The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Delhi and neighbourhood

Jail raid reveals presence of knife
Gurgaon, June 17
The district police today seized a knife and a mobile phone in the course of a raid on the Bhondsi Jail premises, near here.

Govt official shot dead by bike-borne assailants
Ghaziabad, June 17
An assistant officer in the Cabinet Secretariat, New Delhi, was shot dead by bike-borne assailants in Sector 6, Vaishali, while returning home late last evening. His wife, who was injured in the attack, said she suspected an ex-employee of her boutique to be involved in the attack.

Ranbaxy Malwinder Singh receiving the Most Promising Young Corporate Leader Award during the Business & Economy 2006 award function in the Capital on Friday. — A Tribune photograph

Move to close thermal power station comes as a breather
Faridabad, June 17
The reported decision of the state government to shut down the 165 MW thermal power station in the NIT here in the near future seems to have come as a big relief to the local residents who had been clamouring against the acute air pollution caused by this old and outdated coal-based power generation unit being run by the power department of Haryana.

Maternal uncle among five get life for abducting minor
New Delhi, June 17
Five persons, including the maternal uncle of a nine-year-old boy, who was kept in captivity for eight days after being kidnapped for a ransom of Rs 10 lakh, were today awarded life imprisonment by a Delhi court.

One held for murder, robberies
New Delhi, June 17
Delhi Police have arrested one person who was allegedly involved in a number of criminal activities, including murder, attempt to murder, armed robberies and car jacking. The accused has been identified as Vikram Singh (26), a resident of Nangloi.

Fresh showers bring down mercury further
New Delhi, June 17
A fresh spell of rainfall and thundershowers today brought down the mercury in the Capital by nearly five degrees, bringing about a sudden coolness in the weather.

Two youths murdered in Loni
Ghaziabad, June 17
Two youths were brutally murdered near Lal Bagh Colony in Loni and their bodies dumped in the bushes by criminals. The head of one of the killed youths was taken away by the killers.

