Mentally challenged girl abducted, gang-raped
Brothers rescue her after 13 hours
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, October 18
A 22-year-old mentally challenged girl was allegedly kidnapped by four persons from outside a temple in Model Town Extension area yesterday afternoon and later raped for more than 13 hours. She was recovered by her two brothers early this morning from a vacant plot in Lal Bagh Colony, near MC octroi post on the Ferozepore road.

Three of the alleged four rapists have been arrested. They have been identified as Raju, Baljit Singh and Paramraj Singh. The fourth accused, Balraj Singh, is absconding. The police said two brothers of the victim rescued their sister from the rapists and managed to nab two of them on the spot. The third, Paramraj Singh, was arrested from near MC octroi post later by a raiding team of the Sarabha Nagar police.

The victim has been admitted to the local civil hospital. As she is mentally challenged, she could not tell much about the incident. She was only crying and shrieking loudly. After her medical examination, she was administered some sedatives. Hospital sources said her condition was improving.

The case is a reminiscent of the kidnapping and rape of a woman for three days in a religious place on the Ferozepore road some months ago. Police sources said when a police team reached the place of crime, the woman was as hysterical as the one recovered from the religious place.

Surinder Kumar, a brother of the victim, told Ludhiana Tribune that his sister left the house in Chet Singh Nagar at about 3 pm yesterday for paying obeisance at a temple, but she did not return. He, along with one of his brothers, started searching her in the late evening, but could not find her.

They came to know that four men had taken away their sister in a car towards the Sidhwan Canal. The brothers continued their search and were told by a watchman on Ferozepore road that he had seen a girl with four men in a car that was speeding towards Lal Bagh Colony.

Surinder Kumar said at about 4.30 am, they heard some noise coming from a vacant plot. When they reached there, they saw their sister being raped by the accused. They raised an alarm at which the rapists tried to flee. The brothers succeeded in catching two of them. Then they informed the police and took the girl to the Civil Hospital.

On his statement, the police has registered a case of kidnapping and rape against the four accused. Sources said the accused were in an inebriated condition while committing the crime.

Members of the victim’s family searched the girl on their own as they thought the mentally challenged girl might have forgotten the way, although she was used to visit the temple alone. They did not report the matter to the police, as they feared it might bring bad name to the family, police sources said.

Surinder Kumar said they were three brothers and three sisters. He was a cloth merchant and was the main bread-earner of the family. His father had died two years ago.

PO arrested after 20 years
Our Correspondent

Ahmedgarh, October 18
The Dehlon police has arrested a proclaimed offender who had been absconding for the past 20 years. According to Mr Mukhwinder Singh Chinna, Senior Superintendent of police, Jagraon, Major Singh, a resident of Butahri village, was booked under Sections 25, 54 and 59 of the Arms Act in 1982. He was caught with a pistol and live cartridges, while he was planning to strike at a target. During proceedings in the case, Major Singh fled from his village and was subsequently declared a proclaimed offender.

For 20 years, the police kept on searching the offender, but in vain. During this period, the 24-year-old slim youth transformed into a 44-year-old farm labourer. Preliminary investigations revealed that after absconding from his village, he lived in various villages of the area. Though he belonged to a respectable agriculturist family, he had to work as a farm labourer to evade arrest.

He lived at Alamgir village for about five years. Presently, he was working with the sarpanch of Bhamian village, Mr Baljit Singh. On a tip-off, the police raided the house of the said sarpanch and caught the accused.

Though the police could not extract much information from the accused during preliminary investigation, it had come to light that he had earlier been booked under the NDPS act for carrying poppy husk. He was later absolved of the charge.

The SSP said Major Singh had been playing hide and seek with the police during all this period. Had he not absconded, he would have completed his sentence by now, he added.

Commercial complex razed
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, October 18
Under its ongoing campaign against encroachments and violation of building bylaws, a demolition squad of the Municipal Corporation today razed entire front portion and part of the stairway of a commercial complex near Aarti Cinema on Ferozepore Road here.

According to MC officials, the building, Goodwill Complex, had been construction in violation of the approved building plan and building bylaws. A challan was issued by the civic body and a composition fee of over Rs 24 lakh was imposed on the builder, which was not forthcoming.

