25032025-CT-01.qxd 3/25/2025 12:16 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune SANJEEV WINS GOLD AT KHELO INDIA PARA GAMES STAFF OPPOSE PROPOSAL CAPPING DEPUTATION DENZEL WASHINGTON SHARES THOUGHTS ON HIS ACTING CAREER Para shutter is a trainee of the Centre of Excellence for Badminton at Sector 38 Sports Complex. P3 Employees hold protest at Sector 25 Rally Ground against policies of the UT Administration. P3 When asked about being a ‘Hollywood actor’, he responded, “What’s the definition of Hollywood actor?” P4 » » /THETRIBUNECHD FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE Pupils using various platforms to discuss problems, give vent to anger, claim teachers Deepankar Sharda MORAL RESPONSIBILITY Tribune News Service CHANDIGARH Chota Mela: An exhibition of artwork by children, curated by Mehak Bhan, House No. 105, Sector 11, on till March 26, 12 noon to 6 pm Press Photographers Awards and Exhibition: Underpass Gallery, Sector 17, on till March 28 from 10 am to 8 pm Exhibition: ‘Writing in French – A world of voices’, on till March 31, Alliance Française, Sector 36, 9 am to 6 pm Ikshana: An exhibition of pictorials, by Punjab Lalit Kala Akademi in collaboration with the World University of Design, Punjab Kala Bhawan, from March 26 to 31, 10 am to 6 pm APNI MANDI Chandigarh: Sectors 29 and 56, & Dhanas Panchkula: Sector 15 Mohali: Sector 71 Please send information about events in tricity at: whatson@tribunemail.com Mohali hospital co-owner held Mohali, March 24 The police have arrested Cheema Hospital co-owner Sunil Kumar Aggarwal and booked his wife Shashi Aggarwal and son Gaurav Aggarwal, all residents of Sector 35-A, for the alleged theft of a CT scan machine parts from the hospital complex. A complaint was filed against them by co-owner Anusandeep Burmi on March 22. Aggarwal was reportedly released later. Burmi, a resident of Kurali, alleged that the machine parts worth about Rs 30 lakh were stolen. The theft took place around November 25 last year. — TNS Steroids, drugs seized from flat Tribune News service Zirakpur, March 24 The Punjab Food and Drugs Department today seized a large quantity of food supplements, anabolic steroids, allopathic medicines, injectibles, packing material and other drugs from a flat in Shiva Homes in Singhpura. The police had received a tip-off about gangster Lovish Griver and his accomplice Gurpreet Singh reportedly storing the drugs in the area. Grover, wanted for heinous crimes, was shot in the leg during an encounter with the Mohali police at Shiva Homes on VIP Road on Friday night. Chandigarh, March 24 The death of a 17-year-old student by suicide has once again called for collective efforts from school authorities and parents on sensitising the youth to the proper use of social media platforms. The victim, a Class XI student of Government Senior Secondary School, Sector 21, was accused of using social media against his teachers. Despite awareness efforts, the youth are finding the social media a better way to discuss their problems or to give vent to their anger, claimed local teachers. According to sources, a majority of the local schools are facing the problem of fake social media accounts being used by students to make accusations against teachers as well as school authorities. Many such accounts carry objectionable posts and pictures of school officials. “This is a very sensitive matter. We, at schools, do sensitise our students to the pros and cons of social media usage. However, the parents should also come forward and track the activities of their children. The schools NO ADVISORY BY EDUCATION DEPARTMENT incident has again ❝Thisto the focus the moral brought responsibility of schools to guide students on how to use social media conscientiously, in an endeavour to make a positive impact on the world. Social media should be utilised for meaningful communication, rather than allowing it to become a tool to ridicule or derive harmful entertainment at the expense of others. Atul Khanna, RENOWNED EDUCATIONIST AND DIRECTOR, STRAWBERRY FIELDS HIGH SCHOOLS. EXPERT TAKE CHANDIGARH: Sources claimed that the UT Education Department has no specific guidelines to tackle the problem, given the fact that all illegal activities get reported to the police for investigation. “It’s unfortunate, it should not have happened. We will wait for the police, accusing someone is just an apprehension (of being guilty). The matter is under investigation, and the school authorities will fully support it,” said Harsuhinder Pal Singh Brar, Director, School Education. When asked if the depart- conduct various seminars and make students aware about use of the social media. ment has any specific advisory or officials to tackle such situations, he said: “We do educate our teachers and students about the social media usage, but if something illegal has happened... the police are the right authority to investigate. During my tenure, this is one of the first incidents, but if this (fake social media pages of schools) has happened in the past and the schools have directly approached the cyber cell...that is the best option. The investigation part is best to be with the police.” It’s up to them how they use it, in a right way or a bad way. The parents should keep a many(cases)not ❝Theremustbeauthoritiesfearing reportedbyschool theconsequences.Theallegedpolice interrogationisverydreadfulontheir behalf.The young minds are very sensitive. The police should have hired a professional therapist or psychologist to tackle the situation. Also, at first, the school should have approached the higher authorities. Prerna, A PHYSIOLOGIST track on their children’s social media activity,” said HS Mamik, president, Inde- pendent Schools Association (ISA), Chandigarh. The 17year-old student had hanged MAX 33°C | MIN 16°C YESTERDAY MAX 31.8°C | MIN 15.3°C SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 6:19 AM After student’s death, experts call for collective efforts on sensitising youth to social media use WHAT’S ON MAINLY CLEAR SKY SUNSET TUESDAY 6.37 PM » TUESDAY | 25 MARCH 2025 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST himself at his home in Zirakpur on Saturday after the Chandigarh cyber police interrogated him following a complaint from the school management. His mother, a single parent, said the cyber cell police had summoned her son for questioning. However, she informed the police that she would accompany her son to the police station. She said the cyber cell staff also called three other children involved in the case. The police called up the victim, and he himself visited the Cyber Cell station in Sector 17. He and other children were allegedly threatened and interrogated in separate rooms. On reaching home, she found her son hanging from the fan for his room, which was bolted from inside. He was rushed to a hospital in Zirakpur, where the doctors declared him dead on arrival. She blamed the school management and the Cyber Crime Cell responsible for her son’s death. The victim’s mother revealed that a few months ago, the school management had accused her son and four other students of creating memes about teachers on a social media platform. Three held for stabbing youth Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 24 The police have arrested three youths of Ramdarbar — Karan Kumar (23), Suraj Kumar (18) and Gagandeep (18) for stabbing Vivek to death on the night of March 22. A murder case was registered at the Sector 31 police station on March 23. During the investigation, the accused were arrested on the basis of identification by eyewitnesses. The weapon, which was used in crime, has been recovered. All three accused were produced before the court and the Judge sent then to oneday police remand. Karan and Gagandeep are security guards and Suraj works as a peon, the police said. Vivek (20) was stabbed to death by three assailants at Ram Darbar. The victim had gone to his friend Manish’s place in the neighbourhood. Vivek, Manish and another friend went out for a walk. According to Manish, Vivek stopped at a public toilet near the Ram Darbar parking area, while he and the other friend continued walking. Moments later, they saw Vivek being chased by three assailants who were carrying a sharp weapon. They caught up with Vivek and stabbed him. When his friends raised the alarm, the assailants fled the scene. Vivek reportedly suffered stab wounds in the stomach, back and waist. MCtoengagefirmforclearingthirdtrashmountain HC slaps ~10K cost Dushyant Singh Pundir Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 24 The Municipal Corporation (MC) is set to engage a private firm for processing the third garbage mountain at the Dadu Majra dumping ground, with a project cost of Rs 12 crore. The proposal will be discussed in the MC General House meeting scheduled for tomorrow. According to the agenda of the meeting, MC officials have emphasised the urgency of clearing the dumping ground, as the National Green Tribunal (NGT) is pressing for clearing the dumping ground at the earliest. The Punjab and Haryana High Court has also mandated that the third dump be cleared in a time-bound manner. The MC had assured the Chairman and Members of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Housing and Urban Affairs that the third dump will be cleared by July, subject to weather conditions. According to the agenda, two private firms have expressed interest in undertaking the bio-mining process for the dump. Upon the House’s approval, an MoU will be signed with the select- Will reintroduce power cess hike proposal at House meet today A mountain of waste at the Dadu Majra dump in Chandigarh. TRIBUNE PHOTO: PRADEEP TEWARI ed firm to initiate the project. The funding will be sourced from the earmarked solid waste management funds, as mandated by the NGT. The MC, under Mayor Harpreet Kaur Babla, is set to reintroduce a proposal to hike the electricity cess at the meeting tomorrow, a move that will make power more expensive in the city. As per the agenda, the civic body has been charging a municipal cess of 10 paise per unit on electricity consumption since 2019, generating around Rs 15-16 crore annually. Citing financial constraints, the MC is now look- ing to raising the cess to 16 paise per unit, aligning it with the rate in Punjab. This increase is expected to boost the civic body’s revenue to Rs 22-23 crore per annum. “The municipal tax in neighbouring Punjab is 2% of electricity consumption, which translates to approximately 16 paise per unit, while Haryana charges 8 paise per unit,” the agenda noted. The proposal has previously faced resistance from the AAP and the Congress. Both parties had promised in their Lok Sabha election manifesto to provide free 20,000 litres of water per household per month, 300 units of free electricity to families earning below Rs 20,000 per month, and no new taxes. With the Opposition parties likely to challenge the move again, tomorrow’s House meeting is expected to witness a heated debate over the financial burden on residents versus the MC’s need for additional revenue. Waste management plant The House will also decide on selecting a private firm for the integrated solid waste management plant at Dadu Majra. The project, first approved in July 2023, is aimed at managing the city’s daily waste generation of 550 metric tonnes (MT). The plant, with a capacity of 600 tonnes per day, will be set up over 20 acres and include three waste-processing