30112024-ATR-01.qxd 11/29/2024 11:15 PM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune 30-YEAR-OLD PATIALA YOUTH SHOT DEAD AT CREMATORIUM REWARD FOR CINEMATIC EXCELLENCE Australian director Phillip Noyce bags Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award at the 55th IFFI in Goa .P4 MODERATE FOG MAX 25°C | MIN 09°C YESTERDAY MAX 25°C | MIN 10°C MASSEY BAGS PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR AWARD AT IFFI Prima facie the killing appears to be a fallout of property dispute, said SP Sarfaraz Alam. P3 FORECAST The 55th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) ended with a grand closing ceremony in Goa. P4 » » SUNSET SATURDAY 5.26 PM SUNRISE SUNDAY 7.12 AM » SATURDAY | 30 NOVEMBER 2024 | AMRITSAR ‘Mysterious’ blast rocks Gurbaxnagar police post Farmers hold protest over cut in paddy payment Our Correspondent Tarn Taran, November 29 Farmers from different parts of the district organised a march to the office of the Deputy Commissioner on Friday and lodged a strong protest against the forcible deducting of a heavy amount from the payment for their paddy procured. The farmers held a meeting with Deputy Commissioner Rahul and presented him with a memorandum against the deduction. The farmers also presented a list of demands to Harpreet Singh Dhunna, senior leader of AAP and Director, Mandi Board. Gurmesh Singh, former sarpanch of Khakh village, Jaswinder Singh Ahluwalia, state president of the Flood Affected Farmers’ Union, Yadwinder Singh Dhunda, state leader of farmers and others, said in a meeting with the Deputy Commissioner that commission agents in grain markets across the district were deducting Rs 120 to Rs 150 per quintal as lifting expenses. The farmers claimed that the Deputy Commissioner assured them of conducting an inquiry into the matter. The farmers warned that they would launch an agitation against the administration if they were denied their due. The farmers also submitted a memorandum to the District Food and Supply Controller. Panic in area; no loss of life or property reported in the incident PK Jaiswar Tribune News Service A youth, who suffered bullet injuries, being admitted to a private hospital in Amritsar on Friday. VISHAL KUMAR Group clash leaves 2 youths injured in Guru Nanak Pura Tribune News Service Amritsar, November 29 Two persons were seriously injured in a clash broke out between two groups over an old enmity in Guru Nanak Pura locality falling under the Islamabad police station here on Friday. The injured were rushed to a private hospital where their condition is stated to be serious. Satbir Singh, alias Satta, suffered sharp-edged weapon injuries and Gurmeet Singh Bhola bullet injuries on the legs. Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said a case is being registered in this connection, adding that an old enmity was the reason behind the brutal assault. He said Satta had sharp weapon injuries and he had shot Gurmeet Bhola. Sanjiv Kumar, a resident of Guru Nanak Pura and cousin of Bhola, said at around 11 am, Satbir Satta along with his accomplices shot at Bhola without any provocation and left him critically injured. The bullets hit his thighs. He was rushed to hospital where he is undergoing treatment. Nishu, a relative of the victim, said he and his uncle Bhola were surrounded by Satbir and his three accomplices. They shot him before my eyes without any provocation. He alleged last year also, Satbir had attacked his uncle. On the other hand, Jagroop Singh, brother of Satbir Singh, alleged that he had gone to bring his children from school when the accused pulled him inside their lottery stall and assaulted him with datars and sharp-edged weapons leaving him critically injured on the head. Lalit Sharma, another relative, said when they went to take injured Satbir, the accused threw bottles at them. They somehow managed to retrieve him and rushed him to hospital. The Police Commissioner said the police recovered a licensed pistol belonging to Satbir Singh from the spot. “A case has already been registered against them in the past. When the two parties came face-to-face today, a scuffle broke out. Senior police officials are currently investigating the matter and a legal action will be taken accordingly,” he said. Most quarries in district lying closed, consumers forced to buy sand dear Amritsar, November 29 Panic gripped the Gurbaxnagar area after a ‘mystery ’ blast in the old building of the Gurbaxnagar police chowki (now shut down) here in the wee hours of Friday. Residents got frightened when they heard the massive explosion sound. The incident came to light in the morning when senior police officials, including Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar, reached the spot and started a probe. However, no loss of life or property reported in the incident. “It was yet to be ascertained what caused the blast or whether it was a blast or something else,” said the Police Commissioner, adding that police officials were tasked to investigate the case threadbare. There is a permanent police naka near the chowki since the day it, along with