29122024-JTR-01.qxd 12/28/2024 10:19 PM Page 1 c m y b Jalandhar tribune VIRAJ, KOUSTABH SET THE TONE FOR MUSICAL NIGHT WEATHER REMAINS MISTY AFTER MORNING DRIZZLE BOLLYWOOD ACTRESSES WHO DONNED UNIFORM ON SCREEN After having been held at the Shri Ram Hall on Day 1, the event was hosted in a pandal on Saturday. P2 The district witnessed light drizzle early on Saturday, after which there was no rain. P2 The year saw Bollywood female actresses portraying strong, resilient characters in uniform. P4 » » FORECAST COLD WAVE MAX 17°C | MIN 11°C YESTERDAY MAX 15°C | MIN 13°C SUNSET SUNDAY 5.33 PM SUNRISE MONDAY 7:25 AM » SUNDAY | 29 DECEMBER 2024 | JALANDHAR Trenches dug up along NH pose threat to commuters 19 years on, deadlock over revenue stamp sale continues Jalandhar, December 28 Deep trenches dug up for drain reconstruction along the national highway near Pathankot Chowk pose danger to commuters, especially during night. With the city experiencing rainfall yesterday and today, these water-filled trenches pose a grave threat to motorists, highlighting inadequate safety measures. Despite severe fog in winter, which significantly reduces visibility, the authorities concerned, the municipal corporation and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), have left these trenches open for over one and a half months. Shopkeepers near the stretch noted that it connects Transport Nagar and Focal Point, where hundreds of vehicles ply on the service lanes daily. Residents and shopkeepers shared harrowing accounts of the risks these trenches create. “On foggy mornings when visibility is near zero, a driver can easily misjudge the trench’s location and end up in falling into it. It’s like navigating a Bid to take over shop, 2 booked Our Correspondent Phagwara, December 28 The Nakodar city police have booked two persons on charges of attempting to take over a shop forcibly and threatening its tenant. Investigating officer (IO) Rajindar Kumar said the accused had been identified as Amarjit Singh, a resident of Mohalla Sherpur, and his unidentified accomplice. Sunil Kumar, a resident of Mohalla Tandona, complained to the police that he was running a computer shop at Dakhni Adda, owned by Amarjit Singh, which the accused was forcibly trying to get vacated. The complainant said he had obtained a stay order from a court about the shop, adding that on December 27 the accused demolished the walls and boundary of the shop in a bid to take over it. Sunil further said that the accused threatened him with dire consequences. The investigation officer said a case had been registered against the accused. Trenches dug along the national highway near the Pathankot Chowk pose danger to commuters, particularly during fog. PHOTO: SARABJIT SINGH death trap,” said Kamaljeet Singh, a local resident. He added, “Unfortunately, lessons are often learnt after fatalities, and it feels like the authorities concerned are waiting for a disaster before taking action.” Preeti, another resident, highlighted that this stretch had witnessed multiple fatal accidents earlier as well. “One is caught completely off-guard by these open trenches, especially during fog. There should be proper signboards, barricades and electronic reflectors to alert drivers in advance. Reflectors should be visible from a distance to caution commuters,” she said. Shopkeepers in the area voiced frustration over the negligence. “The rainy weather has only worsened conditions. Filled with water, the trenches become almost invisible in poor light or heavy fog, leaving unsuspect- Jalandhar, December 28 Many commerce graduates from the city have become chartered accountants after clearing the final examination conducted by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, the result of which got declared yesterday. Among the rank holders are Kavya Kapoor, who scored 379 marks out of 600, Mugdha Gupta with 355 marks, Aanchal with 330 marks, Ishaan Arora with 325 marks and Shruti with 310 marks. A resident of Shakti Nagar here, Kavya is a B.Com (Honours) passout from Shri Ram Phagwara, December 28 The Punjab Government has failed to break the deadlock between the Revenue Department and postal authorities over the sale of Re 1 denomination revenue stamps through post offices. The sale of revenue stamps was stopped in post offices across Punjab since February 2005, on the plea that the commission be hiked from 3 per cent to 6 per cent. However, the Revenue Department refused to accept the demand and wrote to the Centre to intervene, but to no avail. Meanwhile, the state government has been selling revenue stamps through its treasury offices and has authorised stamp vendors to sell these. However, the residents of far-flung and remote villages complain that they have to spend more money to buy these stamps. The stamp vendors, too, are reluctant to sell these as they receive very less commission. Taking advantage of the stalemate, some people are selling these stamps on the black market. The CMO had directed the Financial Commissioner