30042024-ATR-01.qxd 4/30/2024 12:20 AM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY BRICK-KILN WORKERS HOLD PROTEST, DEMAND WAGES ON IRRFAN KHAN'S FOURTH DEATH ANNIV ON MONDAY ARIJIT SINGH SINGS ZAALIMA, APOLOGISES TO MAHIRA KHAN A large number of brick-kiln workers took out a protest march from Banasar Bagh to the DAC (Sangrur). P3 One cannot help but recall not only his immense talent but also the impact he made on the world of cinema. P4 Arijit Singh could be seen apologising to Pakistani actress Mahira Khan, who was seated in the audience in Dubai.P4 » » » MAX 33°C | MIN 18°C YESTERDAY MAX 31°C | MIN 18°C SUNSET TUESDAY 7.10 PM SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 5.44 AM TUESDAY | 30 APRIL 2024 | AMRITSAR Commuters suffer as road Two die in mishap repair work stalled in city as tractor hits bike Charanjit Singh Teja Tribune News Service Amritsar, April 29 Though the ruling Aam Adami Party (AAP) has been contesting elections on the development issue, various development works pertaining to roads and streets have been lying stalled in the city. Political experts claim that it will cost the ruling party dear as a number of major and internal link roads are having potholes and have turned unsafe for commuters. The Amritsar Municipal Corporation had issued work orders worth about ~85 crore to the contractors for constructing roads with premix, and streets with RCC and interlock tiles in all five zones of the city. According to information, the ongoing development work in the city has come to a halt due to nonrelease of funds by the Punjab Municipal Infrastructure Development Board (PMIDB). The local MLAs had claimed before the announcement of the Lok Sabha poll that development works worth ~70 crore were started in the five assem- A road in Majitha area in bad shape. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR bly constituencies in the city out of which ~15 crore would be spent on Old Focal Point. MC officials claimed that ~30 crore had been spent on the development works, including roads and streets, and the MC was supposed to receive ~80 crore from PMIDB. The MC had received only ~20 crore four months ago and the amount has already been spent. After this, the MC has not yet received any amount from PMIDB. The MC has written letters to PMIDB to release the pending amount and senior officials had also visited Chandigarh to get funds. Despite this, the MC has not received any amount till date. The contractors to whom work orders have been issued to get this development work done are not being paid for a long time. Owing to nonrrelease of funds, contractors have completely stopped the construction work of roads in five zones of the city and the development work of Old Focal Point. “With the stoppage of development work, its effect will be seen in the Lok Sabha election. Residents are facing inconvenience while commuting on the main roads of the city. The roads leading to the Golden Temple are in bad shape. The ruling party candidate will face this question on every corner of the city,” said Gurmeet Singh, a resident. Tarn Taran, April 29 Two persons died in a road mishap on NH-54 near Usman toll plaza on Monday when their motorcycle was hit from the side by a reapertractor. ASI Rajpal Singh from Sarhali police station said the deceased have been identified as Harpreet Singh (20) of Mohanpur Warring and Shindo (70), a resident of Booh Hathar (Harike). Both were on a motorcycle when they were hit by a reaper-tractor. The two fell down on the road and suffered head injuries resulting in their death on the spot. Manpreet Singh, Harpreet Singh’s elder brother, said that he left home on his motorcycle on Monday to pay obeisance at Darbar Sahib, Amritsar, on Monday morning. When he reached near Usman toll plaza, Shindo who was standing at the plaza, sought a lift to go to the nearby Piddi village. Keeping in view her old age, Harpreet Singh agreed. They had just gone a few yards ahead when two reaper-tractors headed in Ensure timely lifting of procured wheat: Official Tribune News Service Harpreet Singh and Shindo. the same direction hit their motorcycle. Eyewitnesses said that both the reaper-tractors were trying to race with each other, and in the race, one of the tractors hit the illfated motorcycle. ASI Rajpal Singh said that a case under Section 304-A, 279 and 427 of IPC has been registered and further investigations initiated. Footage from the CCTV cameras is also being examined. The drivers of both the reaper-tractors, however, managed to escape from the spot. — OC Amritsar, April 29 Senior government officials led by Special Principal Secretary Kamal Kishiore Yadav on Monday visited different grain markets of the district and reviewed the progress of procurement and lifting of wheat. On the occasion, Yadav asked the district administration to ensure timely lifting of procured grains from the market. Taking note of the huge stocks of wheat grains lying in the market, he asked the district officials to hold a meeting with the contractors to do away with the shortage of transport vehicles and manpower. Of the nearly 3.48 lakh metric tonnes of wheat procured in the district, around 1.25 lakh MT has been lifted so far. The remaining 2.23 lakh MT procured grains are still lying in the markets. Most of the procured stocks are lying under in the open, rendering it vulnerable to weather vagaries. Deputy Commissioner Ghanshyam Thori informed Labourers dry wheat after rain at the Bhagtanwala grain market in Amritsar on Monday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR Yadav that senior administration officials have been appointed as nodal officers at the