17022025-LT-01.qxd 2/17/2025 1:04 AM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune DIST CHCS GRAPPLE WITH SHORTAGE OF SPECIALISTS At least three to four posts of specialist are vacant in every CHC across district. P2 » HER PEPPY VOICE, INFECTIOUS ENERGY ARE HARD TO MISS THE INDIA’S GOT LATENT ROW REFUSES TO DIE Kanika Kapoor calls Gori Hai Kalaiyan 2.0 a vibrant reinterpretation of a beloved number. P4 “Ranveer Allahbadia’s comment was highly disrespectful, just an apology isn’t enough,” say celebrities. P4 » » FORECAST MAINLY CLEAR SKY MAX 26°C | MIN 11°C YESTERDAY MAX 24°C | MIN 10°C SUNSET MONDAY 6.12 PM SUNRISE TUESDAY 7:01 AM MONDAY | 17 FEBRUARY 2025 | LUDHIANA Woman murdered, husband injured; robbed of car, jewellery Mahesh Sharma Mandi Ahmedgarh, February16 The Dehlon police have initiated a probe into an incident in which a woman, who was accompanying her husband, a businessman from Ludhiana, was murdered by unidentified assailants armed with sharp weapons on the Dehlon bypass. Kin block road in protest, seek justice for deceased The incident occurred when the couple was returning home after attending a party at a resort in Pohir village on the Ludhiana-Malerkotla highway late on Saturday night. While the car-borne assailants, reported to be around five, brutally attacked the woman, Manvi, alias Lipsey Mittal, after following her for a long distance, they hit her husband Anokh Mittal on his legs and made him smell something after which he fell unconscious. Later, the woman was rushed to a hospital in Ludhiana where she was declared brought dead. Kin of the deceased (inset) hold a protest in Ludhiana; and (right) cops examine the crime scene near Dehlon. HIMANSHU MAHAJAN According to Anokh Mittal, some unidentified miscreants had allegedly taken away their Maruti Ritz car, mobile and jewellery after attacking him and his wife when the couple stopped at a deserted place on the Dehlon bypass on the Ludhiana-Malerkotla highway late on Saturday night. He said he could not recollect details of the incident as he fell unconscious as after attacking him, the assailants made him him smell something. Though the police are yet to ascertain exact sequence of events leading to the death of the woman, circumstantial evi- dence revealed the assailants had attacked her brutally. Afterwards, she ran for a long distance to save her life. Assistant Commissioner Police (ACP) Harjinder Singh Gill claimed that a PCR team had reached the scene after receiving information about the assault from owner of a nearby dhaba after midnight. “The Dehlon police and the PCR had acted promptly after receiving information and the victim was rushed to a multispecialty hospital in Ludhiana,” he said. Gill said a probe had been launched into the matter. Preliminary investigations Two illegal buildings sealed Ludhiana, February 16 Acting against illegal constructions, the building branch of the Municipal Corporation (MC) sealed two illegal under-construction commercial buildings in Bhai Randhir Singh (BRS) Nagar here on Sunday. One of the buildings was being constructed on the BRS Nagar main road while the other was being built near the Sunet railway crossing. MC Zone D officials said they had also received a complaint that the building near the railway crossing was being constructed by encroaching upon a portion of a park. They would also check the records in this MC officials seal an illegal building in BRS Nagar. regard and take appropriate action. Building branch officials said working on the directions of MC Commis- sioner Aaditya Dachalwal, action was being taken against illegal constructions on a regular basis. — TNS revealed that Anokh used to visit the Pohir resort for weekend parties with his family but his children did not accompany the couple on Saturday night. Mittal is a renowned businessman dealing in storage batteries and had recently joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the presence of MLA Ashok Prashar. Earlier, he was closely associated with Bains brothers and former minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu. He has a huge fan following on social media. The police have registered an FIR on the statement of the woman’s husband. Now, they are trying to find answer to some unanswered questions, including the reason behind the couple taking the deserted bypass route from Dehlon whereas most commuters pass through the town. The CCTV footage of the resort at Pohir revealed that Anokh had used restrooms before starting his journey from the resort and after a couple of minutes, he stopped for urinating at a deserted place around midnight. Meanwhile, friends and relatives of the deceased held a protest in Ludhiana to demand justice for her and immediate arrest of the killers. Deportation from US eye-opener: CM Tells youth don’t move abroad illegally, be active partners in dev Tribune News Service Ludhiana, February 16 Urging the youth of the state to learn lessons from the recent deportation of illegal immigrants from the USA, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Sunday appealed to them to shun the idea of going abroad by wrong means and work hard in their native state to make it a front runner in the country. Addressing