Ludhiana, June 30
Snatching has become rampant in the city and three incidents were reported in the past 24 hours.

Two motorcycle-borne miscreants snatched earrings and a handbag from a woman in Sarabha Nagar at 2 pm on Sunday. The incident took place when two women, residents of New Prem Nagar, Ghumar Mandi, were returning home after meeting their relatives in BRS Nagar on a scooter.

The miscreants snatched the earrings and the bag containing around Rs 9,000 from Tripta, who was riding pillion. The women suffered injuries in the process.

Manjit Singh, additional SHO of the Sarabha Nagar police station said: “We have registered a case against unidentified snatchers.”

In another incident, two motorcyclists snatched a handbag from a woman, Renu Gupta, a resident of a resident of Punjab Mata Nagar on Pakhowal Road, on Saturday evening.

The complainant said she was on her way back home from the Sarabha Nagar market at 4.30 pm when two motorcyclists snatched her handbag containing a diamond bracelet, Rs 6,000 a PAN card and some other important documents.

In a separate incident, two unidentified miscreants snatched a gold chain from a resident of Modal Town Extension. The complainant, Surinder Kumar Singla, said when he was standing outside his house, a youth snatched his gold chain. He fled with his accomplice who was waiting for him on a motorcycle. 

Ludhiana, June 30
The Ludhiana Improvement Trust (LIT) has not recovered Rs 9.53 crore from allottees of various development schemes on account of hike in reserve price of land and flats. It has also failed to take action against defaulters and officials responsible for the lapse.

The information was provided by the LIT to the Council of RTI Activists under the Right to Information Act.

The LIT stated that the reserve price of residential plots in the 475 acre Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar scheme was enhanced by Rs 91 per square yard, 100 acre Dr Kitchlu Nagar Scheme by Rs 199 per square yard and 256 acre Rishi Valmiki Nagar scheme by Rs 235.4 per square yard. Similarly, the reserve price of HIG and Super HIG flats in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar was also enhanced.

“After adopting a resolution, public notices were published in newspapers in December 2012 asking the allottees to deposit the enhanced amount of the reserve price within 30 days. The allottees were also cautioned that in case of default in payment, action would be taken against them which could even lead to the cancellation of their allotment,” the information provided by the LIT under the RTI Act stated.

The LIT authorities said after the mandatory period of 30 days had elapsed, Rs 2,08,22.519 was unpaid by the allottees in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar, Rs 31,50,000 by the allottees of HIG and Super HIG flats in the same scheme, Rs 3,23,69,175 was outstanding against the allottees in Dr Kitchlu Nagar while allottees in Rishi Valmiki Nagar owed Rs 3,90,20,623.

The Trust has not taken action against the defaulters. The responsibility of the staff cannot be fixed as the employees are transferred in routine, the LIT stated.

Rohit Sabharwal, president and Arvind Sharma, secretary of the Council of RTI Activists, in a complaint to the Principal Secretary, Local Government, Punjab, demanded that action as per rules be taken against the staff and officials who were responsible for the non-recovery of the amount. 

Information obtained under the Right to Information Act reveals that the reserve price of residential plots in the 475 acre Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar scheme was enhanced by ~91 per square yard, 100 acre Dr Kitchlu Nagar Scheme by ~199 per square yard and 256 acre Rishi Valmiki Nagar scheme by ~235.4 per square yard. Similarly, the reserve price of HIG and Super HIG flats in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar was also enhanced

Mandi Ahmedgarh, June 30
A majority of candidates in fray for the posts of panch and sarpanch in Dehlon and Pakhowal blocks are violating the election code of conduct to woo voters.

Contestants are wooing voters with liquor, cold drinks, eatables and expensive articles. They are also doling out financial aid to religious and social organisations.

Those contesting election to the posts of sarpanch and panch are not allowed to spend more than Rs 23,500 and Rs 16,000. But most of the candidates have already crossed the limit.

In cases where incumbents were elected unanimously, a large amount of money was spent or donated to religious organisations.

