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Truck carrying LPG cylinders collides with car, 3 dead
Mandi Ahmedgarh, November 26 The truck carrying 300 LPG cylinders collided with the car carrying five devotees and members of a kirtani jatha of Malerkotla. They were returning home after paying obeisance at Gurdwara Nanaksar near Jagraon. And were supposed to join a parbhat pheri on the Parkash Utsav of Guru Nanak Dev Ji. Three of the five devotees died on the spot while two were struggling for life. Among those who died on the spot were Amanpreet Singh, Ramandeep Singh and Balwinder Singh. Munish Kumar was struggling for life at the Civil Hospital in Malerkotla and Inderjit Singh at a private hospital in Ludhiana. The Fire brigade was called by the civil administration to assist in the rescue operation. Special teams from Indian Oil Corporation depots at Nabha and Malerkotla were called to diffuse the cylinders. The toll could have taken heavier had the villagers not gathered on the call of a nearby religious place and got the houses of a nearby colony vacated. One of the deceased Amanpreet was son of Chairperson of the Sukhmani Seva Society Bibi Manjit Kaur. His marriage was scheduled to take place on December 12. According to Mukand Singh Cheema, chairman, Janam Sathan Singh Sabha Gurdwara situated near the place of accident, and Jathedar Charan Singh of Chakk Khurad village the incident took place at 5.15 am. The driver and conductor of the truck had approached the sangat at gurdwara to save the occupants of the car. They had earlier tried to pull them out but failed. Both of them later fled away. The residents of 10 villages gathered to assist in the rescue operation after help was sought on the public address system. Apprehending a series of explosions the villagers dragged the car away from the truck and got a nearby colony vacated. Suddenly the LPG cylinders caught fire and exploded. Sequence of blasts made the villagers run for safety. They watched the scene helplessly while hiding themselves in the surrounding fields. Splinters of cylinders were found scattered in the fields spread in the area of 10,000 acres. No one was hurt though splinters of cylinders had also fallen on the houses of the nearby colony. While the car was badly damaged the truck was charred. Even the numbers of the vehicles were not visible. Unconfirmed sources revealed that truck belonged to a gas agency of Raikot. Mr Bittu, one of the owners of the gas agency, was not available for comments. The residents of Sandaur, Khurd, Dulman, Shergarh, Kothala, Jhuner, Dhaler and Kanganwal villages helped in the rescue operation. Dr Indu, SDM, Malerkotla, said immediately after receiving the information about the accident she sought the help of fire brigades from Ahmedgarh, Sangrur and Ludhiana. But, one from the local Shryans Industries Limited and another of the Municipal Council, Malerkotla, reached the spot . Special teams from the Indian Oil Corporation Depots at Nabha and Sangrur worked under the supervision of the Assistant Manager, Mr R. K. Sharma. “The unexploded cylinders were shifted to a safe place and cooled to condense the gas. The traffic was allowed to resume only after the IOC experts gave their consent,” Dr Indu added.
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Police supervises supply of LPG refills
Mandi Ahmedgarh, November 26 Observations revealed that the supply of essential commodity was made by the specially deputed staff of the gas agency at Dehlon, which was entrusted the job by the Bharat Gas Company earlier. The consumers were asked to get the gas booked at a counter opened near the Ram Sharnam Ashram here. Those who had earlier got the gas booked were supplied cylinders today. The police had booked Mr Rajiv Kumar Singla, Mr Baisakha Singh and Mr Tholu Ram, the office bearers of the Congress here for allegedly storing the cylinders in their shops un-authorised. Though the supply was made in an open place behind MGMN Senior Secondary School today but no fire fighting arrangements were made by the police. The office bearers of the local organisation have sought the intervention of the higher authorities in the matter. Mr Ravinder, superfine president, city Congress and Mr Sudhir Singla, president, Youth Congress, have apprised Ms Razia Sultana, MLA, of the Malerkotla constituency, of the situation and demanded an inquiry by some gazetted officer from some other police district other than Sangrur. The residents of the town and surrounding villages had been facing the shortage of LPG for more than five years. There had been a dispute regarding the ownership of the only agency here and the supplies had been suspended due to reported imprisonment of the owner of the local gas agency. Meanwhile, the three accused have been sent to judicial remand till November 27. |
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Cars stolen from here land in Kathmandu