A team of officials of the MC building branch, led by the Municipal Town Planner, Mr P.K. Garg, along with men and machines and police force, came to the site today morning and made it known to the builder that in the event of non-payment of composition fee, the part of the complex, raised in violation of the bylaws would be demolished. After the builder showed his reluctance to pay the outstanding amount of the composition fee, the MC staff got down to its assigned task. The demolition work was still on till the filing of this report.

Fresh dengue case reported
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, October 18
District health officials today confirmed one fresh case of dengue. With this, the total number of patients has gone up to four.

According to health department officials, 21-year-old Satnam Singh, a resident of Hira Nagar, has tested positive for dengue and has been admitted to a city hospital.

Dr S.N.Tiwari, Civil Surgeon, said that other two patients were admitted on October 8 and 10. He said that these were the sporadic cases and there was no need to panic.

“Two patients, Shankar Kumar and Vivek Aggarwal, have been admitted to Oswal Hospital and Christian Medical College and Hospital, respectively. Third patient was a five-year-old child from Una, Himachal Pradesh”, said Dr Tiwari.

Meanwhile, the Civil Surgeon has appealed to the city residents to take preventive measures to deal with the dengue threat. “People should drain out the water from desert coolers, tanks, barrels and drums etc. All water containers should be properly covered. Repellant coils, electric vapour mats should be used even during day time”, said Dr Tiwari.

Dr Tiwari also claimed that the department had already sent teams to these areas for further investigations.

Farmers seek paper mill for utilisation
of paddy straw
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, October 18
After failing to find any favourable solution for the disposal of paddy stubble that continues to give farmers, environmentalists and public a tough time, farmers of Pakhowal village near here have jointly appealed to the state government to set up a paper mill in the vicinity of the village so that the paddy straw can be utilised properly.

The farmers, sick of the stubborn straw, disposal of which leads to environmental pollution and loss of nutrients of soil, have shown their inability to handle it in an environment-friendly manner as it costs them extra money and have asked the government to come to their help.

Backed by the Shaheed Bhagat Singh Welfare Society, the farmers of this village have finally decided to find a solution and escape the wrath of environmentalists and general public. While talking to Ludhiana Tribune they said that they really wanted some lasting solution as they were well aware of the fact that burning the stubble caused loss of important minerals from the soil besides polluting the environment.

Mr Charanjit Singh, a farmer and panch of the village, argued that the disposal of the straw without burning meant employing extra labour and irrigation of the fields at least twice. He further said that the paddy straw, unlike wheat, was unmanageable as it was harder. They claimed that rooting it manually required extra time also that meant lesser time for the preparation of fields for the next crop.

The president of Shaheed Bhagat Singh Welfare Society, Dr Devinder Ashok, said that if a paper and card board mill was set up in this village, it would meant relief for farmers of 50 villages that are linked to Pakhowal. He further said that all farmers were ready to sell the straw to the mills and utilise it instead of wasting it.

Dr Devinder also said that a mill of this type in Ahmedgarh had solved the problems of many farmers as they were selling the straw to the mill owner only. Mr Pavittar Singh, another villager, said that there was no problem in the village for setting up a mill. The villagers were ready to provide a piece of land and for helping in the management of the effluents.

Another panch, Mr Shanti Swaroop, said that the farmers were ready to work in cooperation with the mill management if the government wanted a cooperative mill to be set up. The mill would help in management of straw besides providing jobs to scores of poor villagers.

The farmers said that the message for not burning the residue was being conveyed very strongly and they had resorted to burning of straw only under immense fear from the police and administration. They said that although no case was registered against any farmer for doing the same but the fear always lurked on their heads. So they wanted to eliminate this practice once and for all.

COMMUNITY

Shobha yatra to mark Valmiki Jayanti
Our Correspondent

The shobha yatra would commence from Daresi Ground and pass through Old Sabzi Mandi Chowk, Partap Bazar chowk, Mata Rani Chowk, Clock Tower Chowk, Chaura Bazar, Girja Ghar Chowk, Div No 3 chowk and Islamia School Road before concluding at Ghati Valmiki Brahmalaya in Basti Jodhewal. The entire route of the shobha yatra, added Mr Danav, would be decorated and welcome gates and arches would be put up by the residents as well as social and religious bodies. Besides more than 300 tableaux, based on teachings of Bhagwan Valmiki and Ramayan, the shobha yatra would comprise of band and gatka parties, bhajan and kirtan ‘mandlies’ and groups of school children.