Supporters of a candidate from Hargobind Nagar village alleged that some candidates contesting for the posts of sarpanch were spending lakhs to woo voters. Liquor and drugs were also being supplied.

Investigations revealed that voters were being offered anything between Rs 1,500 and 2,500. Large families and clans were being offered valuables and expensive durables.

A family of 28 voters working with a commission agent is learnt to have declined the offer of a candidate to install a submersible pump. While the candidate believed that the offer was declined for a better bargain, the family argued that it would support the candidate their master (commission agent) supported.

Heads of families are being made to swear in the name of deities they worship. To make the contract more reliable, supporters are taking the head of families to religious places.

Cold drinks, sweets and junk food were being offered to women and children in villages.

Chanan Chaudhary, a co-partner of a sweets shop, said some candidates had purchased samosas and sweets to be distributed among children and women at Maherna village. Some candidates have even engaged sweetmeat makers for preparing sweets and snacks at their homes.

A total of 171 candidates are in the fray for the posts of sarpanch in the Dehlon block and 104 in the Pakhowal block. As many as 950 candidates are in the fray for the posts of panch and 557 for the post of sarpanch in these blocks. 

Ludhiana, June 30
Bicycle is going to be costlier from July 15. Bicycle makers have decided to raise prices by 8 per cent in view of rising input cost. The depreciation of the rupee against the dollar has also increased the manufacturing cost.

The price of nickel, copper, brass and stainless steel has increased after depreciation of the rupee. Manufacturers say there has been nearly 10 per cent increase in the cost of production.

“There are various factors that are forcing us to increase the prices. These include depreciation of the rupee, hike in the prices of petrol and diesel and 30 per cent import duty on cycles,” said Gurmeet Singh Kular, president of the United Cycle and Parts Manufacturers’ Association.

According to rough estimates, the cycle which used to cost around Rs 3,000 would now be priced at Rs 3,265.

Jagtar Singh, a cycle parts’ manufacturer, said 95 per cent of the cycles manufactured in Ludhiana are exported to other states. The transportation cost has increased and we are forced to hike the prices of bicycle.

Ludhiana, June 30
Jewellers have a reason to cheer as the gold prices recovered from a 23-month low by surging Rs 780 to Rs 26,430 per 10 grams in the bullion market.

Silver also jumped to Rs 41,000 per kg on increased off-take by industrial units and coin makers. “We are hopeful that the price of gold will be normal as we have witnessed very hard days in the past. We hope that the prices are back to normal and customers start pouring in,” said Ram Kishen, a jeweller.

“Usually, people start buying the commodity if price goes down, but it is not so with gold as people start waiting for the prices to go down,” said another jeweller at Ghumar Mandi.

Meanwhile, customers seemed worried due to fluctuating prices of the yellow metal. “The prices of gold fluctuate too often. I want to buy gold jewellery for my daughter's wedding and now think I should not delay it," said Rama Jindal, a city resident. 

Ludhiana, June 30
To get a scanning fee of Rs 20 deposited for a driving licence at the District Transport Office here, an applicant is asked to shell out up to Rs 50 by those sitting with laptops/computers at Mini-Secretariat. As the scanning fee has to be deposited online and there is no facility available for the visitors to pay the fee at the Suvidha Centre here. Those sitting outside (the agents) ask visitors to pay anything between Rs 30 and 50 to get the fee deposited with the state government.

Kuldeep Kumar, a resident, said that he had to get his driving license renewed for which a scanning fee of Rs 20 had to be paid online.

"Since I had all the documents in my hand, the attendant at the Suvidha Centre asked me to deposit the scanning fee. I was told that it could not be deposited manually. At the Suvidha Centre, too, the fee was not deposited by the attendant. I came out and asked one of the agents to get it deposited. He got my work done and took Rs 40. I had no other option but to pay the fee both to the government and the agent", rued the visitor.