	Rs 9 lakh, car looted in Noida Our Correspondent Noida, June 17 In a sensational incident, criminals looted Rs 9 lakh belonging to a Sahara para-banking company in a broad daylight opposite R-56 in Sector 11 here yesterday. A company executive with two colleagues was going to deposit cash in PNB Bank in Sector 27. The criminals made the cashier and his colleagues come out of the car by brandishing a revolver and dagger. When the cashier resisted the robbery attempt, he was stabbed and the criminal drove away the car with the moneybag. After half an hour, the abandoned car was recovered from Sector 58 near a Mother Dairy booth by the police. Friday being a closing day, the agents had deposited their cash in the company. Prakash Chand Pathak, the company cashier, along with his colleagues Vinay Srivastava and Kishore Kumar Jha were going in a Maruti car (HR-29AL-4370) to PNB, Sector 27, to deposit Rs 9 lakh cash there. When they came out on the main road from the office, they found a motorbike parked across the road and some stones blocking the road. As Kishore Jha at the wheel stopped the car, three miscreants trained a revolver at the driver and a dagger at Vinay Srivastava sitting on the front seat. The cashier, sitting on the back seat, was pulled out. A tussle ensued for snatching the cash bag. When the cashier resisted, he was stabbed in the back. After wounded him, the criminals snatched the moneybag and drove away in the same car. On being informed, SSP Rathore ordered a vehicle check. The wounded cashier was rushed to Metro Hospital. The police have lifted some fingerprints from the abandoned car found in Sector 56 and questioned the cashier and his colleagues at length.
	Govt to start ‘Tree Protection Helpline’ Tribune News Service New Delhi, June 17 Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has disclosed that her government would soon launch a “Tree Protection Helpline” to provide help in survival of green cover. She was speaking as chief guest in a two-day International Conference on Mitigation of Drought and Desertification organised by an NGO “CARITAS” on the occasion of World Day to Combat Desertification in Delhi. The Chief Minister said that the relation between desertification and drought on the one hand and human influence on the other are complex. She added that the degradation of land due to desertification has a serious compounding effect on drought and thereby reduces the chances of the local people to cope with difficult periods. Mrs Dikshit while mentioning the 1987 drought described it as one of the worst droughts of the century with an overall deficiency of 19 per cent rainfall. It affected 60% of the crop and a population of 285 million. She said, “Looking at its impact on developmental gains, it is becoming crucial for us to work towards mitigating droughts and desertification which requires a long-term planning.” Expressing concern over fast depleting ground water level and ecological imbalances due to fast urbanization, she called upon people to synchronies urban lifestyle with natural lifestyle, which would go a long way to protect and preserve natural resources. Mrs Dikshit exhorted society to work together to face the challenges relating to ecological imbalances, including soil erosion, wasteland, disappearance of species of birds and animals, desertification, drought, indiscriminate cutting of trees, etc.
	DDA makes survey of illegal constructions Syed Ali Ahmed Tribune News Service New Delhi, June 17 The Delhi Development Authority has made a survey of unauthorised constructions carried out from Khidrabad village to Kalindi Kunj. These constructions have become hurdles in the way of constructing a bypass road which will connect DND flyover and Kalindi Kunj Road. To continue the construction of road, the agencies concerned demolished jhuggis and removed other encroachments. The DDA and the MCD wanted to carry out more demolition work as the Delhi High Court ordered that no construction work should be there up to 300 metres distance from the bank of the Yamuna. A few days back both the agencies surveyed the area and found that a minor demolition is required in which a school building owned by a local councillor and a portion of Rehmani madrassa will be demolished. Besides, shops of second-hand furniture will also be demolished. Sources in the DDA said that the maximum demolition work would be done in Batla House, Joga Bai, Zakir Nagar and Khidrabad areas where people had made constructions on the river bed. The government has also planned to take up tree plantation work on the bank of the river after constructing the road. This will be done to beautify the river before the Commonwealth Games to be held in 2010 in Delhi. Sources said that the Delhi government had submitted a representation to the Union Urban Development Ministry to find out the exact location of the river bank and how much area would be demolished. Some areas come under the DDA which is an agency of the Urban Development Ministry. The government was worried as Players Building and New Secretariat of the Delhi government are also located on the river bank. Sources said that now the survey report would be submitted before the Monitoring Committee constituted by the court. The committee will examine the report and submit it to the court.
	Jail raid reveals presence of knife Ravi S. Singh Tribune News Service Gurgaon, June 17 The district police today seized a knife and a mobile phone in the course of a raid on the Bhondsi Jail premises, near here. The detection of the two items is considered to be a sensitive development as it has raised the question of smuggling of the two items to one of the cells. The raid was conducted by a team led by the DSP, Headquarters, Mr Narender Ahlwat, relating to the murder of a youth yesterday near Naya Gaon village falling in the Sohna assembly segment. The last call on the mobile phone of the victim showed that it was made from somewhere around the jail area. According to sources, the caller had told the youth to go to Kadirpur village to collect unspecified money. He was waylaid and murdered by two unidentified persons while he was on way to Kadirpur. The intrusion in the jail is considered to be yet again a major loss of face for the security agencies, especially jail personnel. A raid conducted on the jail about four months back had led to the retrieval of a sim card of a mobile company. A few months back, a criminal had asked for ransom money from a local businessman. A number of cases show that criminals lodged in the jail control the crime racket in Gurgaon. Their main weapon is the mobile phone. The finding of a knife adds another dimension relating to the security of the inmates in the jail. Already there have been two instances, one in the recent past, where the inmates owing allegiance to two gangsters fought with each others. More than 12 persons were injured as a result of this scuffle. The inmates had used iron rods and steel plates folded in the shape of knives.
	Govt official shot dead by bike-borne assailants Parmindar Singh Ghaziabad, June 17 An assistant officer in the Cabinet Secretariat, New Delhi, was shot dead by bike-borne assailants in Sector 6, Vaishali, while returning home late last evening. His wife, who was injured in the attack, said she suspected an ex-employee of her boutique to be involved in the attack. The police, who have arrested one person, said Arvind Kumar, an assistant officer in the Cabinet Secretariat, was living in a first floor flat in an apartment on plot no 131 in Sector 6 Vaishali, with his family. His wife Mamta was running a boutique in the flat. After returning from office, Arvind had gone for shopping to Vasundhra, Sector 6, along with wife Mamta and three-year-old daughter Mansi. When they reached near their house at 7.30 pm, some bike-borne assailants laying in wait for them, fired on Arvind and his wife. Both the assailants had sped away after firing the shots, eyewitnesses said. Arvind, who was hit on the left side of his chest, was rushed to Kaushambi’s Yashoda Hospital where he died a little later. Mamta had a bullet injury on the left hand. SSP Piyush Mordia and SP City Govind Agarwal soon inspected the crime spot and made inquiries. The police said an employee in Mamta’s boutique, who was dismissed a few months ago, had been threatening Arvind of dire consequences. He had even threatened the family the same evening.
	Move to close thermal power station comes as a breather Bijendra Ahlawat Tribune News Service Faridabad, June 17 The reported decision of the state government to shut down the 165 MW thermal power station in the NIT here in the near future seems to have come as a big relief to the local residents who had been clamouring against the acute air pollution caused by this old and outdated coal-based power generation unit being run by the power department of Haryana. The plant, set up way back in the late seventies, is stated to have already crossed the age limit prescribed for such a unit. “This power plant, which had supported the vast industrial and business development in this city over the years, was a main source of air and noise pollution in several parts of the city for the past many years”, said an office-bearer of the Faridabad Small Industries Association (FSIA). He claimed that besides the problem of disposal of coal ash released by the plant the authorities concerned had been finding it difficult to contain air and noise pollution, which had been directly as well as indirectly affecting thousands of residents of nearby sectors and colonies as the plant was located in the heart of the city. The department had been claiming to have spent several crores so far to contain the pollution. However, it is stated that the expenditure on this front had been going up over the years without any positive or fruitful results on the issue. Anil, a resident of NIT here, claimed a dreadfully loud noise was emitted by the boilers of the plant often and at regular intervals and its chimneys could be seen throwing out smoke and ash intermittently, thus polluting the air and atmosphere around. The plant has more than 1500 employees at present, including 800 regular staff, who obviously resent the government move. A spokesperson of the All Haryana Power Workers Union claimed that the plant had been functioning without any major problem, and claimed that it may have been part of the privatisation policy of the government which wanted to hand over power production and supply to private players. According to experts, the plant had been one of several industrial units in the city that had been causing pollution. It is alleged that due to lack of proper action by the officials concerned a majority of the units were still functioning without any check. On the other hand, official records showed that every norm regarding pollution control was in place. There are more than 10000 industrial units in the city and many of these are located in the residential and non-confirming zone. “Faridabad is one of the few cities where several industrial and residential sectors intermingled. This move had also resulted in disadvantages which included pollution, claimed a social activist based here. Holding the local authorities and the Department of Pollution Control responsible for the rising pollution, he said while the violators had hardly been punished or brought to book the bureaucracy, which had served here so far, had done little to contain the menace.

