Amritsar, November 29
The lethal aspect of the Chinese string once again came to the fore with a 13-year-old girl from Batala sustaining a grievous throat injury. She had to be admitted in a private hospital here. Her throat was slit by a stray plastic string, which badly damaged her throat, its muscles and veins. She bled profusely before her admission to the hospital. The victim, identified as Jaskaran Kaur, was operated upon in the evening and is stated to be out of danger.

Surjinderjit Singh, the father of the victim, said Jaskaran was on the roof of the house when the incident took place at around 8.30 am.

“I heard the cries of my daughter, who was shouting for help. I immediately went to the roof top only to find her bleeding profusely. A plastic Chinese string was dangling on the roof. I immediately took her to a hospital, which further referred her to Amritsar,” said Suriderjit Singh, who is an Assistant Sub-Inspector, attached with the Senior Superintendent of Police, Batala.

Dr Mahipal Singh, who is attending to the victim, said her condition was serious at the time of her admission to the hospital. There was a deep cut on her throat and she was bleeding profusely. She was operated upon in the evening and was now out of danger. We had kept her under observation for the next 72 hours, he added.

The incident has once again highlighted the problem due to the use of hazardous Chinese plastic string. Earlier, too, there were instances in which local residents sustained injuries while driving two-wheelers due to the plastic string. The district administration has banned the sale and the use of this string for kite flying in view of these instances. The Gurdaspur administration has also banned its use and sale. However, it continued to be sold without much resistance, if the recent incident is anything to go by.

The district administration had directed the SDMs, tehsildars and naib tehsildars to curb the sale of the lethal string, which becomes very sharp after it is stretched during flying of kites. Besides, it has also asked police officials to initiate action against those who indulge in its use and sale.

Gurbhej Singh, a local resident, said the ban order should be implemented in letter and in spirit. Till now, the administration has failed to check the problem.

Amritsar, November 29
With no end in sight to the stalemate and the authorities failing to find alternative dumping sites, the Municipal Corporation is now shifting garbage from the pockets of Bhagtanwala, which fall near the residential localities.

Mayor Bakshi Ram Arora said as many as six ditch machines had been pressed in service to remove the garbage from near the localities at the dumping site. He said the space was now being covered with earth. Besides, pesticides are being sprayed to turn the place into an infection-free area.

He claimed that resuming of lifting of garbage from the walled city would start from Monday. He said soon garbage lifting would be a regular feature. When asked where the garbage would be dumped, he refused to divulge the location.

Apparently, the Municipal Corporation, giving in to the demands of the residents of the Bhagtanwala area, took these steps. Earlier, the MC had sought 15 days’ time to sprinkle anti-bacterial spray and lay sand over the dumpyard.

However, the civic conditions in the walled city were deteriorating every day. Abandoned heaps of garbage, dotting the city’s narrow, winding streets are rotting every day. These mounds of garbage are releasing bad odour and stink.

Heaps of garbage are attracting stray animals, which not only creates a nuisance but also poses a risk to those commuting in narrow lanes.

“Packs of dogs and stray cows are loitering in the streets like never before,” said Raman Mahajan, a shopkeeper in the walled city. He said the scenario created a dangerous environment for the residents and the passersby. With the ban on rearing cows inside the walled city in force for the past many years, stray dogs are no longer used to living with large animal like cows. Packs of dogs often bark at these cows, eating at garbage heaps. Many a time these cows lose calm and start running in narrow streets, endangering the lives of people walking on the streets.

A resident of the Lohgarh area, Harjit Singh, said, “The fear of epidemic looms and each hour is an ordeal to live here.”

Heaps of refuse are dotting the roads. Vehicles and commuters litter the narrow roads with refuse all over. Harjit Singh added that many roads had become slippery and vehicles were skidding off the roads. At places, open drains were overflowing over the roads.

Amritsar, November 29
Family members of Inderjit Singh Bittu, who was shot at by Special Weapon and Tactics (SWAT) team near the Attari International railway station yesterday, today demanded that he be shifted to a good private hospital for better treatment. The family said the government should bear the expenses of his treatment.

Crying foul over the way the situation was handled by the authorities, they claimed Bittu was not in possession of any firearms and that policemen should have arrested him instead of shooting him. He is fighting for his life in the intensive care unit of Guru Nanak Dev Hospital.

They admitted that he was a drug addict but said he must have been frightened to see the police. Kiran Sanan, Bittu’s sister, claimed that his brother was not a criminal. He used to sell water bottles near the Attari check post during the retreat ceremony in order make his both ends meet. “Now, who will look after my mother?” she questioned.

Rinku alleged that the police team shot at him and two others without any provocation. “The police should have fired in the air rather than shooting at him,” she said. The family threatened to launch an agitation outside the hospital if anything happened to Bittu.