Ludhiana, November 26 The spate of car thefts in and around here is attributed to an organised group which has its network spread across the region. The details collected from various insurance agencies, including the private ones, revealed that the car theft was becoming a regular phenomenon across the region and the companies were paying heavy compensations. A senior investigator working with various insurance agencies revealed that during the private investigations by a leading private sector insurance company, it was revealed that the car thieves acted in groups. Quoting one of the accused, he said, the name of the kingpin is never revealed to the end person (who actually steals the car). The payments are made on assignment basis. He said, the end person is asked to “procure” the vehicle of a particular model and particular colour. Then he starts searching for the vehicles, in the process even managing to rope in the employees of some car dealers, who reveal the details including the address of the persons who have purchased the car of the particular model and particular colour. Subsequently, they start tracking that vehicle and steal it at the first opportunity. The number plate is changed instantly, after a few minutes or a few kilometres away from the site of the theft. A forged registration card of that particular number which is pasted on the number plate of the car is always in their possession to dodge checking. The investigation threw up interesting details. One insurance company found that nine vehicles stolen in less than six months had been purchased from a single agency only. The agency is based in one of the leading cities of Haryana. The police is investigating the reasons. One vehicle purchased from the same agency was stolen from here also. The insurance investigator disclosed that the number of thefts has increased substantially. This has worried the insurance companies which have to dole out a handsome amount every month to compensate for the thefts. Interestingly, not a single car has been recovered so far. The investigator disclosed that recently the Nepalese Government refused permission to Haryana Police in connection with the questioning of a kingpin of a gang, who is learnt to be operating from Kathmandu. The kingpin is believed to be highly connected to the echelons of power in Kathmandu and enjoys due protection.
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Sales Tax evasion by hosiery owners in city
Ludhiana, November 26 With the alleged connivance of some officials of the Sales Tax Department, the tax evaders are evolving new methods and techniques to evade the tax successfully. The main players in the evasion game are some rickshaw and autorickshaw drivers, who charge a whopping sum for making the parcels reach the parcel office without paying the tax. Known as “lifters” and “movers” in the language of hosiery owners, these players charge anything between Rs 100 to Rs 500 to carry goods to the Railway registration office by hoodwinking the tax officials. Besides following various routes they are also making use of some trolleys of the Railway Department itself to smoothly smuggle out huge parcels. A visit to a hosiery in Purana Bazara and Madho Puri which are known to be the hub of hosiery industry is enough to understand the modus operandi of the vehicle owners who transport the goods to the Railway station from where they are sent at various destinations. Some identified rickshaw and autorickshaw drivers, who tie a piece of wood to their vehicle as a mark of identification are seen waiting on the busy and congested roads. They are asked to carry the goods in a coded language and a promising nod by the drivers is enough for the owners who prefer pay them any amount to evade the tax. Over the years, these drivers have made money and have become a source of envy for their counterparts, who despite working overtime have not earned much. A horse-cart owner is known in Maya Puri for constructing a palatial house but The work of a mover is to carry the goods upto the Railway station. At the station, these are picked up in a jiffy by a lifter, who makes it reach the parcel office in a very short time. The lifters follow various routes to evade tax. These include, the VIP gates of the Railway station, the Railway tracks near Lakkar bridge and the tracks near Vishwakarma Chowk. They smuggle out goods by crossing the unmanned gates at various places. Interestingly, at places where the gates are totally closed and crossing is not possible at all, the goods are handed over to a man posted outside the gate by another man who gets the delivery from the parcel office of the Railways. The second best route is the Railway track near Lakkar bridge. The third route is near the Ludhiana-Delhi rail tracks near the Vishwakarma Chowk. The sales tax evasion at the Railway station is quite rampant as the traders, after speeding their vehicles enter inside the station and the authorities protect them on the plea that the Sales Tax Department cannot nab them from the station as it amounts to trespassing. There have been confrontations between the two departments over this issue. Some time ago the Railway officials had even got a case of trespassing registered against some Sales Tax officials which was later cancelled after the persuasion at the top level. On the one hand the officials of the Sales Tax Department claimed they were having a tough time as the tax evaders were being let off allegedly with the connivance of Railway employees on the plea that the Sales Tax officials could not conduct raids inside the station premises as per the rules of the Railways under which they can do so only after taking the permission of the Ministry of Railways. On the other hand, the Railway officials say the Sales Tax Department was only causing harassment, which adversely affected the Railways revenue collected from the booking offices.