several other police chowkis, was shut down by then Police Commissioner Naunihal Singh in the city. The building is still in the possession of the police department. Two cops were present at the naka when the incident took place. The chowki falls under the limits of the Gate Hakima police station. The Gurbaxnagar police chowki where a ‘mystery’ explosion occurred in Amritsar on Friday. VISHAL KUMAR GANGSTER CLAIMS RESPONSIBILITY OF BLAST ■ On a social media platform, US-based gangster-turned-terrorist Harpreet Singh, alias Happy Pashia, Gopi Nawanshehria and UK-based Jeewan Fauji have claimed the responsibility of the blast at the Gurbaxnagar police chowki. They claimed that the explosion was caused by a hand grenade attack. Nevertheless, the police remained silent over this. They said forensic reports were yet to ascertain the cause of the explosion. SHO, Gate Hakima, Manjit Kaur was on the night duty when she got information about the blast and rushed to the scene. She informed senior police officials about this. Subhash Kapoor, a resident of the locality, said the blast occurred at around 3 am when people were fast asleep. They were roused from their slumber due to the deafening sound of the explosion, but they were so terrified due to this that nobody dared come out. Satish Kumar, another resident, said they did not know whether the blast occurred inside the Gurbaxnagar police chowki building or a nearby ADA demolishes illegal structures on Fatehgarh Churian road Tribune News Service Neeraj Bagga Tribune News Service Amritsar, November 29 Despite tall claims by the AAP government of providing sand at mining sites at ~5.5 per cubic foot before it came to power, it is available in the retail market at ~40 and ~50, apparently 10 times costlier. Two types of sand are available in the market. One is coarse sand, which is sourced from Pathankot and its adjoining hilly areas, and is available at ~5,000 (per 100 cubic feet). Another is fine sand, sourced from Ajnala and Ramdas areas of the district, which is available at ~4,500 (per 100 cubic feet). Similarly, gravel is being sold at ~37 per cubic foot and above depending on quality. Hardeep Singh, a contractor who has been constructing residential and commercial sites along with his group of labourers for the past two decades, said the price of locally quarried fine sand has been hovering between ~4,000 and 5,000 per 100 cubic feet after this government came to power in the state. Vimal Kumar, who is getting his house constructed, said what happened with the gov- Sand dumped outside the Mall Road in Amritsar on Friday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR ernment’s claim of fixing sand and gravel prices at ~5.5 per cubic foot at mining sites about three years ago. The government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann is least bothered about taking stock of the commodities required by the common man. Despite tall claims by the government to provide sand at low prices, consumers, especially from low and middle income group families, are finding it tough to meet rising construction prices. Retailers told Amritsar Tribune that quarries in Ajnala have been lying closed since the AAP-led government came to power. Meanwhile, officials of the Drainage department, which looks after quarries, said as per the district survey report conducted some years ago, there are 16 quarries of sand situated close to the Ravi and Beas rivers in the district. All of them are lying closed since the High Court stayed that no extraction of minor minerals was permitted without the no-objection certificates from the Army and the BSF . At present, city people’s requirements for sand and gravel is being fed by quarries of Pathankot and Jalandhar. Officials held the high transportation costs as a reason for exorbitant sand and gravel prices in the local market. They assure that as per the policy of the government, the price of sand will be available at ~5.5 per cubic foot at the mining site, once things get in order. When contacted, Deputy Commissioner Sakshi Sawhney said all mining sites in Ajnala region are closed due to the restriction of five km border issue. Public mining site at Baba Bakala is operational at present. Amritsar, November 29 The Amritsar Development Authority (ADA) and PUDA conducted a demolition drive in an illegal colony on the Fatehgarh Churian road here on Friday. On the directions of Chief Administrator of ADA Ankurjit Singh and Additional Chief Administrator Major Amit Sareen and under the guidance of District Town Planner (Regulatory) Gursevak Singh Aulakh, police officials of the Kambo police station along with officials of the regulatory wing of the ADA, they took action against an unauthorised colony being built at Muradpura village on the Fatehgarh Churian road. The District Town Planner said as per the government instructions to control further development in the new unauthorised colonies being developed, action was taken against a colony, notified under the Papara Act, 1995. The action was taken by issuing an order to stop civil work, as the owners of the unauthorised