Besides Bittu, the police had arrested another youth, Saleem, after an alleged cross-fire near the railway station. Their third accomplice had managed to escape.

Manohar Lal, Superintendent of Police (Detective), who headed the investigation, had said the three accused had fired at them, following which the police team retaliated in self-defence. He had said they had received a tip-off that some armed persons were hiding at a school near the railway station and they might create some law and order problem during the retreat ceremony at the Attari-Wagah joint check post. The security agencies were already on high alert after the suicide bomb attack at Wagah on the Pakistan side earlier this month.

The police claimed to have seized a .32-bore pistol with three live cartridges from the possession of the accused. A case under the Arms Act was registered against them.

A police official said during the medical examination, Bittu was found to be infected with HIV. He said investigation was on.

Amritsar, November 29
The Kotwali police have booked the Chinese national, identified as Thaminder Anand, for allegedly hurting the sentiments of the Sikh community.

The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) has lodged a complaint with the city police against the accused for allegedly publishing Guru Granth Sahib in an illegal manner. It urged the police to identify the culprit involved in the act. In the complaint submitted to the Kotwali police, SGPC secretary Manjit Singh had alleged that the accused might be an Indian national, who had created a fake e-mail ID for the purpose. He urged the police to register an FIR against the culprit after a proper investigation through the cyber cell.

The Kotwali police have registered a case under Section 295-A (Deliberate and malicious act, intended to outrage religious sentiments of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) of the Indian Penal Code against the culprit.

The SGPC had received information from an America-based Sikh devotee that he had found a person, who claimed himself to be a Chinese national and was involved in publishing Guru Granth Sahib. In the e-mail — Sikhlink.com — the Chinese national claimed to supply the holy scripture by the air or the sea route. 

Amritsar, November 29
The Regional Passport Office has announced that it would get FIRs registered against applicants submitting fake birth certificates.

Regional Passport Officer JS Sodhi said apart from the FIR, the applicant would be barred from submitting a fresh application for five years. The new code would be effective from December 1.

Earlier, the passport office had barred such applicants from filing a fresh application for three years. However, after the authorities found that thousands of fake certificates had been submitted, they have stepped in efforts to deal with it strictly.

Sodhi said people should get their certificate verified from the issuing authorities after they receive the certificate. “We have come across 5,000 applicants, whose birth certificates attached were fake,” said Sodhi.

Recently, the department had sent around 1,500 birth certificates to the local Civil Surgeon’s office for verification, out of which 679 were found fake. Sodhi said fake passports were detected with applications from other districts also.

He said it is the duty of the applicant to ascertain the credibility of a document before submitting it with the application for passport. He said the system at the passport office was such that no fake document could pass the test. — TNS

Amritsar, November 29
Unhinged by the acts of terror and political indifference across the borders, Saanjh, the annual Amritsar- Lahore peace festival, became a platform for Indian and Pakistani artistes to promote peace through music and cultural exchange. Inaugrating the festival, Punjab Governor Shivraj Patil stated that indiscriminate acts of terror along the international boundary had led to immense tragedies and inexplicable pain for the sea of humanity on both sides of the border. He endorsed the need for establishing peace through art and artistes and raised the slogan, “Let’s give peace a chance”.

Saanjh: 11th Amritsar-Lahore Festival was organised at Spring Dale Senior School with the collaborative efforts of ‘Punarjyot’ and its Lahore-based counterpart Rafi Peer Theater Workshop (RPTW). “In the struggle for dominance between principalities and powers, it’s the common masses who suffer the most, irrespective of the fact that their hearts yearn for peace and bonhomie,” said the Governor while addressing the gathering. Patil congratulated the organisers of Saanjh that the peace initiative had entered its 11th year. “We hope that a day will come when the efforts of the organisers of Saanjh at uniting hearts on both sides of the border will bear fruit and there will be peace in the region,” he said.

The audience, too, enjoyed the evening with acclaimed Pakistan artistes, including Mian Meeri Qawal, Sain Zahoor, now an internationally acclaimed folk singer from Pakistan, Wahadat Rameez and Krishan Lal Bheel. They shared the stage on this occasion with Indian performer Dhruv Sangari, a budding singer of Coke studio fame. The function started with the blessings of S S Sandhu, Chairman, Spring Dale Educational Society.

“Saanjh is all about spreading peace, which is violated every now and then by mindless acts of terror. My parents along with Faizaan Peerzada, former COO, Rafi Peer Theatre Workshop, Lahore, ignited this candle to teach people to live and let others live. It is not only my pleasure and prerogative to keep this flame aloft and ignited, but also mine and my team’s desire to take initiatives that can help in making Saanjh more effective,” said Dr Kirat Sandhu Cheema, director, Punarjyot.