	Maternal uncle among five get life for abducting minor Tribune News Service New Delhi, June 17 Five persons, including the maternal uncle of a nine-year-old boy, who was kept in captivity for eight days after being kidnapped for a ransom of Rs 10 lakh, were today awarded life imprisonment by a Delhi court. Terming the offence as “barbaric and an event which was beyond imagination”, Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Chandra Gupta convicted Ajay Kumar, alias Raju, uncle of victim Ratnesh, Girish Chand, Nahar Singh Yadav, Sarfuddin and Nanhen for abducting and demanding ransom for releasing the boy. The ASJ also imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 each on the convicts as the offences under Sections 363 (kidnapping), 364A (abduction for the ransom), 368 (confining the victim) and 34 (common liability) of the IPC were proved against them. As per the prosecution, Ratnesh, a class IV student and resident of the Khazoori Khas area in East Delhi, was on the evening of September 2, 2001, asked by his uncle Raju to accompany him to a place in the same locality. Later, all other accused, who were waiting for the victim, abducted him from near the traffic signal of Bhajanpura in North-East Delhi. They then took him to a lonely place in a village in Farrukhabad, Uttar Pradesh, and demanded Rs 10 lakh as ransom from the father of the boy. Eight days later, the police, which was tracking the calls made to the boy’s father, raided the hideout of the accused, arrested them and recovered the victim. The prosecution examined 15 witnesses, including the victim who supported the case, to prove the offence.
	One held for murder, robberies Tribune News Service New Delhi, June 17 Delhi Police have arrested one person who was allegedly involved in a number of criminal activities, including murder, attempt to murder, armed robberies and car jacking. The accused has been identified as Vikram Singh (26), a resident of Nangloi. The Crime Branch of Delhi Police got the information that the accused would be coming to Kanjhawala area in northeast district to meet one of his accomplices. Subsequently, a trap was laid at the mentioned spot and the accused was spotted at the given time at Black Pulsar motorcycle. The accused was signalled to stop the bike but seeing the police, he reportedly tried to escape from there. Police said that the accused also opened fire at the police party present there. But the accused was intercepted soon after a brief encounter, police officials claimed. The police also claimed to have recovered one 7.65 mm pistol and five live cartridges from his possession. A case has been registered against the accused. The accused was wanted for criminal activities in Delhi and Haryana districts.
	Fresh showers bring down mercury further Tribune News Service New Delhi, June 17 A fresh spell of rainfall and thundershowers today brought down the mercury in the Capital by nearly five degrees, bringing about a sudden coolness in the weather. The thundershowers and the rain this morning, which followed a squall last night, plummeted the maximum temperature in the Capital to 34.4 degrees Celsius, from 39 degrees C yesterday. The drop to 34.5 degrees C, five degrees below normal, brought about a coolness in the weather. The rain also led to a drop in minimum temperature by four degrees from 22 degrees C yesterday to 18 degrees C today. About 13.6 mm of rainfall was recorded, the weather office said. The rain and the consequent drop in mercury is a welcome relief from the heat wave of the previous week, which saw the mercury shoot above 43 degrees C. Delhi could witness more rainfall later today or tomorrow with the weathermen predicting a generally cloudy sky with rain and thundershowers accompanied by squall during the next 24 hours.
	Two youths murdered in Loni Our Correspondent Ghaziabad, June 17 Two youths were brutally murdered near Lal Bagh Colony in Loni and their bodies dumped in the bushes by criminals. The head of one of the killed youths was taken away by the killers. The police have not been able to trace the missing head of the one of the victims. People going out early in the morning found two bodies in the bushes with deep wounds on face and bodies. A bloodied brick, some stones and clothes were also recovered from near the bodies. There is panic in the whole area with the sensational discovery of the two bodies, one of them being headless. The SO said the victims had been identified as Manoj and Devinder of Mainpuri who were both living in Mustafabad in Delhi. Sagar, a rickshaw-puller, told the police that they were both drunkards. CO Ummed Singh said the police were looking at different angles and soon the murderers would be nabbed.