a gathering here during a sports tournament at Ghungrali village, the Chief Minister said: “We are blessed to have taken birth on this sacred land which has the most fertile land in the world. The youth were forced to migrate to other countries in search of green pastures due to the failure of successive governments in the state. The mass deportation from the US is an eye-opener for all of us and now, we should not move abroad illegally, rather work hard for the socio-econom- ic growth of the state”. The Chief Minister said the state government had already given over 50,000 government jobs to the youth in Punjab purely on the basis of merit. He said due to this, reverse migration was being witnessed in the state as youngsters were leaving foreign land to join government jobs in the state. Mann said transparent recruitment had increased the faith of the youth in working for the state government due to which they have been shunning the idea of moving abroad and were preparing for government jobs here. He said it was on record that contrary to the earlier trend of moving abroad, educational institutions in the state were witnessing a huge surge in admissions by youngsters. Mann said to increase the manpower in the Police Department for enhancing its efficiency on the one hand and to provide jobs to youth on the other, the state government had Auto gang robs passenger of cash, mobile at knifepoint Ludhiana, February 16 Instead of dropping a passenger at his destination, an auto gang took a passenger to a deserted place and robbed him of cash, mobile phone and other valuables. The Ludhiana police after registering a case launched further investigation in the matter. In this regard, Subhash Chandra, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, lodged a complaint with the Moti Nagar police, stating that he had come to the city to visit his relatives. A few days ago, he got off at the Dhandari railway station at night from where he took an auto-rickshaw to go to Sherpur Chowk. Subhash said five youths were already present in the auto. Instead of dropping him at Sherpur Chowk, the youths took him to a deserted place near Cancer Hospital. Four more youths were standing at a short distance. They showed him a knife and robbed him of Rs 5,200, a mobile phone and a bag containing other items. The accused fled the spot after threatening him. In this case, the Moti Nagar police have started an investigation. Sources said the police have identified some people and they would be arrested soon. ASI Ajmer Singh said the police registered a case against Sonu Kumar, Harvinder Singh, Rahul, Badal and three unidentified persons. — TNS CM Bhagwant Mann with players during a sports tournament at Ghungrali village. Stopped from consuming liquor, man kills brother Ludhiana, February 16 Stopping elder brother from drinking alcohol proved costly for the younger sibling. The former killed his brother under the influence of alcohol. The deceased has been identified as Paramjit Singh. After getting information, the police reached the scene and took the body in their custody. On the complaint of the deceased’s son, Lovepreet Singh, the Tibba police have registered a case against his uncle Gurdial Singh and arrested him. Lovepreet said his uncle Gurdial was addicted to alcohol. His father often stopped his uncle from drinking. Late on Friday night, he had gone ~12K-crore ailing bicycle industry pins hope on tax relief Centre’s assurance to cut GST on bicycles, parts, rationalise levy brings cheer to country’s largest trade in city Nitin Jain Tribune News Service Ludhiana, February 16 The ailing Rs 12,000-crore bicycle industry, the country’s biggest and largest in Ludhiana, has pinned hopes of revival and growth following the Union Government’s assurance of tax relief to promote the trade. The Centre’s statement that it has begun deliberations to cut GST and rationalise levy on bicycles and their parts has brought cheer to the industry, which has been raising this major demand since long. Union Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary has recently informed Rajya Sabha MP Sanjeev Arora that the issue of reduction of GST on bicycles and their parts had been deliberated by the GST Council in its 31st and 37th meetings. The minister also assured Arora that GST on bicycles and their parts, along with rate rationalisation in The bicycle industry has employed five lakh persons each in manufacturing and value chain. HIMANSHU MAHAJAN this sector, was being examined by the group of ministers on rate rationalisation, constituted by the council. Arora, the ruling AAP member in the Upper House of Parliament from Punjab, had on November 29 last written to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, seeking rationalisation of GST on bicycles and parts from 12 per cent to 5 per cent with ITC benefits. MP Arora had highlighted several points, urging the Centre to consider these recommendations in the upcoming GST Council meeting. He had recommended extending GST reduction to all bicycles, applying the 5 per cent GST rate to all bicycles, not just those priced below Rs 10,000, to avoid complications in tax adminis- already decided to recruit 1,800 constables and 300 