Meanwhile, Sain Zahoor thanked the Indian fans and said that it’s always special to perform at Saanjh. “The two countries celebrate a shared culture and roots and it becomes important to sustain the people-to-people contacts through art.” Belonging to the breed of street artistes performing at shrines and dargahs, Zahoor transported the audience with his simple and intense performance of the Sufi kalam. The Pakistani folk artist, Id, among the most celebrated Sufi performers at international festivals, was the highlight of the evening.

Amritsar, November 29
The "faulty" construction of roads in various parts of the city is posing a serious threat to commuters, many of whom have met with accidents in the past few days. The authorities have constructed roads partially, leaving them uneven, thus leading to mishaps.

The worst-affected are those stretches that are being covered under the ambitious BRTS project. Although, the project aims to decongest the city roads and ease the flow of traffic, at present it is causing inconvenience to the commuters and jeopardising their life. A total of seven corridors covering 31 km have been proposed for the city with median side double docking stations (Atari Road-ISBT to India Gate via Bhandari Bridge, GNDU and Chheharta (12 km), Jalandhar Road-ISBT to MCA Gate via Tarawalan Pul (6 km), and Verka Road-ISBT to Verka via Hussainpura Bridge and GT Road bypass (13 km)). The dismal state of affairs is visible on all these roads.

Surjit Singh, a resident, said a similar situation exists on the stretch between Court Chowk and Anand Avenue. He said Ranjit Avenue, Green Avenue and Anand Avenue are located on this stretch and the roads connected these localities to the main road bring in a heavy flow of traffic. Uneven patches in the middle of the road obstruct the smooth ride, resulting in accidents, he said.

Gurbaksh Singh Sahota, a resident of Pratap Nagar, said his shop was situated on the GT Road. He said the uneven patches result in frequent skidding of vehicles. He said the authorities must look into the matter and repair the roads.

Amritsar, November 29
The Hope Trust, an organisation working for de-addiction, during its visit to various parts of the state, has found that heroine abuse among residents of border areas is as high as 75 per cent.

Rahul Luther and Rajeshwari Luther, directors of the Hyderabad-based trust said, “The age group of 15 to 25 years is the most vulnerable. Apart from border areas, heroine and alcohol are widely prevalent substances in the state.” Rahul said on an average one death due to drug overdose was reported in the state every week.

Rahul said the Hope Trust planned to open a rehabilitation centre in the state. He said de-addiction required competent medical and psychiatric back-up. The trust members had held interaction with doctors, psychiatrists, counsellors, social workers and conducted field visits of various rehab centres, active in the state.

Amritsar, November 29
The Border Security Force, under its civic action programme, today organised a medical check-up and blood donation camp at Government Girls High School in Attari. About 50 jawans and officials donated blood at the camp while hundreds of students and villagers were checked and given free medicines.

JK Birdi, Commandant, BSF, while speaking on the occasion, said the BSF would celebrate its golden jubilee on December 1. He said in association with the panchayat of Attari village, a coaching centre would be opened.

Amritsar, November 29
A team of the 7 Battalion, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Bathinda, conducted mock-drill exercises for the participants of the ongoing refresher course in disaster management (ID) at the Academic Staff College of Guru Nanak Dev University.

The event was held under the guidance of Inspector/GT Pintoo Yadav.

A team of 47 NDRF personnel exhibited life-saving exercises, which were appreciated by teachers and spectators. The NDRF came into existence in 2009 following the enactment of the National Disaster Management Act-2005.

The team also showcased various types of gadgets, equipment, and other paraphernalia, which played a major role in the relief and rescue operations. They demonstrated the relief and rescue skills in the aftermath of any disaster, be it natural or man made.

The three-hour exercise was watched by one and all with abated breath. The team demonstrated rescue operations, which can be effective and beneficial in saving lives after a chemical disaster, earthquake or floods. Amongst the many exercises, which captivated the audience, was the “helisladdering”.

The event motivated participant teachers, who felt prepared and trained to grapple challenges in the aftermath of any disaster.

Director, Academic Staff College, Prof Avinash Kaur Nagpal, and Dr Satwinderjeet Kaur thanked the NDRF team for enhancing the participants’ knowledge about various exercises.

Amritsar, November 29
Former DGP Shashi Kant exhorted non-governmental and social organisations to work together to fight against drug menace and land grabbing in the state.

Kant said all NGOs are already working on various issuing concerning people. He said there was a need to join hands to make the movement a formidable force. The former DGP said the movement must remain apolitical and should continue to exert pressure on the government. He accused the government of failing to check the sale and consumption of drugs. Kant also criticised encroachments and grabbing of public and private lands. He said properties of all people, including NRIs, should be saved from land grabbing. The former DGP also visited a centre run by the NGO Mission Aagaaz for Women here. — TNS