Most of the visitors said that they came to know about the fee only after coming to the Suvidha Centre. "If we knew about it earlier, we could have deposited the fee from home. With all the documents in our hands it becomes difficult to go back home or to other places to get the scanning fee deposited. We have no other option but to ask the agents to get our work done and they charge for it ", said Tarlochan Singh, another visitor.

Recently, the department has started the online challan facility for the residents to save them from unnecessary botheration, but "exploitation" by the agents at government offices goes on right under the nose of the authorities.

Despite repeated attempts, Anil Garg, DTO, could not be contacted for comments. 

Ludhiana, June 30
The price of vegetables and fruits continue to rise due to rain which disrupted the movement of vegetables from one state to another. The prices are expected to come back to normal only once the monsoons are over.

Tomatoes have gone up to Rs 50 per kg while onions are priced at Rs 30 per kg. Homemakers have switched over to tomato purees, ginger and garlic pastes to maintain their budget.

"I cannot imagine myself buying tomatoes for Rs 50 per kg, so I have switched to purees now. I have cut down my consumption of tomatoes and am waiting for the prices to go back to normal," said Ritika, a homemaker from Aggar Nagar.

"Rains are to blame for the incessant increase in prices of vegetables and fruits. Two days ago onions were priced at Rs 20, but today they are being sold at Rs 30. Tomatoes are also priced at Rs 50. The prices of vegetables depend upon the supply," said Azhar Khan, a vegetable vendor at the Civil Lines.

Ludhiana, June 30
Kuljit Pal Singh Mahi, SDM (West), has said that on June 26, during the rehearsals for the elections at both Ludhiana I and Pakhowal blocks, a large number of employees remained absent from duties. Taking a tough stand against those who took their duties lightly, Mahi warned that if these employees failed to make it to the final rehearsals on July 2 at Guru Nanak Dev Bhawan, then strict action would be taken against them.

An FIR will be registered against such employees and departmental action will be taken. He said that all were government servants and the duties had to be performed by all. 

Ludhiana June 30
Supporters of Independent Councillor Daljit Grewal (Bhola) of Ward 8 organised a protest rally on the Tajpur Road here today.

A large number of supporters gathered at the rally and raised slogans against Akali MLA Ranjit Singh Dhillon. The irked demonstrators burnt the effigy of Ranjit Singh Dhillon on the second day.

Amar Singh, a supporter of Bhola Grewal, said, "We will not calm down till the police does not register a case against Ranjit Singh Dhillon.

The police did not take any action on the complaint of Bhola supporters". Avtar Singh, another supporter, said, "Government should release Councillor Bhola soon. The police cases on Bhola Grewal and his supporters are fake and politically motivated.

Ashwani, another supporter, said, "It is not justified to put someone behind bars by registering fake cases. We demand the release the Bhola".

Bhola was arrested for attempt to murder case on last Sunday, following a clash between his supporters and Akali workers at Shakti Nagar. 

Ludhiana June 30
An astrologer, Satpal Sharma, who was injured when a wall collapsed at Mata Rani Chowk, died due to multiple injuries at Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) this morning.

The victim was admitted to DMCH soon after the accident and doctors said that his condition was critical. He died at 11 am on Sunday. The deceased used to work as an astrologer at Gali Roopa Mistri, Sangla Wal Shival in the old city area. He had come to a hotel to settle a marital dispute.

Meanwhile, the policemen at Police Station Division No.1 booked the owner of the hotel for negligence and constructing an illegal wall on the roof top of the hotel.

Surinder Mohan, SHO, Police Station Division No.1, said, "The victim Satpal Sharma did not recover from the injuries. We have registered a case against the owner of the hotel for negligence under Section 304-A of the IPC".

The wall had collapsed in the crowded Mata Rani Chowk area due to high velocity winds yesterday afternoon. The boundary wall on the fifth floor of the hotel fell on him. One of his associates had a narrow escape.

In the second incident of wall collapse at Tibba Road yesterday, the police at Basti Jodhewal Police Station registered a case of negligence and illegal construction of wall against Amandeep Singh, owner of Hari Om Factory, Bahadurke Road.