sub-inspectors every year in the Punjab Police to overcome the scarcity of police personnel. Further, he said the state government had also decided to recruit 10,000 new personnel in the Punjab Police for which a notification had already been issued. Mann said encouraging sports culture could be the most effective tool in the state government’s crusade against drugs. He said with the promotion of sports, the unbounded energy of the youth was being utilised for excelling in it. The youth who were involved in sports have no time even to look at drugs as they were using their all might to excel in their respective field. The Chief Minister added that Khedan Watan Punjab Diyan was organised by the state government every year, which was a right step towards providing a platform to players for showcasing their talents. tration and to maximise socio-environmental benefits. Secondly, he had suggested including bicycle parts in the 5 per cent GST bracket to prevent an inverted duty structure and increased costs for manufacturers. Besides, he had emphasised the importance of ensuring ITC benefits with the 5 per cent GST rate to enable manufacturers to pass on the full benefit to consumers, supporting the ‘Make in India’ initiative. “It gives a glimmer of hope for the bicycle industry as bicycles are a crucial mode of transport for many and offer significant environmental and health benefits,” the MP said, adding that reducing GST on bicycles and their parts would make them more affordable, curb GST evasion and support the growth of the ‘Made in India’ bicycle industry. Arora had also taken up the issue during the Zero Hour in the ongoing Budget session of c m y b the Rajya Sabha on February 7. Ludhiana’s bicycle industry mainly manufactures roadster, premium and electric bicycles, both for children and adults with an annual turnover of Rs 12,000 crore. It comprises around Rs 3,500 crore of export business while lighter and premium components based on cost and quality, which are not manufactured here, worth Rs 2,000 crore are also imported by the local industry every year. Providing employment to 10 lakh persons, the bicycle industry has employed 5 lakh persons each in manufacturing and value chain. Aggrieved over what they allege as a raw deal by the government, several industrialists are in talks with other states and UTs to explore shifting or expanding their businesses outside. Speaking with The Tribune, Onkar Singh Pahwa, MD of Avon Cycles, which is one of the leading bicycle brands, said low technology and lowvalued bicycles were among main issues being faced by the industry. “We need an early production linked incentive scheme for immediate technology upgrade,” he demanded. Pahwa, who had been conferred with Padma Shri this Republic Day, pointed out that 12 per cent GST on bicycles and spare parts needs to be brought down to 5 per cent, if not made tax free, to promote affordability and create more demand. “Good governance of research and development is required to meet mandatory standards and to ensure gainful utilisation of Rs 40 crore being invested by the Centre to upgrade the bicycle industry,” the industry captain asserted while stating that the unsafe cycling infrastructure and export disadvantages like high freight, import duty in European Union and testing inadequa- cy are also hurdles in the industry’s growth. “It’s a promising industry, which needs an integrated package from the Centre for technology and standard upgrade, besides rationalising tax, testing and export issues,” Pahwa added. Industry reaches out to MP Leading industrialists had recently reached out to Rajya Sabha MP Sanjeev Arora, to , take up their issues with the government and help their resolution to sustain the existing industry and attract more fresh investment in the textile and bicycle sectors. Arora had assured the industry leaders to impress upon the government to resolve their genuine problems at the earliest. “Several issues have been resolved during the past three years while talks are on to further facilitate and incentivise the industry,” the MP added. to a wedding with his family. His father Paramjit and uncle Gurdial were at home. His father again stopped his uncle from consuming alcohol. After which, Gurdial started beating his father badly. After reaching home, he got his father admitted to a hospital where doctors declared him dead. — TNS Man posing as minister’s PA duped realtor of ~3L, held Ludhiana, February 16 The Jamalpur police on Sunday arrested a person who used to dupe people by claiming to be the PA of Cabinet Minister Hardeep Singh Mundian. The police registered a case against the suspect. It is being told that the accused used to take money from people in exchange for getting their works done. Kuldeep Singh, a resident of Janta Colony, Jodhewal, had taken Rs 3 lakh from Varinder, a property dealer, in exchange for getting some work done. When the latter came to know about the suspect, he complained to the minister. On the directions of the minister, the police arrested him. The property dealer had struck a deal for Rs 5 lakh with Kuldeep. He paid Rs 3 lakh in advance but later, the complainant was shocked to know that Kuldeep was not the PA of the minister. —TNS