R E G I O N A L   B R I E F S

PUNJAB

Amritsar
JE HELD: The Vigilance Bureau on Monday arrested Kashmir Singh, junior engineer, Nawanpind subdivision, Punjab State Electricity Board, while he was taking a bribe of Rs 3,000 from Jaimal Singh of Rasulpur Kalan village for replacing a transformer, according to Mr Dilbagh Singh, SSP, Vigilance.

PHOTO EXHIBITION : More than 100 photographs were displayed at an exhibition organised at Thakur Singh Art Gallery here on Monday in the memory of Bhagat Puran Singh, founder of Pingalwara, an institute for the destitute.

Batala
FESTIVAL CONCLUDES: Three-day festival of Janab Gounse Pak concluded here on Sunday. Near 500 persons from Poonch and Rajaouri (J&K) participated. Present head of this sect is Hazrat Iltaf Mohiydeen and the lives in Lahore (Pakistan).

Hoshiarpur
PSEB CRITICISED: The Punjab Ministerial Services Union of the PSEB condemned PSEB authorities for not providing security to cashiers of the board for the safety of cash. It said incident of looting cashiers were increasing. It demanded salary of deceased Mohinder Singh for his remaining service to his kin and jobs for two of his family members.

FORUM’S CONCERN: The Kandi Vikas Forum at a meeting here on Sunday decried criminalisation and politics and wanted the political parties not to enroll criminals as members.

ATTEMPT: Prisoner Amanpreet Singh on Monday made an attempt to escape from the court complex here. Amanpreet was brought from the district jail to produce in a court. The police has registered a case under Sections 224 and 511 of the IPC against Amanpreet.

Nawanshahr
10 HELD: Mr M.F. Farooqui, SSP, said here on Monday said that Shelo wife of Mehnga Ram of Langroya, Ashok Kumar, son of Hari Chand, resident of Aur, Bansho wife of Dev Raj of Jabbowal, Raj Kumar son of Beeru Ram of Asron were arrested and 26 kg of poppy husk seized from them. The police also arrested Sukhjit Singh son of Piara Singh of Kariam, Amandip son of Shingara Ram of Lodhipur and Parveen Kumar son of Bhag Singh, Nai Abadi, here and a pistol and five cartridges recovered from them. He added Vijay Kumar, Hira Lal and Sudhir Kumar, residents of local Balmiki Mohalla were arrested on the charge of gambling and Rs 7000 recovered from them.

Pathankot
ACCIDENT: Suresh Kumar (20) of Rog village was killed and another injured seriously on Monday morning when the motor cycle on they were riding hit bus near Bhanguri village. Injured Balbir Singh was shifted to a hospital at Jugial. The police has impounded the vehicles and registered a case.

Phagwara
SUICIDE: Ranjana Saini of Banian Mandir Mehligate mohalla on Monday committed suicide by consuming poisonous celphas tablets. A student of Girls School here, she was said to be tense due to poor performance in her class XII examinations.

DIED: Ms Manjit Kaur (18) died after consuming some poisonous substance at nearby Khati village. She was staying with her maternal uncle at the village. Tension is said to have led the extreme step.

ASSURANCE: The City Jaycees and the Small-scale Industries Association on Sunday organised an interface with DSP Jaspal Singh and Nagar Council President Malkiat Singh Ragbotra and discussed industrialist’s problems.

CHANDIGARH

MEETING: Dalit Liberation Front of Nepal is organising a mass meeting and cultural programme for supporting “Nepal Bandha’’ which is being organised to protest killing of innocent people by the Royal Nepal Army.

HARYANA

Kaithal
BUS STAND: Residents of Kalayat town of this district are sore over the delay in the construction of bus stand. On a demand of people the government had decided to construct the bus stand. But no action had been taken by the State Transport Department to start the construction. Passengers are put to inconvenience as they have to wait in the open.

PADDY SCAM PROBE: The Vigilance Bureau has again started investigation into alleged Paddy Purchase Scam of November 2000. A Vigilance team from Ambala reached here and made inquiries from Commission agents and Rice millers. Earlier the police and the CIA had investigated the matter.

MC VICE-CHIEF QUITS: Mr Jagdish Chand, vice-president, Municipal Committee Pundri has resigned in protest against alleged irregularities in the functioning of the Municipal Committee. He alleged husband of the MC president had manipulated allotment of works to his relatives in contravention of court orders and funds were being misused. President Ms Savita refuted all charges against her and other functionaries of the committee.

Karnal
3 DIE IN ACCIDENTS: Three persons were died in separate incidents here on Monday on the national highway. A truck on Meerut bypass hit Balwinder (26) of Shekhupura Suhana village who was going on motor cycle. He died on the spot. The police has seized the truck (HR 18-5103) and registered a case. In the second accident, Manoj (22) was died when his motor cycle skidded on the Taraori highway. Sushil Kumar, a businessman of New Delhi, and his daughter (11), were injured seriously while driver Ajit Singh died when their Mercedes car was hit by a truck near Taraori, 16 km from here. 

HIMACHAL PRADESH

Bilaspur
STUDENTS’ GUIDANCE CELL: Himachal Pradesh State School Education Board chairman B.R. Rahi said here on Monday that a students guidance cell would be set up to provide guidance and information to students to help them to choice careers.

Kangra
ACCIDENT: One person was killed and 11 were injured in various accidents in the district. Passenger Kapoo Ram of Haradoo village fell from a HRTC bus (HP 53 2652) at Dong Nallah in Baijnath subdivision on Sunday and died on the spot. The police registered driver of the bus Dani Ram. Eight passengers were injured when a Mohindra Taxi (HP 01 3347) overturned at Kalu di Hati near Palampur on Sunday. Jyoti was injured at Jangal under Shahpur police station when her scooter was hit by a HRTC bus. Driver Jeevan and cleaner Vijay Kumar were injured seriously on Sunday when the Canter rolled into 250 metre-deep gorge near Kathla Mata Mandir.

Kulu
FIRE: Namdassi, was injured when a gas cylinder caught fire and a fire broke out in her house at Dobhi village, 17 km from here, on Monday. Property worth Rs 30,000 was reduced to ashes the police said. In another fire, in the district, property worth Rs 3 lakh was reduced to ashes when a building caught fire at Janna village on Sunday, the police said.

Mandi
ACCIDENT: Three persons were injured when a car (HP-33-6833) they were travelling by fell into Sauli Khad on Monday. Eyewitnesses said the driver lost control of the vehicle when negotiating a curve over the Sauli Khud bridge and the car fell into the khud.