Ludhiana, June 30
Even after the destruction of his ancestral property in flash floods and some of his relatives still missing, an Uttarkashi resident is hopeful of rebuilding his ancestral house.

Sharing his nightmare with The Tribune, 45-year-old Dashratth Raj, who has been living in the city for the past 20 years, said: "I never expected that one day I will receive a call from my younger brother that the place where we were born and brought up had been damaged."

It was on June 17 when Dashratth Raj's brother Lakshmi Parasad called him to tell that flood water had destroyed their ancestral house at Badesi.

Dashratth Raj, who is a pujari at Shri Sheetla Mandir, BRS Nagar, said his brother and family had moved to a safer place in Uttarkashi, but they had seen horrifying scenes of death and destruction all around them.

The very next day, Dashratth Raj boarded a rain to Haridwar in order to meet his family. "On reaching there, I saw that Ganga had been flooded. I felt very sad about my ancestral house, when I got to know that all the roads leading to it had been badly damaged. So I talked to my family members on phone and had to return to Ludhiana without meeting them."

Dashratth said his mother, Prema Devi, and father, Mukand Ram, were at home along with his two sister-in-laws and their children when the tragedy happened. His two brothers were working in the fields at that time.

"My brother told me that a government representative made an announcement, asking the people to evacuate their houses immediately, as flood water was about to enter the village. All my family members rushed to Uttarkashi, where we have another house. They, however, could not carry any items from the ancestral home with them. Next day, my family members visited the ancestral house and saw big cracks in the house. Our neighbours' house, however, was completely washed away," said the priest.

Reconciling with the situation is not easy for Dashratth Raj. "My family members told me that there was flood water everywhere; many people were crying for help and many drowned in front of their eyes. We, too, lost one of our relatives, Kailash Vyas, during the floods. We keep watching different television channels throughout the day, so that we may get to know about his whereabouts, he said.

Despite of all these odds, he is still optimistic of reconstructing his ancestral home. With a mix of despair and hope in his eyes said, "We are six brothers, and will definitely reconstruct our five-room ancestral house."

Ludhiana, June 30
The Master Cadre Union has flayed the seniority list prepared by the State Education Department.

It was unfortunate that discrepancies were still there in the fresh seniority list released by the Punjab government, said the representatives of Master Cadre Union.

At a meeting held here, the union members said most of the columns representing teachers were empty.

“On what basis and critera the government prepared the seniority list is also not known,” they said.

The union members said instead of releasing such "bogus" lists, the department must release the actual list, so that the deserving teachers could get promotions.

Those who attended the meeting included Dharamjit Singh Dhillon, Bharat Bhushan, Harjinder Singh, Jagrup Singh and Sukhdev Chandel. 

Jagraon, June 30
The joint struggle initiated by the area residents and various non-governmental organisations for setting up a fire brigade station here finally paid off when local MLA SR Kaler today handed over a cheque for Rs 50 lakh for the project to the Municipal Council officials.

Area residents had been demanding the setting up of a fire brigade station for the past several years, but their efforts failed to yield any result until now. A fire incident at a local departmental store had intensified the demands.

While speaking to the media persons, Kaler said Rs 35 lakh would be spent on purchasing the fire brigade vehicle. The remaining amount would be used for construction of the building for parking the vehicle. The salaries of the employees would be paid by the civic body, he said.

Besides the fire brigade station, Kaler has also managed to get the sanction of the state government for setting up a blood bank in Jagraon.

Ludhiana, June 30
Protesting rural health and veterinary staff, pharmacists, paramedical workers and Class IV employees have now pinned their hopes on the meeting with Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal scheduled at his residence on July 5.

The meeting, scheduled for today, was later postponed. The pharmacists have been protesting against meager salaries.

Ludhiana, June 30
Although the social media is blamed for keeping us unnecessarily busy and increasing our stress levels due to information overload, jokes and comic videos shared on these platforms often bring smiles on our faces and give relief from ennui.