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Man returns Rs 49,000 to bank
Ludhiana, November 26 An employee of Mr Kewal Krishan an owner of the K. K. Woollen Textiles, Dr Gujjarwal Road, Guru Nanak Complex here presented a cheque of Rs 5400 (Fiftyfour hundred) to an employee in the bank at Chaurra Bazar here. However, the bank employee handed him Rs 54,000 (Fiftyfour thousand). When Mr Kewal Krishan learned about it late in the evening he called up the bank manager and informed him about the mistake. He handed over the amount in the presence of his friends and some mediapersons to bank manager, Rakesh Galhotra late last evening. “The money was not mine. I couldn’t keep it” he said adding that the Almighty was testing him. He said one of his workers had gone to the bank to withdraw the money and there were other cheques also due to which he could not realise the mistake of the bank employee.
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Students celebrate Parkash Utsav of Guru Nanak Dev
Mandi Ahmedgarh, Here the Guruparab celebrations were made under the supervision of the Gurdwara Singh Sabha. Students of local schools here including Sanatan Vidya Mandir Senior Secondary School, DAV Senior Secondary School, Guru Har Gobind Senior Secondary School, MGMN Senior Secondary School and Guru Nanak Kanya Maha Vidyalya participated in the threeday celebration during which a Nagar Kirtan was organised headed by the Punj Piaras and traditional groups performing various martial arts. Devotees and the management committees of Namdev Gurdwara, Bhai Vir Singh Gurdwara, Bhagat Ravidass Gurdwara coordinated the celebrations. On the concluding day, various religious preachers elaborated on the teachings of the Sikh Gurus and ragi and dhadi jathas recited shabads and vars from the Sikh history. Students of Guru Nanak Ayurvedic Medical College and Research Institute, Gopal Pur, organised a path in the premises of the Institute. Dr Balwinder Singh Walia, chairman of the trust, running the affairs of the institute called upon the potential doctors to adopt the teachings of the ten Gurus in their lives and undertake service of the ailing humanity. Similar celebrations were held at Sant Isher Singh Ji Memorial Senior Secondary School, Karamsar. The concluding function was presided over by Mr Amarjit Singh Rai, Senior Superintendent of Police at Patiala. Ludhiana: Students of the hostel took out parbhat pheris from November 24 to 26 on the college premises. The bhog of Shri Guru Granth Sahib was followed by shabad kirtan by teams from the four institutions under the Khalsa Divan. In keeping with tradition, the entire preparations ranging from cleaning of the campus, reading of holy book and jora seva for preparing and serving langar, were managed by staff and students of the college. The function concluded with ‘Guru ka Langar’ and later in the evening the campus was illuminated and lamps were lit. Tiny-tots of Cutes Nursery School, Sarabha Nagar, brought flowers for teachers on the occasion of Gurpurb. The Principal of the school narrated stories about the life of Guru Nanak Dev Ji. After the distribution of parshad, tiny tots were escorted to the school grounds where they were made to sit in ‘pangat’ and served langar. Amloh:
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Gurmat samagam begins
at Gurdwara Nanaksar
Ludhiana, November 26 Addressing the congregation, Baba Jaswant Singh said the message of universal brotherhood, humility and equality of mankind without any discretion of caste or creed was preached by Guru Granth Sahib. He further said in this age of technology and computerisation, people ought to trace their ethical and religious roots and take guidance from the rich heritage endowed by great gurus and spiritual leaders. Twentyone Sri Guru Granth Sahibs were respectfully
instituted at the Darbar Sahib followed by akhand paths. Today's celebrations also marked the Parkash Utsav of the first guru - Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji. Thousands of devotees, including a large number of NRIs, took part in kirtan and gurbani vichar followed by the langar. The bhog of akhand path would be organised on November 28 and an overnight kirtan darbar would continue till the morning of November 29. Three-day dental and medical check-up camps would also be organised by doctors of Baba Jaswant Singh Dental College and
Hospital under the supervision of the Principal, Dr V.K. Rana, and the Vice-Principal, Dr Vikram Prabhakar.