facilities for dry, wet and horticulture waste. The project is planned for a 17-year period — two years for construction and 15 years for operation and maintenance. During the last financial bidding on January 7, M/s Hindustan Waste Treatment Private Limited, in joint venture with M/s SFC Environmental Technologies Private Limited, Navi Mumbai, submitted the lowest bid. The House will now finalise its selection for the project. Both proposals are important for addressing the issue of legacy waste, said a councillor. ~32L for plantation at dump The Finance and Contract Committee has given its approval to planting trees and shrubs in the dumping ground at Dadu Majra at an estimated cost of Rs 32.90 lakh. A meeting was held under the chairpersonship of Mayor Harpreet Kaur Babla and attended by Amit Kumar, Commissioner, and other members — Saurabh Joshi, Poonam, Suman Devi. Cops bust interstate gang of drug peddlers, criminals Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 24 The police today claimed to have busted an interstate nexus of gangsters, drug peddlers and arms suppliers in the tricity with the arrest of five criminals. They have recovered 190 gm heroin, three illegal pistols with two rounds and Rs 4.9 lakh drug money from them in Chandigarh, Rajasthan and Punjab. The accused, identified as Narinder Kumar of Mauli Jagran, Sector 38-West resi- dents Deepak Thapa and Rajinder Singh, Rahul Motouriya of Matour and Dhanas resident Dharminder Singh, have been arrested. The police said the accused were proclaimed offenders or wanted in various cases of murder, Arms Act and NDPS Act registered in Chandigarh, Punjab and Haryana. Three of them are associated with Lawrence Bishnoi, Raju Basodi and Vakant Garg gangs and were in touch with them. Motouriya is reportedly linked to Vakant Garg, who was involved in the BSP leader murder in Ambala in January. On March 7, a team of Operation Cell put up a naka at the motor market in Sector 48 and nabbed Narinder Kumar, alias Aman, with 50 gm heroin. c m y b Narinder disclosed that he had purchased the contraband from Deepak Thapa, who was subsequently arrested with Rs 4.4 lakh drug money, a pistol and a round. Both were involved in drug peddling and had criminal past, said the police. Dharmender was arrested with a countrymade pistol, which he had bought from Bareilly in UP for perpetrating some crime. The police had been on his trail for the past about four months. On the disclosures made by Dharmender, his associate Motouriya was arrested from Sector 56 with a countrymade pistol and a cartridge. The police said he was involved in the murder of Kuldeep, alias Lovekush, at Sarangpur and declared a proclaimed offender in the murder case. He told the police that he had supplied two illegal weapons to gangster Vakant Garg. Five days later, Vakant and his associates murdered BSP leader Harbilas Rajjumajra at Ambala. The Haryana Police had declared Rs 5 lakh reward on Vakant. on MC for delay Tribune News Service DADU MAJRA DUMP CASE Chandigarh, March 24 The Punjab and Haryana High Court today imposed a cost of Rs 10,000 on the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation (MC) for seeking last-minute permission to place a reply in the UT garbage dump case. The reply was to be submitted in response to a petitioner’s plea alleging a sustained pattern of perjury by the MC and the Chandigarh Administration. The Division Bench of Chief Justice Sheel Nagu and Justice Sumeet Goel rejected the MC’s plea for exemption from costs, while making it clear that the reply would only be considered after proof of payment was submitted. The cost was imposed during the resumed hearing of applications filed by petitioner-advocate Amit Sharma, who has accused the authorities of systematically misleading the court to cover up the ongoing violations of solid waste management rules. Sharma contended that the garbage mound at Dadu Majra had multiplied over the years. “They claimed the first two dumps were cleared, denied the existence of a third when I produced photographs. They only admitted it after their attempt to transfer the case failed. Now, this third dump Civicbodysoughtlast-minute permission to place reply has grown to over 2.40 lakh metric tonnes within weeks, despite their claim that no fresh waste is being dumped,” Sharma told the court. Referring to a report submitted by the High Court Registrar-General with supporting photographs, Chief Justice Nagu expressed concern over the proximity of residential areas to the dump site. Defending the MC, advocate Gaurav Mohunta argued that the land had been designated for waste dumping in 1988 and residential colonies had come up later. Sharma countered the claim, stating that houses were allotted as early as 1979 and citing a plaque commemorating a visit by former Prime Minister Morarji Desai in the area. Mohunta further submitted that the MC had already cleared the older dumps and was actively working on waste management. He argued that the petitioner was relying on data from 2016 to 2020—the period when waste management was handled by an external contractor. Sharma dubbed this as a diversion, pointing to a longstanding Continued on page 2 Two killed in accidents Zirakpur: Two persons died in road mishaps in Mohali today. A scooterist, Dev Chand Yadav of Dera Bassi died after being hit by a car on the highway near Zirakpur around 4 am. In the other case, a Haryana bus crushed a cyclist, Shivnath of Ekta Vihar, Baltana, to death on the Zirakpur-Shimla highway around 6 am. He worked as a security guard in Panchkula and was crossing the road when the bus ran him over. “Both the conductor and the driver allegedly fled the spot. The bus has been impounded,” said the police. — TNS