06082024-CT-06.qxd 8/5/2024 11:50 PM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune SCHOOLKIDS GET A HANG OF KALKA ADMN FUNCTIONING DRIVE TO CHECK SECURITY AT MOHALI COURT COMPLEX CAST OF SHAHKOT LAUNCH TEASER OF THEIR FILM Kalka admn holds ‘Prashasan se parichay’ to apprise students of functioning of departments. P2 Mohali SSP leads a drive at courts complex to check security, safety of judicial officers, visitors. P2 The Jatinder Shah musical narrates the story of Punjab — on both sides of the border. P4 » » Sandeep Rana Tribune News Service Exhibition: As many as 50 stalls offer various lifestyle products at National Silk & Cotton Fab; Himachal Bhawan, Sector 28 Apni Mandi: Sectors 29, 56 and Dhanas Please send information about events in tricity at: whatson@tribunemail.com INBRIEF K’SHETRA NATIVE HELD WITH HEROIN Chandigarh: The UT police have arrested a resident of Kurukshetra in a drug case. Amit Kumar (26) was nabbed in Sector 37 and 9 gm of heroin and 6 gm of smack were recovered from him. TNS LEOPARD CUB HIT BY TRUCK, DIES Panchkula: A leopard cub was killed in an accident with a truck near Jhuriwala village on the Yamunanagar highway on Sunday night. The cub, aged a year and a half, along with a female leopard (possibly its mother) was crossing the Barwala road around 8 pm when a truck hit him. The truck driver sped away. TNS The under-construction flyover at Singhpura Chowk on the Chandigarh-Ambala highway in Zirakpur on Saturday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: RAVI KUMAR Over 2 years on, flyover near Singhpura Chowk incomplete Litigation over piece of land set to further delay Zirakpur project Tribune News Service Zirakpur, August 5 More than two years after the construction of two flyovers began at Zirakpur, the project remains incomplete with road users facing safety hazards and long jams on the ChandigarhAmbala national highway here. The two flyovers are located over a distance of about 1.5 km — near the Best Price store-Singhpura chowk and the other a little ahead of the McDonald’s light points on the ring road before the Ghaggar bridge. One of the two flyovers, near Singhpura Chowk, is still in limbo as the landowner and the NHAI are locked in a tussle in the Supreme Court. While the judgment in the case nowhere in sight, it will take at least six months to complete the construction work. Conser- GUAVA ORCHARD COMPENSATION SCAM DEADLINE BREACHED MULTIPLE TIMES ■ Under the project, two flyovers were ■ In the beginning, around December to be constructed over a distance of about 1.5 km — near the Best Price store-Singhpura chowk and the other a little ahead of the McDonald’s light points on the ring road before the Ghaggar bridge. 2021, the NHAI had set a time frame of 18 months for building the two flyovers at a cost of about ~40 crore, but the deadline has been breached several times and the construction cost has escalated considerably. vative estimates peg the delay of at least one more year though the NHAI and the district administration are giving no time frame for the completion of the project. NHAI officials said they were mulling to complete one side of the flyover near the Singhpura chowk till the time the land was clear for the other side. While the Delhi-Chandigarh side of the under-construction flyover is clear, a section of the ChandigarhAmbala side of the flyover falls on a piece of land which the NHAI has failed to acquire till now. As a result, a bend has been created on the straight stretch, leading to a disruption in the smooth flow of traffic. Also, the bend spot has become a safety hazard where fast-moving heavy vehicle traffic of the NH and light vehicles of the city traffic mingle dangerously. “The road is patchy here and there are two-three schools nearby. During morning and evening hours, there is too much of city traffic which comes in the spate of fast-moving heavy vehicles on the NH,” said Ashish Gupta, a Zirakpur resident. ArriveSafe NGO founder Harman Sidhu said, “The police have not taken any action on my complaint against the NHAI for failing to remove safety hazards from this stretch.” Dera Bassi MLA Kuljit Singh Randhawa had claimed that due to the prevailing situation at the Shambhu border, the traffic on the stretch had increased manifold. In the beginning, around December 2021, the NHAI