grain markets to ensure hassle-free procurement and lifting. Yadav suggested that officials can also been deputed at godowns to ensure that vehicles are unloaded on time as these are again required for transportation of wheat from the markets. Meanwhile, with the arrival of 45,515 MT of wheat on Monday, the total arrival in the district has reached 3.56 lakh MT. Of the total 3.48 lakh Woman murdered Micro-planning may help boost EPFO launches new in Gobind Nagar voter turnout, say poll officials scheme to resolve Had been living alone in the house Tribune News Service Amritsar, April 29 An unmarried woman was found brutally murdered in Gobind Nagar area the on Sultanwind road here on late last evening. She was alone at home. The deceased was identified as Harpreet Kaur, alias Rozi (42). According to the police, there were injuries behind her neck alleged to be done by a sharp-edged weapon. The police took the body into their custody and sent for a postmortem. The police were still clueless about the perpetrators and closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras in the area were being scanned to find clues in the case. Dilbagh Singh, cousin of the victim, told the police that his paternal uncle Sukhbir Singh and aunt Sudarshan Kaur had died around 12 years ago and she had been living alone in the house since. She was adopted by his uncle and aunt when she was a child. She had refused to marry. He said after their death she was living alone and getting the pension of Sukhbir Singh who had retired from post office. He said she used to donate a lot to poor and needy persons, besides giving sweets to children in the neighbourhood. He said last evening, when a child went to her house for taking chocolate, the child found her lying in a pool of blood. She raised an alarm in the area. Immediately, nearby residents informed the police of the incident. After reaching the spot, the police started a probe. She had sharp-edged weapon injuries behind her neck and a knife was also found near the spot. Today, the police used sniffer dogs and forensic teams examined the spot, informed Sukhbir Singh, Station House Officer, Division B police station. He said the perpetrators would be nabbed soon. Tribune News Service Amritsar, April 29 Micro-planning could be the way to achieve the target of 70 per cent voting set by the Election Commission of India (ECI) for the ensuing Lok Sabha elections in Amritsar. Addressing a review meeting of Systematic Voters’ Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) teams here on Monday, SVEEP core committee head and ADC (Urban Development) Nikas Kumar said that to ensure the participation of the common man in the elections, the district administration will leave no stone unturned in making the arrangements. “The Election Commission of India (ECI) set a target of 70 per cent voting in elections. The target can be achieved only if micro-planning is done and executed by booth level officers,” he said and instructed all assistant returning officers (AROs) to ensure booth-level SVEEP activities in the allotted assembly segment. On a positive note, he said, Lit up by faith ‘HAVE ENOUGH TIME TO REACH OUT TO MANY’ SVEEP core committee head and ADC (Urban Development) Nikas Kumar said they still have enough time to reach out to as many voters as possible and motivate them to vote. The ECI and CEO, Punjab, are providing many facilities to encourage the first-time voters, persons with disabilities (PwD) and senior citizens. “We still have enough time to reach out to as many voters as possible and motivate them to vote. The ECI and CEO, Punjab, are providing many facilities to encourage the first-time voters, persons with disabilities (PwD) and senior citizens. Casting vote is the democratic right of every citizen and its proper use can provide more strength to the democratic structure of the country.” While giving information, he said, “The CEO, Punjab, is very fond of the unique SVEEP activities conducted by Amritsar district in the recent past. Amritsar district bagged top position for the second time in SVEEP activities, which is a matter of pride for all.” Congratulating all members of the SVEEP teams for the success, he discussed the importance of social media in realising the objective. “In the present age of information technology, social media has emerged as the biggest source of information and its reach at the grassroots level makes it more important for us,” the ADC said and urged the voters to share social media handles of the District Election Office, Amritsar, as much as possible. He appealed to the voters to exercise their right to vote on June 1. Among others, District Development and Panchayat Officer Rajesh Malhotra, Nodal Officer, SVEEP-cumDistrict Education Officer Rajesh Kumar, DSSO Meena Devi, Deputy DEO Indu Mangotra, district SVEEP team members Munish Kumar, Ashu Dhawan and Pankaj Kumar took part in the meeting. PK Jaiswar Tribune News Service Amritsar, April 29 The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has settled over 6,100 cases in April out of which 1,528 were settled in the last three days. This was informed by Regional Provident Fund Commissioner Lokendra Singh during the launch of ‘Nidhi Aapke Nikat 2.0’ programme here today. The initiative was taken to address the grievances of the employees in Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Batala and Pathankot districts. In a statement issued here today, Lokendra Singh said that these camps were held at Novelty Hyundai, GT road in Amritsar, Rai Hospital, Sarhali Road near ITI Patti in Tarn Taran, Baring Union Christian College, Batala and M/s Bhalai Motors, Dhangu Road, Pathankot. He said all the stakeholders including employers, employees and pensioners attended the programme for redressing EPFO officials during a camp in Amritsar on Monday. grievances. He pointed out that the EPFO moved away from a pure grievance redressal centred approach to a more broad-based and participatory approach through ‘Nidhi Aapke Nikat 2.0’ programme. Nodal officers today distributed PPOs to the new pension holders during the camps where they also discussed various issues related to final EPF withdrawals, transfer of EPF accounts, filing complaints and prevention of fraud etc. Apart from this, pensions were also paid to 66 new pension holders. 