As International Joke Day follows Social Media Day tomorrow, city residents say jokes are must in a fast-paced and stressful life.

"Jokes bring a smile and are essential for cultivating a sense of humour," says Amardeep Singh, a resident.

Like an interesting story, jokes cultivate emotions, surprise us, make us laugh, and are a great blessing. "I consider jokes a part of literature, as they have roots in our culture," says Sumit, a teacher.

"I receive at least two jokes a day on various social media apps on my smartphone. Although I get irritated with the influx of messages sometimes, jokes are like a silver lining. I share them with my colleagues to lighten up the conversation," says Ritesh, a businessman.

Sometimes the jokes are insightful, the form of such humour called satire. A lot of political jokes belong to this category, and are based on facts and truths of life, says Rakesh Jain, a resident of Civil Lines.

"Comedy shows on the television are getting tarnished because of obscene puns. There is a need to cultivate a healthier sense of humour,” says Srishti, a student.

"Jokes being shared on social networking sites can be in a good taste or bad; we need to use our discretion while sharing them further with friends and family,” says Srishti. 

Ludhiana, June 30
With the aim to harness the power of social media, a group of friends from different creative fields has formed a production house to spread constructive ideas and highlight various social issues through short films and documentaries to be shared on various social media platforms.

"With newspapers losing their sheen, and Facebook, Twitter and Whatsapp becoming immensely popular among the youth, we want to use these media to spread our messages among them," said Tripat Dua from Cine World Production.

"The short films will particularly target the youth and children, because they are our future and can bring change," he said.

The production house, which came into being around three months back, has members belonging to creative fields, including singing, music and direction.

"There are many issues that need urgent attention, but nobody is doing much about them. Take for example, education system. The youth, especially those coming out of Punjab board schools and government schools, are not even sure of what career to pursue. However, facility of career counselling is missing, and the youth is directionless," said Dua.

Ludhiana June 29
The city police has nabbed a person with a stolen motorcycle on the Issa Nagri Bridge last evening. The accused has been identified as Raj Kumar resident of Bazigarh Colony, Salem Tabri. Investigation Officer Pakhar Singh got a tip off that accused was in the area. Police set up a check point and arrested the Raj Kumar with the motorcycle.

Hit-and-run case

In an incident of hit-and-run, one person died on Ferozepur Road on June 28. Malkeet Chand, brother-in-law of the victim,said that a car (PB 10 CT 1706) had crushed Ashok Kumar, resident of Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar, in front of Gurdev Hospital on Ferozepur Road. A case was registered at the Sarabha Nagar Police station against the unidentified accused.

Theft

A case has been registered at Salem Tabri police station for stealing gold and cash from the landlord’s house. The accused has been identified as Hardeep Sing, a resident of Muktsar. Complainant Ram, resident of Saroop Nagar, said, the accused had been residing at their house on rent. When he and his wife were not at the home, the accused broke the lock of the room and stole a pair of bangles, a pair of ear rings and Rs 18, 000 from the trunk.

Arrested

The Jamalpur police has nabbed a person from Sunder Nagar Chowk, who is habitual of committing thefts. The accused has been identified as Lovepreet Singh, a resident of Mundian Kala village . The police recovered a laptop and four mobiles from his possession.

Chain snatched

The GRP has registered a case of snatching against unidentified persons on the complaint of Dr Ajay Bhola, a resident of JanakPuri. The victim said he with his family boarded a train to go to Ludhiana on June 5, andWhen the train reached the Dhandari Area three persons posing as ticket checkers snatched his gold chain and fled.

Girl abducted

The city police has registered a case against unidentified person for abducting a girl from the Model Town Extension area on Saturday. The complainant, Vivian Goyal, stated that his 14 -year-old daughter had been missing since 6.30pm. Vivian suspected that a vendor, who used to sell "dosa" near his house, had abducted the girl. The police has registered a case.