02022025-JTR-01.qxd 2/1/2025 11:10 PM Page 1 c m y b Jalandhar tribune CHILD SUSTAINS STRING INJURY, PPCB RAIDS SHOPS IN LUDHIANA, URMILA IMPRESSED ONE AND ALL WITH HER PERSONA CHARCOAL PORTRAIT OF FM NIRMALA SITHARAMAN Just a fortnight ago, Harpreet succumbed to string injuries when he was going to his office on his scooter on January 11 . P3 The charm of Rangeelagirl Urmila Matondkar remains the same, as it was when this film was shot in 1995. P4 Amroha-based artist Zuhaib Khan has come up with a charcoal portrait of FM Nirmala Sitharaman. P4 » » » FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 22°C | MIN 9°C YESTERDAY MAX 21°C | MIN 9°C SUNSET SUNDAY 6.03 PM SUNRISE MONDAY 7:18 AM SUNDAY | 2 FEBRUARY 2025 | JALANDHAR INBRIEF UTENSILS SHOP BURGLED Phagwara: A utensils shop was reportedly burgled in village Panchhat near Phagwara on Friday night. The burglars entered the shop after demolishing a part of the roof and decamped with Rs 2 lakh lying in cash box after ransacking the shop. Rajinder Singh, shop owner, told the police that he went to his home after closing the shop but found it burgled when he came the next morning. The police have registered a case under Sections 457 and 380, IPC. OC SCOOTER FOUND STOLEN FROM LPU Phagwara: A scooter (PB-08FJ2458) was found stolen before the LPU, Phagwara, on Friday. Owner Saiyam Sehgal of Jalandhar told the police that he came to drop his sister posted as professor at the LPU and went inside the university after parking the scooter before its gate but found it stolen. The police have registered a case under Section 379, IPC, and investigating the matter. OC CHAIN SNATCHED BY 2 BIKERS Phagwara: Two motorcyclists snatched a diamond locket in a gold chain from a woman in local Baba Gadhia locality here on Friday. Victim Shivani Arora told the police that she was sitting outside her house along with her daughter when the accused asked the address of someone and during talks, they snatched the chain and managed to flee. The police have registered a case under Section 379B, IPC. OC Congress contests AAP’s claim of victory in Phagwara mayoral poll AAP’s Uppal new Mayor |Names of Senior Dy Mayor, Dy Mayor not ‘announced’ Deepkamal/Ashok Kaura Tribune News Service Phagwara, February 1 Even as the Aam Aadmi Party could win only 12 of 50 wards in the Phagwara Municipal Corporation election held on December 21, the party walked away, claiming that it had got elected Rampal Uppal as its new Mayor today. After a painstaking effort, AAP kept on adding numbers and could touch only the figure of 17 till the last evening. It claimed getting support of nine more councillors, increasing its tally to 26. AAP’s claim, however, has been strongly contested by Phagwara Congress MLA Balwinder S Dhaliwal and mayoral candidate Sanjeev Bugga. They said while the Congress had the majority figure on its side and got 26 of 50 votes, the AAP had made a wrong claim of victory. Congress councillors even alleged that the names of Senior Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayor had not even been announced inside the meeting hall and hence no election to these posts had officially AAP minister Aman Arora with Mayor Ram Pal Uppal and supporters in Phagwara on Saturday. been held. But AAP MP Dr Raj Kumar Chabbewal claimed that everything had been videographed on the orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court and even retired judge Justice Harbans Lal was present as the HC observer and hence there was no possibility of any wrong claim. AAP leaders were the first ones to come out of the poll venue which was the auditorium in Phagwara amid chanting of the name of its new Mayor. They claimed that they had won the post with 26-24 as one Congress councillor Gurpreet Kaur Jhinda did not turn up. The proceedings were held in the presence of Jalandhar Elderly woman’s earring snatched Jalandhar, February 1 In a brazen daylight incident, two bike-borne snatchers targeted a 70-year-old woman in the posh Modern Colony at New Jawahar Nagar, here, fleeing with her gold earring on Saturday afternoon. The victim, identified as Lalita, was standing outside her house when two men on a motorcycle approached her under the pretense of asking about a car delivery in the neighbourhood. As she responded, they swiftly snatched her earring and sped away. In the process, the woman’s ear was pierced, leaving her with minor injuries. The entire incident was caught on CCTV cameras, sparking concerns among residents. Locals also reported a scooter theft just days earlier, pointing to a growing law-andorder crisis and the increasing audacity of criminals operating in broad daylight. Police said a case has been registered under the BNS and efforts are underway to trace the culprits. — TNS Traffic chaos continues despite plans, residents demand concrete action Avneet Kaur Tribune News Service Jalandhar, February 1 Despite multiple initiatives by the traffic police to ease congestion in the recent past, traffic woes continue to plague residents across the city. Areas like Nakodar Chowk, Jyoti Chowk near the Civil Hospital, Jail Road, Urban Estate Phase-II light near petrol pump, 66ft road during evening hours, Balmiki Gate, Tanda and Adda Hoshiarpur railway crossings, Kishanpura Chowk, Mai Hiran Gate, Focal Point underpass and Verka Milk Plant underpass and among other areas continue to remain traffic hotspots. Frequent traffic jams on these roads are attributed to multiple factors, including non-functional traffic lights, rampant encroachments, lack of parking spaces, haphazard parking, pothole-ridden roads and poor traffic management. Last year, the police introduced several measures, such as dividing the city into four zones, designating one-way roads and removing roadside encroachments. However, these