Revenue to take action, but still no action has been taken. Phagwara, December 28 In a major breakthrough, Jalandhar Rural Police have solved a cold-blooded murder case in record time by arresting the wife of the deceased and her paramour for conspiring and killing her husband. The police also recovered the murder weapon, a sharp-edged ‘datar’ and two motorcycles, including the one belonging to the deceased. The arrested accused have been identified as Neeru Bala, wife of deceased Mukesh Kumar, a resident of Tilak Nagar, Jalandhar, and her paramour Harpreet Singh, son of Somnath, a resident of Idgah Mohalla, Jalandhar. Speaking to the mediapersons, Senior Superintendent of Police Harkamal Preet Singh Khakh said that on December 20, the body of Mukesh, son of Satpal, was found in Alua area near Mudh village under the jurisdiction of Nakodar Sadar police station. Acting The accused in Nakodar police custody. swiftly, an FIR under Section 103 of the BNS was registered against unknown persons. Under the supervision of DSP Nakodar, Sukhpal Singh, a special investigation team led by Baljinder Singh, SHO, Sadar Nakodar, was constituted. Using technical expertise and intelligence inputs, the team identified and apprehended the accused within days. The preliminary investigation revealed that Neeru Bala and Harpreet Singh, who worked together at D- Mart, Jalandhar, had developed illicit relationship. To eliminate Mukesh and marry each other, the two conspired to carry out the murder. On the night of the crime, Harpreet brutally killed Mukesh with the sharpedged weapon. The police have recovered the weapon used in the crime, along with the motorcycles of the deceased and the accused. Both are currently in police custody and are being interrogated further to uncover additional details regarding the case. Ambulance driver killed in mishap near Chogitti flyover BKU (Doaba) gears up for Dec 30 bandh, urges youth to join Man booked for outraging modesty Hit by truck while manning area around overturned van Our Correspondent Phagwara, December 28 The Lohian Khas police have booked a villager on the charge of outraging the modesty of a woman. Investigating officer (IO) Harwindar Singh said that the accused had been identified as Davindar Singh, a resident of Chak Chela village. Sandeep Kaur, wife of Jatindar Singh, a resident of the same village, complained to the police that she was returning home on December 22 when the accused caught her arm and assaulted and threatened her. The IO said a case under Sections 74 (criminal force to women with intent to outrage her modesty) and 351(2) (criminal intimidation) of the BNS had been registered against the accused. Raids are being conducted to nab the absconding accused.— OC Jalandhar, December 28 An ambulance driver lost his life in a tragic road accident near the Chogitti flyover early Saturday morning when a speeding truck struck him. The victim, identified as Ramnik Singh, a resident of Majitha Road in Amritsar, was assisting in the transfer of a patient when the accident took place. The mishap happened around 2.30 am as Ramnik was transporting a patient from Amritsar to SGL Hospital here. The ambulance reportedly hit a divider due to poor visibility in rain and overturned. Both Ramnik and the patient escaped the mishap unhurt. Ramnik quickly arranged another ambulance and ensured the safe transfer of the Phagwara, December 28 In a significant move to support the ongoing protests against the Central Government, the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Doaba) held a meeting today in Phagwara, led by general secretary Satnam Singh Sahni. The meeting was aimed at ensuring the success of the ‘Bharat Bandh’ scheduled for December 30, called by farmer unions to press for their 12 key demands and extend solidarity with farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal, who has been on hunger strike for 33 days at the Shambhu-Khanauri border. Addressing the gathering, farmer leaders, including Satnam Singh Sahni, Kulwinder Singh Kala (sarpanch, Athouli), Santokh Singh Lakhpur and press secretary Gurpal Singh Palamouli urged the local business community, shopkeepers, transporters, employees, traders, students Bharatiya Kisan Union leaders at a meeting in Phagwara. and labour unions to participate wholeheartedly in the bandh. The leaders announced that a sit-in would be staged at the Sugar Mill Chowk on the main GT Road in Phagwara from 7 am to 4 pm on December 30. The protest will include roadblocks and halting of train services, though emergency services will remain unaffected, they assured. “The ‘bandh’ is a critical step to compel the Modi government to address and accept the demands of the farmers,” Sahni emphasised, calling on the youth to Kavya tops city in CA exam Tribune News Service ing drivers vulnerable to accidents. With so many vehicles using this stretch, the trenches are nothing short of a ticking time-bomb,” Vikas, a shopkeeper said. Meanwhile, acknowledging the concern, Deputy Commissioner