had set a time frame of 18 months for building the two flyovers at a cost of about Rs 40 crore, but the deadline has been breached several times and the construction cost has escalated considerably. No kidding Chandigarh, August 5 A day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah inaugurated the 24x7 water supply project in Mani Majra, residents kept waiting for the round-theclock facility today. Residents said there was no change in water supply timings. All areas, including Modern Housing Complex (MHC), Gobindpura and Indira Colony, received routine supply did not get even a drop of extra. Only Modern Housing Complex (Duplex) got water supply throughout the day, though the pressure was low. While Smart City officials said stabilisation would take about few months, residents said there was no such announcement during the event and they should have been apprised about it. Col Gursewak Singh (retd), president of Residents Welfare Association, MHC, Sector 13 (Mani Majra), said, “We got water supply in the morning and evening as per routine timings. It should be ensured that the promises are implemented on ground. Secondly, residents should not be made to pay for the project. The Centre should fund it because we never asked for round-theclock supply. We only wanted clean drinking water for couple of hours.” Sahil Chawar, office secretary, New Indira Colony RWA, said, “It was just a lame promise by the minister. In our colony, we get one-hour water supply each in the morning and evening. Leave alone round-the-clock supply, our repeated complaints of sewage mixing with drinking water made to the SDO concerned continued on page 2 TRIBUNE PHOTO: RAVI KUMAR Naib Tehsildar gives up in VB police station, held Tribune News Service Mohali, August 5 The Vigilance Bureau (VB) has arrested Naib Tehsildar Jaskaran Singh Brar, coaccused in the alleged multicrore guava orchard compensation scam in Mohali after he surrendered before it. A VB spokesperson said Brar was nominated as an accused after it came to light during an investigation that he allegedly connived with the main accused in releasing wrongful compensation to illegal beneficiaries. Before the release of payments, it had surfaced on record that names and shares of some landowners were not in accordance FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE On Day 1, 24x7 water supply a damp squib CHANDIGARH PANCHKULA Apni Mandi: Sector 15 MAX 34°C | MIN 27°C YESTERDAY MAX 35.6°C | MIN 28.6°C SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 5:45 AM TWITTER/THETRIBUNECHD WHAT’S ON MOHALI Apni Mandi: Sector 71 PARTLY CLOUDY SUNSET TUESDAY 7.12 PM » TUESDAY | 6 AUGUST 2024 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST with the revenue records and some names have been added to the list of beneficiaries wrongly without any basis as they had purchased land after the issuance of notification under Section 11 of the Land Aquisition Act. Moreover, the Naib Tehsildar had ignored tampered Khasra girdawari records and committed undue haste in recommending the release of payments by dealing with the noting file thrice in a single day. The spokesperson informed that initially, Brar was granted interim relief with directions to join investigation by the Punjab and Haryana High Court vide its continued on page 2 NEVER WANTED ROUND-THE-CLOCK SUPPLY ❝ It should be ensured that the promises are implemented on ground. Secondly, residents should not be made to pay for the project. The Centre should fund it because we never asked for round-the-clock supply. We only wanted clean drinking water for couple of hours. Col Gursewak Singh (retd), PRESIDENT, RWA, MODERN HOUSING COMPLEX ❞ Public works shouldn’t get stuck in red tape: Shah to Administrator Tribune News Service An illegally modified e-rickshaw carrying schoolchildren poses risk to their safety, at Mani Majra in Chandigarh on Monday. PO drug peddler roped in cop to frame NRI: Probe Mohali, August 5 A 13-year-old girl, Preet Kaur, was brutally murdered by none other than her mother and uncle at Shampur village after she reportedly saw them in compromising position on July 11. Fearing that the teenager would let their illicit relationship, they first gave her a poisonous drink but when she did not die, they strangled her and cremated the body early in the morning