37,497 first-time voters enrol in Khadoor Sahib LS constituency Our Correspondent Tarn Taran, April 29 Deputy Commissioner Sandeep Kumar, who is also the District Election Officer, informed here on Monday that in the Khadoor Sahib Lok Sabha constituency, of the total 16,51,346 registered voters, there are 37,497 firsttime voters who will exercise their right to vote for the first time. DC Sandeep Kumar said that these voters would be welcomed at the polling stations when they come to cast their vote. The Deputy Commissioner said the youth is a strong pillar of democracy and they must exercise their franchise without any fear and apprehension. The DEO said that the youth are being encouraged to cast their vote to help achieve the target of ‘Ees bar, 70 par’ (70 plus voting) in the election. DC Kumar said that the young voters can learn about the history of the candidate by downloading the Election Commission’s app. Voters in Amritsar East hope Navjot Sidhu will visit them Neeraj Bagga Tribune News Service Devotees light up diyas at the Golden Temple on the occasion of the birth anniversary of the ninth Sikh Guru Tegh Bahadur in Amritsar on Monday. PHOTO: SUNIL KUMAR employee grievances MT wheat procured so far, government agencies have procured 3.17 lakh metric tonnes and private traders purchased 30,997 MT. District Mandi Board officials stated that only 7,908 metric tonnes of wheat is lying unsold as it has moisture content more than the permissible limit. The officials, however, said the problem of more moisture content has been solved to a great extent as at present maximum produce coming to the markets has moisture content in the permissible limits. Amritsar, April 29 Cricket fans are enthused that they are once again being able to listen to the incredible power-packed commentary and catchy oneliners of Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu while watching the IPL matches. However, the voters of Amritsar East assembly segment feel that they are not fortunate enough. They have been waiting for the Congress leader for whom 32,929 of them had voted in the 2022 assembly election (standing second as the AAP won the seat) and voted him to power in the 2017 election. He did not visit them after the 2022 assembly election. Party workers and a section of leaders from the Amritsar c m y b Navjot Singh Sidhu East assembly segment are irked at Sidhu for not taking stock of them after the 2022 assembly election. They say that in his absence, they have to answer uncomfortable queries from party workers and people. Most city residents have not forgotten his oft-repeated oneliner delivered in his inimitable style, swearing not to leave ‘Guru Ki Nagari’, while being the Amritsar MP Lis. tening to his commentary and watching him in the media attending political meetings from the corridors of his plush residence in Patiala reminded them of his visits to their undeveloped lanes once. A large tract of his assembly seat falls in the slum areas. Jeet Singh Bhatia, threetime councillor from a ward in the Amritsar East assembly segment, said answering uncomfortable queries from party workers and voters of the area is a gigantic task. He still vividly remembers that Sidhu was instrumental in prodding them to join the BJP Earlier, his family had . been associated with the Congress for decades. He pointed out that Sidhu did not constitute a reliable group of leaders in Amritsar since he made his debut into politics in 2004 when he had contested as a BJP candidate from the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat. Saurabh Madaan, son of a former councillor whose ward falls in the Amritsar East constituency, said party workers and supporters from the segment were hassled and Sidhu should occasionally pay a visit to enquire about their plight. “It does not matter whether he can resolve their grievances or not as he is out of power. Watching him on television and social media besides listening to his commentary reminded the voters about his absence from the constituency.” He said since Sidhu has not enquired about their whereabouts after the 2022 assembly elections, they have to face the people in his absence. Sidhu’s close aide Shalinder Singh Shally, a former councillor, said he along with former Amritsar Improvement Trust Chairman Daman Deep Singh had recently attended a meeting with Sidhu at his residence in Patiala. He asserted that “Sidhu will canvass for Gurjeet Singh Aujla, Congress nominee from the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat and is likely to visit the city at the fag end of this month”. He asserted that there was no use visiting the assembly segment for him as the Congress was not in power, adding that the problems of the area are to be resolved by the sitting MLA who belongs to the AAP . Daman Deep said he had been meeting voters of the Amritsar East assembly segment on behalf of Sidhu. He assured that he would soon visit the constituency.
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