Himanshu Aggarwal assured action. “I will direct the NHAI officials concerned to address this issue immediately and ensure these trenches are covered at the earliest,” he said. Our Correspondent Ashok Kaura Avneet Kaur Tribune News Service Police crack murder case; wife, paramour arrested College of Commerce, Delhi. Her father Kunal Kapoor is also a CA and has cleared the examination in her first attempt. Having remained a commerce topper in Class XII examination in the district, Kavya scored 179 marks out of 300 in Group 1 and 200 of 300 in Group 2. Her father proudly shares her success story, “Kavya has topped the city even in CA. She is currently taking training from E&Y in Gurugram.” CA Shashi Bhushan shared details of passouts from the city and peripheral towns. Besides Kavya, the others are Pawanpreet S Sethi from FCI Colony, Maninderjeet Singh from Kishanpura, Simmy Sharma from Basti Sheikh, Ria Duggal from Jalandhar Heights, Aanchal Saini from New Kailash Nagar, Aditi Dev from Grover Colony, Ishaan Arora from Model Town, Pooja, Khushi Inani from Eldeco Greens, Garima from Central Town, Chahat Jain from Mission Compound, Ishaan Aggarwal from Lohian Khas, Tania Mittal from Chhoti Baradari, Mehak Aggarwal from Defence Colony, Tushti Gupta from Old Jawahar Nagar, Sakshi Dhir from Krishna Nagar, Aanchal Bajaj from Mukandpur in Nawanshahr, Ayush Aggarwal from Guru Nanak Avenue in Hoshiarpur, Diya Bhalla from Maqsudan. join the protests with tractors. The meeting witnessed the participation of prominent farmer leaders, including Harvinder Singh Mananwale, Charanjit Singh Athouli, Baljit Singh Hardaspur, Harinder Singh Nangal Majha, Dhadda Mananwale, Mangi Sunnra Rajputan, Sukhwinder Singh, and Paramjit Singh. The leaders expressed confidence that the bandh would draw widespread support, creating a united front to push the government into action on farmer issues. Two women among 5 held for murder bid Phagwara, December 28 The Mehatpur police have arrested five persons, including three women, on the charge of attempt to murder. Sukhdev Singh (SHO) said the accused had been identified as Mandeep Kaur of MC Colony, Fazilka, Jaswindar Singh of Civil Lines, Fazilka, Gurpreet Kaur, of Bhamba Bhatu village under Jalalabad Sadar police station, Bachitar Singh of MC Colony, Fazilka, and Baldev Singh of Bhamba Bhatu village under Jalalabad Sadar police station. The SHO said a case had been registered. — OC c m y b Tribune News Service Ramnik Singh, the ambulance driver who died in an accident in Jalandhar on Saturday. patient to the hospital. While standing near the damaged vehicle to caution the oncoming traffic, Ramnik was hit by a speeding 18-wheeler truck. The truck driver fled the scene, but was later arrested. Parminder Singh, SHO of Rama Mandi police station, confirmed that an FIR under relevant sections of the BNS had been registered against the driver. “The damaged vehicles have been impounded and the postmortem formalities were completed late in the evening. The body has been handed over to the family,” he said, adding that the statements of family members had been recorded and further formalities were underway. Ramnik’s friend Siddharth Arora said, “We received a call from the police at 4 am informing us about the accident. Ramnik ensured the safety of his patient, but tragically lost his life in the process. It’s a heart-wrenching loss for us,” he said. Only 3 ft, 8 inch in height, city youth wins Mr Asia Championship in Malaysia Tribune News Service Jalandhar, December 28 A city-based youth who has a height of just 3 feet 8 inches has won gold in Mr Asia Championship in the physical challenged category of the championship held in Malaysia on December 21-22. Back from the event, the youth Ganesh Kumar (27) said that he felt as he was on cloud nine. “I was going to gym for the past few years and was working on my physical training but I had never imagined that I could win the event organised by FIF International Mortal Battle-2024,” said Ganesh, who is a resident of Maqsudan locality. He thanked Dr Harminder Dullowal, who made him avail the chance at Ganesh Kumar (27) after winning the title. the international level. Ganesh is married. He lives with his parents and two brothers, all of whom have a normal height. Sharing problems that Ganesh faced because of his height, his trainer and guru Dullowal said, “The gym machinery does not suit his height. His hands and feet did not touch the required part of the machine. He had to take the help of bench press. He could not lift dumbbells of high weight. For the same reason, we took him in the physical challenged category.” He added, “Ganesh was training under me for the past one and a half years. There were issues which we had to manage regarding his diet too. Body-building usually takes more than 3,000 calories of diet daily but Ganesh could take only 1,000-1,500 calories a day. He also would have digestion problems if he was given more diet. I am happy that despite all the challenges, Ganesh was able to make it.”