efforts had done little to ease congestion and the problem remains a major concern for residents. Commuters argue that reckless driving, illegal parking and encroachments are the primary causes of traffic snarls, particularly at Jail Road and Jyoti Chowk. Many The traffic congestion hasn’t improved with BSF Chowk witnessing huge jams throughout the day in Jalandhar. TRIBUNE PHOTO: MALKIAT SINGH. blame auto-rickshaw and car drivers for poor driving discipline, while shopkeepers occupying footpaths with their merchandise further exacerbate the situation. Rajan Sharda, president of the Bhartiya Sarvahit Parishad, has raised the issue with top officials, including the DGP and ADGP Traffic, call, ing for strict measures to bring order to the roads. In his letter, he criticised the administration’s failure to act against violators, pointing out the illegal use of red-blue lights and hooters by anti-social elements. He also highlighted the unrestricted movement of defective three-wheelers and commercial tractor trolleys, which continue to ply the roads despite being banned by the Supreme Court. “The court’s decision has been ignored by the local authorities, which is a matter of deep concern,” he wrote, demanding immediate action. Jasmeen Kaur, a resident, emphasised the need for public cooperation in resolving the issue. “The smooth traffic flow is still a distant dream. The number of vehicles has risen sharply in recent years, with nearly every middleclass and wealthy household owning multiple cars. If we want to fix this, commuters must opt for carpooling, public transport or two-wheelers for short distances,” she said. The traffic police, meanwhile, claim they are working around the clock but receive little support from the MC. “Encroachments by shopkeepers and street vendors, along with broken traffic lights, make it difficult to regulate traffic,” an officer said. The traffic authorities claimed that daily traffic campaigns and special drives are being conducted to address these concerns and the efforts would be intensified to tackle the issue. c m y b Divisional Commissioner Arun Sekhri along with Municipal Corporation Commissioner Navneet Kaur Bal. AAP councillor Ravi Kumar, who was appointed as the presiding officer, announced the victory of Uppal. Narrating the sequence of events, MLA Dhaliwal said, “Since the oath ceremony of two Independent councillors Davinder Sapra and his wife Rupali Sapra was pending, the proceeding started with them. After this, Sekhri appointed AAP’s Ravi Kumar for further proceedings. I sought that the Congress councillors should be allowed raise hands first. They were asked to raise their hands in support of the Congress candidate Bugga and the count came out to be 26.” He went on, “After this, the presiding officer asked the councillors to raise the hand in support of AAP candidate Rampal Uppal. Dhaliwal alleged that of the total 50, 26 councillors had voted in support of Bugga so the remaining number was automatically 24, but the presiding officer declared that Uppal got 26 votes.” Later, LoP Partap Singh Bajwa, PPCC chief Amarinder Raja Warring and MLA Dhaliwal described today’s episode as a murder of democracy. Dhaliwal alleged that despite HC’s order, nothing could be done transparently. Joining AAP just 4 days ago pays Uppal dividend Ashok Kaura PHAGWARA, FEBRUARY 1 Rampal Uppal, who was elected second Mayor of the Phagwara Municipal Corporation on Saturday, had switched over to the Aam Aadmi Party just four days ago. He had got elected as the Congress councillor from Ward No. 18 in the December 21 MC poll. He was with the Congress during the first mayoral poll held on January 25 and had switched to the ruling party on January 28. The move paid him well with AAP rewarding him with the top post ignoring its own 12 councillors who got elected on the symbol ‘broom’. Uppal had won MC elections even in 2008 and 2015. It was his third victory for the MC this time. An industrialist from Phagwara, he is running motor spare parts factory. He was a Congress loyalist but in the tussle with Sanjeev Bugga to get the mayoral post in the party, he quit it. Two other councillors Padam Dev Sudhir and Munish Parbhakar had also quit with him on Jan- Congress’ Partap Bajwa along with state president Amrinder Raja Warring talks to media on Mayor’s election . uary 28 and joined AAP through Lok Sabha MP Dr Raj Kumar Chabbewal and AAP halka in-charge Joginder Singh Maan and AAP state spokesman Harji Maan. While Parbhakar rejoined the Congress yesterday, Uppal and Sudhir had stayed back. Talking to media after his victory, Uppal said, “I only want to serve my people who have given me this opportunity. I want to make Phagwara clean and pollution-free city. I will prioritise working on sanitation, sewerage and streetlight facilities in the first phase”. With overcast sky, chill returns to city Jalandhar, February 1 After a week-long clear weather and warm afternoons, Jalandhar again witnessed a cloudy spell and a haze over the city for the past two days, bringing temperatures down. The city was enveloped in a thick fog - the last such fog was seen in December-end - on Friday night which remained until the wee hours today. While the sun peeked out briefly through clouds this afternoon, Saturday remained a hazy, foggy day with little sun. The overcast weather has been witnessed for the past three days. However, the surprise foggy weather has, for the moment, allayed fears of an early onset of summers. Amid forecast for sporadic rain over parts of the North between January 31 and February 4, Punjab is also one of the regions where light to moderate rainfall may be expected. A rainy spell will also be welcome in Jalandhar which has only seen one day of intense rainfall in the winter. — TNS