16022025-ATR-01.qxd 2/15/2025 11:43 PM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 24°C | MIN 11°C YESTERDAY MAX 23°C | MIN 12°C KATRINA PRAISES VICKY'S PERFORMANCE IN CHHAAVA RAJ BABBAR'S ACTOR SON PRATEIK, PRIYA TIE THE KNOT RANBIR KAPOOR LAUNCHES HIS LIFESTYLE BRAND In an Instagram post, actress Katrina Kaif wrote, “I’m lost for words by the impact of the film Chhaava.” P4 Actor Prateik Babbar has tied the knot with Priya Banerjee. They took to Instagram and shared the news with fans.P4 Actor Ranbir Kapoor has launched his lifestyle brand named ARKS and opened its first store in Mumbai. P4 » » » SUNSET SUNDAY 6.18 PM SUNRISE MONDAY 7.10 AM SUNDAY | 16 FEBRUARY 2025 | AMRITSAR Youth shot at, Two arrested for defalcation of two booked for murder bid at ~20 lakh from flood relief funds Mahal village VB held duo following complaint from former sarpanch Tribune News Service Amritsar, February 15 A youth was shot at by two armed persons at Mahal village falling under the Kamboh police station here on Thursday night. The victim, identified as Mandeep Singh, was standing outside his house along with his father when armed assailants shot at him. On the statement of Baldev Singh, father of the victim, the police have booked Akashdeep Singh, alias Kasi, and David Masih of Baba Jeewan Singh Nagar on Ram Tirath Road here. He told the police that he along with his son Mandeep and nephew Manpreet Singh was standing outside the house and chatting when two unknown persons with faces covered with cloth landed there. They were travelling on a scooter. He said they stopped their scooter near them and took out a pistol. Before they could understand, the accused shot at his son which hit his chest. He was continued on page 2 Tarn Taran, February 15 The Punjab Vigilance Bureau (VB) arrested Harjit Singh, ex-Sarpanch of Kalia village and Manjit Singh, Lambardar of Sakattra in Tarn Taran district, on the charge of embezzling Rs 20 lakh from funds meant for farmers affected by floods on Saturday. A spokesperson for the Vigilance Bureau said the arrests were made following an investigation into a complaint filed by Harnand Singh, who had served as Sarpanch of Kalia village until 2019. The accused had fraudulently opened bank accounts in the name of beneficiaries, including ineligible individu- The two suspects in custody of the VB in Tarn Taran. GURBAXPURI als, in connivance with bank officials. They then withheld the account documents of beneficiaries, enabling them to withdraw and misappro- priate the relief funds released by the Punjab government. The state authorities had sanctioned Rs 30 lakh as compensation for damage caused to the crops etc. However, the accused had embezzled more than Rs 20 lakh from the total amount. He informed that a case has been registered against both the accused under the Prevention of Corruption Act at the Vigilance Bureau police station, Amritsar range. They would be produced before a competent court tomorrow. Meanwhile, further investigations are being carried out by the VB unit at Tarn Taran. — OC ASI injured in shootout between cops, gangsters Our Correspondent Tarn Taran, February 15 An Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI), Baldev Singh of the city police, Tarn Taran, was injured in an encounter between the police and gangsters. A gangster too received serious injuries The injured ASI at a hospital. when the police opened fire in retaliation. The Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Abhimanyu Rana, said that the injured ASI Baldev Singh had been admitted to a local private hospital. The details of the encounter were awaited. Three aides of Landa Harike nabbed after brief encounter Our Correspondent Tarn Taran, February 15 The Tarn Taran police arrested three alleged operatives of gangster-turned terrorist Lakhbir Singh, alias Landa Harike, after a brief encounter from Bhullar village located on the Tarn Taran-Khadoor Sahib road on Friday night. One of them identified as Jaskarandeep Singh of Makhu was injured in the incident. He suffered a bullet injury in the leg and was admitted to the Civil Hospital here for treatment. The other two were Harinder Singh and Harmandeep Singh, both residents of Gatta Badshah village falling under the Makhu police station in Ferozepur district. Senior Superintendent of Police, Tarn Taran, Abhimanyu Rana said Harmandeep Singh had shot at a farmer leader, Satnam Singh, on January 21 and a case was registered at the Makhu police station. The accused had been evading arrest since then. He said on Friday, Kashmir Two operatives of gangster-turned terrorist Landa Harike in custody of the Tarn Taran police on Saturday. Singh, SHO, Sadar police station, and Inspector Amandeep Singh, in charge, CIA staff, got a tip-off that they were moving near Bhullar village in a car which was intercepted at a checkpoint near the village. He said police teams signalled the car to stop, but the accused started firing at the police team. In the retaliatory fire by the police teams, Jaskaran was injured. The police recovered a Pakistanimade pistol, two empty bullet shells and a live cartridge from their possession. A case under Sections 109, 3 (5), 132 and 221 of the BNS and Sections 25, 54 and 59 of the Arms Act has been registered by the local Sadar police in this connection. The police also impounded the car (PB05-Z-9786) in which they were travelling. The SSP said during a preliminary probe it was found that they were operatives of gangster-turned terrorist Lakhbir Singh Landa. They were carrying out targeted crimes at his behest. He said more revelations are expected during further interrogation. 