28102024-LT-01.qxd 10/28/2024 12:34 AM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune POLICE PERSONNEL HOLD MOCK DRILL IN MALERKOTLA JOHNNY DEPP AWARDED AT THE ROME FILM FESTIVAL VANVAAS ONE OF MY BEST FILMS TILL DATE: NANA It was a unique learning experience for police officials, performing special duties during festival season. P3 His comeback began at last year’s Cannes Film Festival, where he starred in Jeanne du Barry. P4 Veteran Bollywood actor Nana Patekar said his journey in Vanvaas has been memorable. P4 » » » FORECAST MAINLY CLEAR SKY MAX 33°C | MIN 18°C YESTERDAY MAX 33°C | MIN 17°C SUNSET MONDAY 5.39 PM SUNRISE TUESDAY 6:34 AM MONDAY | 28 OCTOBER 2024 | LUDHIANA Who will make Ludhiana free of vector-borne diseases? Despite large number of cases, authorities fail to take timely measures to curb spread Manav Mander Tribune News Service Ludhiana, October 27 Ludhiana always has been a hotspot when it comes to vector-borne diseases. Every year, a large number of cases are reported from here but the questions that remained unaddressed are why no steps are being taken to curb the spread beforehand, why action is taken only after their spread and why mosquitos are breeding so much in the city and who is responsible behind the spread of these diseases — the Municipal Corporation, Health Department or people themselves. In Ludhiana district, 203 dengue cases have been reported this year so far, of which 120 are from urban and 83 from rural areas. Stagnant water can be seen in various parts of the city where mosquitoe larvae breed and broken roads is one of the major reason for the same and besides, larvae were also found in trash cans, old tyres, plants and flowerpots, birdbaths, pools, trays of refrigerators, etc. The Municipal Corporation and Health Department need to work in unison to control breeding of mosquitoes on time. City residents have questioned the MC’s similar approach every year and asked them whether intensive fogging was supposed to be done at the time of mosquitoe breeding or when the people are already complaining about the spread of vector-borne diseases. “The MC should carry out fogging in particular months when mosquitoes breed but contrary to that they intensify the drive Mosquitoes breed in stagnant water near Pavilion Mall; and (below) water accumulates on a road in Transport Nagar. ASHWANI DHIMAN DENGUE HOTSPOTS Jalandhar Bypass, Bahadurke Road, Noorwala Road, Gagandeep Colony, Raho Road, Indira Colony, Nirankari Mohalla, Model Town, Jammu Colony, Model Town Extention, Kidwayi Nagar, Madhupuri, Fildganj, Mojpura Bazaar, Shastri Nagar, Pakhowal Road, Haibowal Kalan, Haiwal Khurd, Chhawani Mohalla, Kundan Puri, Salem Tabri, Raghubir Park and Chandar Nagar. when the diseases spread. It seems the department wait for their spread to start fogging,” said Harinder Singh, a resident of Rishi Nagar. Medical officer of the MC Vipul Malhotra said earlier, fogging was done once a day but now it was being done twice, in the morning and evening. There are 12 machines to cover the city. He said the civic body carries out all necessary steps but the people also need to understand their responsibility and keep their sur- Good to go roundings clean. They should not let water get stagnant in and around their houses, change water in pots and coolers every week. “We need active co-operation from the people to control vector-borne diseases. The department alone will not be able to control the situation, the people need to extend a helping hand,” he said. The MC is responsible for carrying out fogging in urban areas but the responsibility for fogging in rural areas has not been fixed on any official. INDERJEET VERMA Many panchayats do not even have machines to carry out fogging in areas under their jurisdiction. A farmer, Ranjeet Singh, from Neowal village said: “My house is located in fields. I can see mosquitoes around the fields. Nobody ever came to the place for fogging.” On the other hand, the Health Department is checking breeding of mosquitoes in various parts of the city and till now, larvae had been found at 3,779 houses and 4,227 containers. A total of DENGUE CASES OVER THE YEARS ■ 2024 ■ 2023 ■ 2022 ■ 2021 ■ 2020 ■ 2019 203 (till Oct 27) 1,298 1,077 1,829 1,355 1,509 1,501 persons had been fined and the MC has issued a challan against 1,020. District epidemiologist Sheetal Narang said the Health Department had intensified efforts to control the spread of vector-borne diseases. There were 18 teams in the city and 230 in rural areas. The teams include multipurpose healthcare workers, auxiliary nurses and ASHA workers, who conduct breeding