on July 12. continued on page 2 Tribune News Service Chandigarh, August 5 The investigation into the extortion from a 79-year-old NRI by Chandigarh Police constable Balwinder Singh, along with four others, including two women, has uncovered a larger conspiracy involving the arrested cop. It has been revealed that the constable was made part of the extortion plan by a drug peddler, a proclaimed offender (PO). The investigation revealed A day after the launch of the 24x7 water supply project, residents show dry taps at Modern Housing Complex in Mani Majra. RAVI KUMAR Sandeep Rana Girl strangled by mother, uncle Amit Sharma No change in supply timing, say Mani Majra residents | Stabilisation to take few months: Officials that one of the accused, Karan, who is currently absconding, had allegedly reached out to drug peddler Gaurav, also known as Rajbir. Gaurav in turn involved the constable, who was already known to him. Sources said the accused then made a plan to plant drugs in NRI Jaspal Singh Cheema’s car and extort money by threatening to frame him in a case under NDPS Act. The police said raids were being conducted to nab Karan, Gaurav and another EXTORTION CASE Link hints at ‘larger conspiracy’ accused named Riya. On the plan hatched by the accused, the police stated that Cheema, who was into property business earlier, had employed Harinder Kaur, one of the accused in the case. Even after Cheema moved to the USA, his association with Harinder continued, and he even paid the rent of her flat in Mohali. c m y b Harinder, who was living alone in India, wanted Cheema to stay in the country to ensure her financial support. To achieve this, she hid Cheema’s passport when he arrived in India after a gap of six years. However, Cheema managed to obtain a new passport and was set to fly back on July 22. Harinder then sought her friend Riya’ assistance. According to the police, Riya and Karan devised a plan to plant drugs in Cheema’s car to get him arrested, thereby extending his stay in India. Karan contacted the drug peddler, who later involved the constable. The police said before bringing Cheema for shopping in Sector 22, Harinder had, on Karan’s instructions, taken Cheema’s car to a location in Mohali to conceal drugs in it. On July 18, Cheema and Harinder went to Sector 22 and parked the car opposite Kiran Cinema. When they returned after 30 minutes, they were approached by two individuals, including the continued on page 2 Chandigarh, August 5 Home Minister Amit Shah chaired a highly confidential closed-door meeting with Punjab Governor and UT Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria, city BJP president Jatinder Pal Malhotra and Sanjay Tandon, who contested the last Lok Sabha elections from Chandigarh seat but lost to Manish Tewari, and discussed several important issues related to the city and the party during his visit yesterday. Sources told Chandigarh Tribune that the meeting, which was held in the UT Secretariat, lasted about 40 Held closed-door meeting with Kataria, city BJP chief, Tandon minutes. Other BJP leaders sitting outside kept wondering what transpired in the meeting as it went on for a longer time than expected. The sources said city BJP leaders apprised the HM and the UT Administrator about the bureaucratic hurdlers being faced in the city for a long time. Shah, the sources said, conveyed to the Administrator that the public-oriented works should be given continued on page 2 Class XI student assaulted outside school, 4 boys held Chandigarh, August 5 A student of Class XI at Government Model Senior Secondary School in Maloya was attacked with sticks by a group of juveniles outside the school here today. Four suspects, including two from the same school, were later apprehended by the police. An eyewitness captured the attack on his mobile phone. The video, which has gone viral, shows the suspects assaulting the victim with sticks in broad daylight. The student, a resident of Dadu Majra, sustained head injury. The suspects fled the spot, leaving him in a pool of blood. The boy was subsequently taken to the hospital for treatment. According to the police, the incident was the fallout of an ongoing rivalry between the victim and the suspects. “A few days ago, the victim had thrashed brother of one of the suspects,” the police said. — TNS