Railmen protest against denial of DA
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, October 18
In response to a call given by the All-India Railway mens’ Federation, activists of the Northern Railway mens’ Union today held gate meetings and demonstrations in front of their respective offices to protest against the government move to freeze dearness allowance (DA), denial of bonus and other ‘anti-employees’ policies. Later, the protesting employees took out a protest march from the Jagraon Bridge to the Railway Station here where a rally was also organised.

Addressing the rally, trade union leaders, including Mr Daljit Singh, assistant divisional secretary, NRMU, Mr Sat Pal Singh, Mr Paramjit Singh, Mr Raj Kumar and Mr Ghansham Singh, lambasted the government for giving effect to various policies which were detrimental to the interests of the employees. Moves like freezing DA, denial of bonus, leave encashment and new pension policies came under sharp criticism.

Demanding that all anti-employees decisions should be withdrawn the Railway men threatened to launch a massive agitation if the government continued its unjust and arbitrary policies.

Meanwhile, more than two crore employees and pensioners of Central and state governments, across the country, were up in arms against the Union Government’s move either to freeze the DA at the existing level of 49 per cent of the basic pay and pension or adopt graded neutralisation of price-rise at the rate of 75 per cent and 50 per cent in place of current 100 per cent, which was in operation from 1.1.96 as recommended by the 5th Central Pay Commission. As a result, the instalment at the rate of 3 per cent due from July this year either would not be paid at all or slashed to 75 and 50 per cent.’

Stating this in a press release here yesterday, Mr Yash Pal Ghai, Additional General Secretary, Government Pensioners Association, observed that the move was highly deplorable, harsh and unjust. It would adversely affect the monthly budget of low-paid staff and employees and pensioners would oppose it tooth and nail.

He further said that freezing of DA would be a blatant deviation from the pattern being followed by the Central Government for the last 30 years in the matter of granting DA to neutralise the price rise. The government must realise that DA was not a charity but a compensation for price rise. In the name of fair play, the association urged the Union Government to scrap this ‘ugly proposal’ and release the DA installment due from July this year before Divali.

Troop withdrawal cheers up families
Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, October 18
The decision of the Cabinet Committee on Security to withdraw troops from the border has brought cheers to the hundreds of families of the defence personnel living in different localities of the city. “It has lit up our lives and it could not have come at a better time when we are preparing for Divali”, remarked the doctor wife of a Captain, who is putting up at the Dolewal Chowk here and whose husband is posted somewhere in the Gurdaspur sector.

There are hundreds of families living in various Army colonies and private houses whose kin are posted on the border in Rajasthan, Punjab and Kashmir for nearly a year. The unilateral initiative by the Indian Government has not only been welcomed, but also been termed as “the right step in the right direction” that will now put Pakistan on the defensive.

It has been about a year now, since Captain Sandhu (not his real name) was asked to pack up for a forward assignment after the terrorist attack on the Parliament House in New Delhi in December 2001. Since then his young wife and small child had to live alone with some occasional and brief visits from Captain Sandhu. The family awaits him, obviously with much and long borne impatience.

It was not all that smooth and simple. Because, another wife of the Army officer pointed out, it was not a routine posting but an emergency deployment. “Anything could happen anytime and everything so uncertain”, she recalled with a sense of relief. At one stage it appeared that war was imminent, she said. “But would console myself that people emerge victorious only after fighting a war”, she recounted with a smile, while adding that, “luckily we were victorious without fighting a one”.

World Food Day function
Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, October 18
The Community Food and Nutrition Extension Unit of the Food and Nutrition Board, Ludhiana, observed World Food Day on October 16 under the theme ‘Water sources of food security’ at Anganwadi Worker’s Training Centre, Jeevan Preet Colony, Ludhiana.

An exhibition was organised on this occasion. Banners, posters, laminated panels, diet charts for children, nursing mothers and pregnant women were on display. An essay-writing competition on ‘Water sources of food security’ was also held. About 35 persons participated in it. Ms Simrandeep Kaur, Ms Renu Bala and Ms Rajesh Kumari bagged the first, second and the third prizes, respectively.

A film highlighting causes of malnutrition and its prevention, diarrhoea and its management, importance of safe drinking water and sanitation was also screened.

CRIME

Man gets 4-yr RI for kidnapping minor girl
A Correspondent

His silence and inaction in the matter showed that he had nothing to say and his accusations of false implication lacked merit, observed the judge, and awarded the punishment.