30-kg heroin seizure Civic body cuts sewerage, water With rising number of vehicles, case: Gursimranjit connections of 12 illegal hotels city roads choked by congestion sent to police custody WritestoPSPCLrequestingdisconnectionofpowersupply Neeraj Bagga Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Amritsar, February 15 Gursimranjit Singh, alias Simran, of Basarke Gillan village, who was nabbed by the Amritsar rural police with a large haul of drugs, has been sent to police custody for five days by the local court here on Saturday. He was arrested by the Gharinda police with 30 kg of heroin on Friday. The police were trying to establish links between him and other three suspects whose names cropped up during a preliminary probe. The contraband was smuggled through big drones such as hexacopters capable of carrying a payload from 5kg to 10 kg, investigations revealed. The police have confiscated four packets containing heroin weighing around 7.5 kg each. Usually, the Pakistanbased state and non-state actors were using small size quadcopters with a payload capacity of up to 1-kg. Investigations revealed that Gursimranjit had not retrieved the seized heroin from near the Indo-Pak border. Some unknown person had delivered him the consignment on a scooter. The cross-border drug cartel was being operated by US-based drug peddler Raju Dhattal, who originally hailed from Gharinda area. Gursimranjit and Dhattal did not have any previous criminal record. Amritsar rural police Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Charanjit Singh Sohal said in the past three months, he had retrieved four drug consignments of around 75 kg each. Apart from heroin, the police also impounded Simran’s car in which he was carrying the consignment. Police sources said the police have also seized the mobile phone of Gursimranjit which was forensically examined to expose the entire backward and forward links. Amritsar, February 15 The Municipal Corporation has disconnected the sewerage and water connections of 12 illegally constructed hotels in Katra Ahluwalia, Jalebi Wala Chowk, Androon Sherawala Gate, Chheharta and east zone areas. Municipal Commissioner Gulpreet Singh Aulakh stated that these hotels had previously been sealed by the corporation. He explained that the owners had started construction without obtaining the necessary approvals and had illegally installed sewerage and water connections. Aulakh further informed that the operations and maintenance (O&M) cell of the Municipal Corporation has been directed to disconnect the sewerage and water connections of 29 illegally built hotels. “Of these, 12 hotels had their connections cut off today, while the remaining 17 will also face disconnection soon,” he added. MC workers disconnect the water connection of a hotel in Amritsar. MC Commissioner Aulakh also revealed that he had held discussions with Superintending Engineer Gursharan Singh Khaira of PSPCL city circle regarding the disconnection of electricity connections for these illegal hotels. “The Municipal Corporation has issued an official letter to the PSPCL, requesting the disconnection of electricity Water supply dept staff stage protest Our Correspondent Tarn Taran, February 15 The employees of Water Supply and Sanitation Department organised a demonstration in front of the office of Dr Kashmir Singh Sohal, MLA, here on Saturday. These employees, who have been working on contract basis or their services have been outsourced, were protesting against the state government for not regularising their services. The leaders of the employees presented a memorandum in the office of the MLA in his absence, addressed to the state government. Gurwinder Singh Bath and Dilbag Singh Doburji, state leader of the Water Supply and Sanitation Workers Union, Punjab, and its district president, respectively, were among those who addressed the protesters and flayed the state government for not regularising their services. The leaders said that they have been working in the department for a meagre remuneration. The leaders warned that in case the government refused to accept their genuine demands, they would be left with no option but to intensify their agitation. c m y b supply to these establishments,” he said. “Illegal construction without approval of building will not be tolerated. The Municipal Corporation will continue to take action against such violations,” said Aulakh. He also urged the residents to ensure that they obtain proper approvals before beginning any construction work. Amritsar, February 15 There is no respite from congestion, air and noise pollution for the residents on city roads as the number of vehicles keeps increasing every year. In a positive development, 4,715 e-rickshaws, a noiseless mode of green transport, were added during the past three years yet there is no respite from traffic congestion and noise pollution on roads. Earlier, only 168 e-rickshaws were added from January 1, 2017 to December 31, 2020 in the city. As per government records, the city has about 20,000 autorickshaws and e-rickshaws plying on roads. However, city residents feel their actual number may be much higher than the official figures. Auto drivers tend to stop their vehicles mid-way to pick their prospective customers. In most cases, many of them stop and swarm around customers causing frequent traffic snarls. Such chaotic scenes are visible on the roads around the ISBT, railway station and main commercial stretches of the city. A huge rush of vehicles near the bus stand in Amritsar on Wednesday. PHOTO: SUNIL KUMAR Amid the growing number of vehicles, four-wheelers saw a major surge in numbers with 43,434 more being added during the past three years. From 2017 to 2020, 37,147 vehicles were registered with the Regional Transport Office. Over 1.41 lakh two-wheelers were registered during the past three years which was a decline in number compared to the three years from 2017 to 2020 when over 1.73 lakh twowheelers were registered. RTO Khushal Singh said reduction in congestion, air and noise pollution was the collective responsibility of government departments and citizens. Shopkeepers must avoid placing their material on roadside, vehicles should be parked in the open space available, so as not to hinder traffic flow. Prabhjot Singh, a shopkeeper, said the holy city receives a large number of floating population of tourists and people residing in towns in its vicinity.