checks and destroy mosquito larvae. Fifty breeding checkers had been deployed in both urban and rural areas to monitor mosquito breeding and raise awareness. As part of the prevention efforts, every Friday is observed as Dry Day during which residents are encouraged to eliminate stagnant water from vases, flowerpots and other containers to break the mosquito-breeding cycle. The teams from the Health Department survey houses, especially in hotspots, bus stands, junkyards, tyre markets, hospitals, schools, colleges and government and semi-government offices as well. Surprisingly, in September dengue larvae were found at the Civil Hospital also. Satbir Singh, a resident of Jammu Colony, said officials come every year for checking and if larvae were found, they impose fine. “But isn’t it the duty of the department to do fogging on time and make surroundings free of mosquitoes. “Providing basic and clean surroundings and sanitary conditions is the duty of the government. We are also paying taxes to it,” he said. Reasons behind spread Dengue cases are increasing due to favourable mosquitobreeding conditions, high density of population, urbanisation and climate change. Stagnant water create ideal habitats for mosquitoes. 21 malaria cases so far Though 21 confirmed cases of malaria this year so far were more than 18 malaria patients reported during the corresponding period last year, the single case of chikungunya was less than two such cases detected in the district last year. Village resident nabbed for brutally killing two friends Tribune News Service Ludhiana, October 27 In a shocking turn of events, Balraj Singh from Bhutta village has been apprehended by the Malaud police for the alleged murder of his two friends, Narinder Singh (25) and Jagjit Singh (28), residents of the village. Investigations revealed that Balraj brutally killed his two friends and then disposed of their bodies in a nearby canal. To conceal the crime, he fabricated a accident scenario. Initially, the suspect claimed that the three were riding a motorcycle when an unidentified passenger pulled his arm, Tribune News Service Ludhiana, October 27 A surprise checking in the Central Jail led to the recovery of intoxicating tablets and tobacco from a jail inmate. Assistant Superintendent of Jail Hans Raj said on October 26, he along with staff, had carried out a surprise checking in the jail. Each nook and corner of the jail was scanned and inmates were also frisked. During checking, 195 intoxicating tablets, 35 gm of tobacco and a mobile phone were seized from a jail inmate, Mukesh Kumar. After making the recovery, the Jail Department written to the Ludhiana police for Nikhil Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Girls all set to take part in a dance competition during the PU Zonal Youth and Heritage Festival (Zone 6) at the GHG Khalsa College of Education, Gurusar Sadhar, in Ludhiana. Couple among five booked for ~3.54-cr property fraud Ludhiana, October 27 The Police Division 5 registered a case against five persons, including a couple, on the charges of committing a property fraud worth Rs 3.54 crore. The suspects were identified as Parveen Kumar Gupta, his wife Kusum Gupta, residents of South City, Preeti Gupta, a resident of Atam Nagar, Model Town, Sarwan Singh of NRI Colony, South City, and Parminder Singh of Malaud village. The complainant, Vineet Baweja, of Gurdev Nagar said he had struck a deal with the suspects to buy a property at Issewal village. They had taken Rs 3.54 crore from him and promised that they would exe- cute the property registration soon. However, despite taking money, the suspects did not execute the property registration deed. Whenever he asked them to return the money, they made hollow promises and failed to return the same. ASI Mohan Lal said after registering a case of fraud, further probe was initiated. — TNS c m y b Police personnel during a raid at the office of the suspect in Ludhiana. FILE made these with the money of foreign job aspirants, whom he duped them on the pretext of sending them abroad. The ED also mentioned in the complaint that Ghai had also committed a fraud with the government by running illegal buisness of travel firms. The SHO revealed that properties, including commercial ones, amassed by the suspect are located at Indira Colony, Ghumar Mandi, Gurdev Nagar, Mayapuri, Chandigarh road, etc. “Now, we will discuss the case with senior officials and only then, the police will pursue further to arrest the agent,” the SHO said. Over 100 FIRs registered against suspect in 2018 In 2018, over 100 FIRs related to travel fraud were