colony did not comply with the norms. The reply given by the coloniser pertaining to the department’s Tribune News Service Amritsar, November 29 Political activities have picked up pace in the city after the announcement by the state government that elections to the Municipal Corporations would be held. Aspirants for party tickets are making efforts by dis- playing banners and posters in their respective areas to woo the voters. Public meetings and attending social gatherings by prospective candidates and their followers has increased. The BJP Con, gress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had called for applications from aspirants for party tickets last year, when the state government had announced to hold elections. The Congress and BJP got over 450 and 400 applications, respectively. The AAP also received 500 applications for all 85 wards in October last year. Munish Aggarwal, district president of the Aam Aadmi Party, said, “We received over 500 applications last year. A meeting of party leaders and volunteers would be held tomorrow to take a decision on matters relating to the MC elections. We will discuss in the meeting whether the old applications would be considered or new applications would be called for c m y b from the aspirants.” The AAP had 10 to 15 aspirants in each ward last year. The aspirants had displayed their poster and banners several times in the last two years but the elections got delayed every time. As most civic issues remain unaddressed and poll promises unfulfilled, Day 2: Work hit in tehsils as revenue staff on strike Tribune News Service A demolition drive underway at an illegal colony on the Fatehgarh Churian road in Amritsar on Friday. notice was found unsatisfactory. Apart from this, a notice was issued under the Punjab Regional and Town Planning and Development Act, 1995, for the construction of an unauthorised hotel at Pandori Warraich village on the Majitha Road. Officials stated that after finding the construction activity underway despite the notice, the competent authority, according to the Act, issued orders to demolish the construction. However, due to the shuttering of the lantern of the second floor which may cause an accident, notice was given regarding demolition and it was also clarified that if the building is not demolished by the builder at his own level, then the construction is demolished by the regulatory wing as per the orders of the competent authority. Officials clarified that as per the 2024 amendment of the Papara Act, 1995, a person who carves out an unauthorised colony is liable to be punished with imprisonment of five to 10 years and a fine of ~25 lakh to ~5 crore could also be levied. Political activities pick up as MC election aspirants begin mass contact programme Charanjit Singh Teja park. He said police teams have sealed the area and carrying out investigations. He pointed out that the blast has left people in the locality scared. “We are yet to find out whether it was actually a blast. Police teams are on the job and CCTV cameras in the area were being examined by the police to find clues,” said the Police Commissioner while adding that forensic teams would examine the scene to ascertain what type of explosion it was. ADCP Vishaljit said, “We cannot state clearly at the moment whether it was a blast or not.” the number of aspirants for AAP ticket may decrease. Meanwhile, the Congress and BJP have been scrutinising the list of aspirants. Amritsar Municipal Corporation has 85 wards, of which 42 wards are reserved for women. Out of it, nine wards are reserved for women belonging to Scheduled Castes (SC). Apart from this, 33 wards are for General male candidates and nine wards are reserved for SC male candidates, while two wards are reserved for backward classes. It is being expected that the election schedule would be announced soon. Amritsar, November 29 The strike by revenue employees for the second consecutive day caused inconvenience to the general public as they could not get their work done at the registrar’s office here today. A large number of applicants who required one or the other certificate from the office remained a harried lot. Revenue officials across Punjab had gone on strike on Thursday, disrupting operations in tehsil and sub-tehsil offices after the arrest of tehsildar Sukhcharan Singh Channi, posted at Tapa in Barnala by the Vigilance Bureau on corruption charges. Claiming that Sukhcharan Singh Channi is an honest officer, his outraged colleagues went on strike. Vikram Singh, a resident, who came to get a certificate from the department, said the revenue officials went on strike several times in the past in defence of their colleagues who had been arrested on corruption charges. The office of the registrar at the tehsil complex wore a deserted look on Friday. Employees remained absent from their workstations. Apart from sale registration and mortgage deeds, various kinds of property-related works are handled by the registrar. Even the work of registering marriages, issuing domicile certificates and countersigning affidavits is done at the office.