGT), if their demands are not met. The residents claimed that the garbage dump, located near residential areas, markets, hospitals, schools and a petrol pump, had been a persistent concern for them. They said the dump posed significant health risks, with foul odours and unhygienic conditions affecting daily life. Urban Estate Phase II residents after a meeting, demanding closing of Jyoti Nagar dump. “Despite repeated assurances from Municipal Corporation officials to close the dump, no concrete action has been taken, fuelling growing resentment”, they added. At a meeting, it was also decided that a street protest would be “organised in the coming days to press for the dump’s closure”, said Prof Kanwar Sartaj Singh, adding that leaders of the associations emphasised that they would not hesitate to escalate their efforts to ensure the safety and well-being of the community. The meeting saw active participation from Advocate Karan Lally, Inderjot Singh, Amarjeet Singh Sachdeva, Jasjit Singh Rai, Dr Anmol Singh Rai, Ranvir Kaushal, Bharat Arora and many others. “We hope that our collective voice will compel the authorities to address the issue promptly, failing which we are prepared to take our fight to higher forums”, the residents said. Three accused in Jalandhar police custody. Int’l drug trafficking gang busted, 3held with 3 kg opium Jalandhar, November 28 The Jalandhar Commissionerate Police has made a breakthrough by busting an international drug trafficking gang and seized 3 kg of opium. Commissioner Swapan Sharma said three persons, involved in smuggling and packaging opium for international trade, were arrested. He said on November 24, a CIA team arrested Chahat, a resident of New Sant Nagar, Bhargo Camp, Jalandhar, at Mata Rani Chowk. He said 1 kg of opium was seized from him, adding that an FIR was registered at the Bhargo Camp Police Station under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. His interrogation led to the identification of two accomplices, Pawan Kumar and Ranbir Singh, who were arrested the same day. The police seized an additional 2 kg of opium from them. The gang is suspected of packaging the drugs and smuggling it abroad. Commissioner Sharma also revealed that Section 29 of the NDPS Act had been added to the case and an extensive investigation was ongoing to trace the gang’s links. The authorities are working to identify other individuals involved in the illegal operation and to make further recoveries. Pawan Kumar has a criminal record, with two previous FIRs under the NDPS Act earlier this year. However, the other two accused have no prior criminal history. MC seals two buildings for rule violation MLA meets Bittu for rly underpasses Hoshiarpur, November 28 Hoshiarpur MC Commissioner Dr Amandeep Kaur today took strict action against the violation of rules in the construction of buildings in the city. A corporation team inspected 18 sites. During the investigation, serious violations were found in two buildings, due to which these buildings were sealed on the spot. Showcause notices were issued on the basis of preliminary investigation in respect of the remaining 16 buildings. Dr Amandeep Kaur had directed building inspectors and Master Town Planner (MTP) to submit a detailed report of these buildings by tomorrow. She said it was the priority of the Municipal Corporation to ensure compliance of rules during building construction, so that the city developed in a planned manner and the safety of the citizens can be ensured. — OC Jalandhar, November 28 Phillaur MLA Vikramjit Chaudhary on Thursday met Minister of State for Railways Ravneet Singh Bittu to discuss the need for setting up two underpasses on PhillaurNakodar and Goraya-Dallewal railway crossings falling in his constituency. Chaudhary told Bittu that his father and former MP Santokh Chaudhary had met all Union Railway Ministers since 2014 raising this demand. The Phillaur MLA handed over Bittu his memorandum mentioning, “There is no underpass at the railway level under-crossing on Phillaur-Nakodar road in Phillaur. The railway line divides Phillaur into two parts and nearly 150 passenger and cargo trains pass through it daily.” Chaudhary has stressed that due to high frequency of trains and vehicular traffic moving across the city, the commuters face long wait at the crossing. — TNS Tribune News Service ‘Reporter’ held for dhaba owner’s death BJP appoints ward in-charges, Tribune News Service Jalandhar, November 28 The Commissionerate Police has arrested a reporter of a news portal in connection with the death of dhaba owner Anil Kumar Mani. The accused, identified as Deepak Rana, alias Deepak Thapar, was apprehended following an FIR registered under Section 105, 3(5) BNS at Police Station Division No. 4. Police Commissioner Swa- pan Sharma revealed that the incident occurred on November 20 near Mani Dhaba, located close to Nehru Garden School. A group, including the accused reporter, allegedly confronted Anil Kumar, accusing him of serving worm-infested vegetables. Despite repeated appeals from Anil and his son Manav Mani, citing the victim’s heart condition, the group reportedly continued to harass him. The confrontation alleged- ly caused severe stress to Anil, who collapsed soon. He was rushed to a hospital by his son but he passed away on the way. Acting on a complaint from the victim’s son, the police launched an investigation and arrested Deepak Rana near Congress Bhawan on November 27. Speaking about the case, Commissioner Sharma emphasised the seriousness of the allegations, stating, “This is a grave incident where harass- c m y b ment resulted in a loss of life. We are committed to delivering justice.” He also confirmed that the accused had been presented before the court and the police remand was being sought to identify other individuals involved, including those who reportedly livestreamed the altercation. “The investigation continues as we aim to uncover the full extent of involvement by other accomplices”, CP Sharma said. their deputies for MC polls Jalandhar, November 28 Taking an early lead, the BJP has announced its incharges and co-in-charges for the MC elections. The city with 85 wards has been split into two zones. While the zone from ward number 1 to 45 will have exminister Manoranjan Kalia as the in-charge, the wards from 46 to 85 will have ex-BJP state chief Ashwani Sharma as the in-charge. Both zones have a co-incharge also. While the first 45 wards will have ex-MP Sushil Rinku as the co-in-charge, the co-incharge with Sharma will be ex-CPS KD Bhandari. Likewise, in-charges and coin-charges have also been appointed for the rural areas where Municipal Committee elections are to be held. Tikshan Sud and Meenu Sethi will be the in-charge and coin-charge for Jalandhar North Rural areas that include Bhogpur and Goraya committees. Similarly, Inder Iqbal S Atwal and Amarjit S Amri will be the in-charge and co-incharge for Jalandhar South rural committees of Bilga and Shahkot. — TNS