registered against Ghai, his staff and family members by the then ADCP Surendra Lamba, which is a rare development in Punjab. Besides from residents of the state, Ghai also duped people of Haryana, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, HP and J&K. Later, he was arrested and had got bail after spending considerable time in jail. Two of Ghai’s firms were mentioned in the list of illegal travel agents released by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). A report on registration of 105 FIRs against the suspect was Investigations revealed that Balraj brutally killed his two friends and then disposed of their bodies in a nearby canal. To conceal the crime, he fabricated a dramatic accident scenario. forcing them to hit the canal bridge and fall into the water body in the Siar area. He alleged that he narrowly escaped from the canal water. However, police suspicions grew and further inquiry exposed the fabricated accident story. A senior police official confirmed Balraj’s arrest in the double-murder case. Intoxicants seized from jail inmate ED got registered FIR against notorious agent Ghai for duping visa aspirants Ludhiana, October 27 Notorious travel agent Nitish Ghai is again in the news for all the wrong reasons. Now, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had got registered a fresh FIR against him for duping gullible people of various districts in the state and even from other states across the country by offering them work visas in foreign countries. In lieu, the agent took huge money, which he used to amass properties worth crores of rupees. A case under Sections 61(2) and 318(4) of the BNS and the Immigration Act was registered by the police Division 5 against the suspect. The case was registered on the complaint of Rakesh Janghu, Assistant Director, Enforcement Directorate, Jalandhar. Station House Officer (SHO), Police Division 5, SI Balwant Singh, told The Tribune here on Sunday that ED officials had written to the Police Commissionerate, Ludhiana, for the registration of an FIR against Ghai. The SHO said the ED had mentioned in the complaint that the agent had made nine properties and he had SUSPECT FABRICATED MISHAP STORY first carried in these columns. At present, some cases are under investigation in which the police are yet to complete probe while in most cases, the police have submitted challan. In many cases, compromise was reached reportedly by compensating victims of travel fraud. Assets worth ~58 lakh attached in 2023 Assets worth Rs 58 lakh of the travel agent were attached as part of a money laundering probe linked to alleged cheating of people in the name of arranging work permit visas of different countries for them by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in 2023. the registration of an FIR. Meanwhile, prison officials said an internal investigation would also be conducted by the jail administration to inquire how an inmate managed to get banned items inside the jail. If the role of any jail official comes to the fore, action could also be taken against them as per law. Notably, drugs and mobile phones have been recovered by the Jail Department from inmates for a long time still they are having access to banned items. Earlier, some jail officials were also booked by the police for conniving with the prisoners to arrange banned things for the latter. 3 get life term in murder case Ludhiana, October 27 The Court of Additional Sessions Judge Harbans Singh Lekhi has sentenced Makkhan Ram, Somanath and Sonu, residents of Fatehgarh Sahib, to life imprisonment for murder. It also imposed a fine of Rs 31,000 on each of the convicts. The case was registered at the Koom Kalan police station on January 25, 2016, based on a complaint by Sitaram of Hari Khurd village. As per the complaint, Sitaram’s cousin Nath Singh, who earned a living selling sand in his tractortrailer , left home on January 24, 2016. Later, he called his friend Amrik Singh, stating that he was in Heera village with his tractor and would return late. However, when he did not return, his family tried to call him multiple times but his phone was switched off. While searching for him near the link road near Heera village, they noticed fresh soil and blood stains inside an enclosed area without a gate. Upon digging, they discovered Nath’s body, which bore head injuries and his tractor was missing. The police registered a case and arrested the three accused. In court, the trio claimed innocence, asserting that they were falsely implicated. However, after hearing arguments from both sides, the court found them guilty in the case. — OC