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75 water samples from schools fail
Mandi Ahmedgarh, November 26 A communication received by Government Schools of the area reveals that the Human Rights Commission, Punjab, had received a complaint which said that students of these schools were being provided water of hand pumps which was not fit for drinking. The water was suspected to be contaminated with pathogens of the deceased. The district education authorities have written to school heads and asked them to get water checked by the health authorities. “The school heads have been directed that drinking water supplied to students must be disease-free. Water samples should be got checked by the Health authorities. The schools have been told that they would be held responsible for any laxity, reads the letter absolving higher authorities of their duty to keep an eye on the situation. The schools are yet to implement the orders. The District Health authorities collected a large number of samples from the schools on their own. People at District Health Officer’s office said around 150 samples were collected from various schools and almost 50 per cent of them failed the purity test. The school heads and the district education office were apprised of the situation. Remedial steps were yet to be taken according to the officials.
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BKU threatens stir over poor power supply
Ludhiana, November 26 Acting president of the union Manjit Singh Kadian, general secretary Sharanjit Singh Mehlon and general secretary (press) Bhupinder Singh Mahesari said in a statement here that the rural feeders were getting four-hour power once in three days which had affected sowing of wheat. The farmers were left with no choice but to irrigate fields using costly diesel. BKU activists alleged that Punjab farmers appeared to be victims of a conspiracy to destroy them. Earlier, it was the artificial scarcity of DAP fertiliser which made the farmers purchase the input on the black market and now their farm operations were hampered due to erratic and inadequate power. They further pointed out that any delay in first irrigation to wheat crop at this stage would lead to fall in yield. Mr Kadian and other functionaries of the BKU maintained that nothing less than eight-hour daily supply of power was needed by farmers at this particular time and the government would do well to direct the PSEB to ensure adequate power to save wheat crop as well as orchards, fodder and vegetables.
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The mystique of creative writing
Writing becomes creative when imagination plays its part in reconstructing human life. It is not difficult to present real happenings or to delineate a true character. It is more or less a photographic representation of what is happening around us. Human mind receives myriad impressions during the course of life and these become a part of memory. The study of texts further enriches the mind and there is some display of
inter-textuality at the time of creative writing. Imagination holds together the obvious, the real and the true in such a manner that a new product emerges on the paper. It may take the form of a painting, a song, a sculpture or even the movements of a dance. Just as it is difficult to segregate the dancer from the dance, it is well-nigh impossible to pinpoint the part of imagination in giving a particular shape to a creative writing. It is indeed a mysterious process, of which even the great writers and artists are unaware. Still there is something palpable that occurs in the inner recesses of the human mind.
Personally speaking I never intended to be a writer. For me reading books was an end in itself. My intention was not to gather together the gems of wisdom but to have a glimpse of the inner working of the human mind. How the thinking minds feel and express themselves was the sole motive of my voracious reading, mostly poems and short stories. It was later that the other forms of literature such as novel, drama and essay attracted me. I caught the mood of the mid-forties in Lahore and Amritsar and started composing ghazals in Urdu. The sole aim was to impress the class-fellows and to be in the good books of the teachers. Before long I found myself the secretary of the college literary society and the editor of the Urdu section of the college magazine. The habit of reading not only the books but also the journals became inveterate and with the passage of time it took the form of the way of my life. I would not have deviated from this path even if I had tried. The novel, for me, is an art form and its aesthetic aspects have an edge over its ethical ramifications. It can be viewed as an integrated whole - 'a living thing, all one and continuous'. The beauty of an idea invariably takes upon itself an attractive garb that delights the heart of the reader as much as it refines his mind. No bland statements need be allowed to interfere in the free flow of the narrative. Digressions I shun in my novels and I employ metaphoric narrative modes in preference to the metonymic ones. Narrative purity has remained my ideal in my fictional writings. My mind is quite blank when I sit down to write and I have no idea as to what shape the plot is going to take or what next sentence a particular character is about to utter. When I am disturbed in the course of my writing, I find it hard to recollect the sentence that had earlier been formed in my mind. In exasperation I write down the sentence that comes handy but in my heart of hearts I know that it has changed the complexion of the dialogue. Sometimes the course of the events is also altered as there is no predetermined outline of the plot in my mind. In my case the creative process is like the unfolding of a long scroll in slow degrees. My creative process starts with a disturbing feeling or a haunting idea. Restlessness is experienced for a number of days and something is cooped up in the mind that struggles for release. There is an intense desire to see light at the end of the tunnel. Once it is perceived in the form of an opening sentence or the emergence of an episode, the darkness in the mind is dispelled. The sun starts glowing in the thick misty atmosphere of the wintry dawn. That moment is also the moment when the mind expands to comprehend the beauty of the universe and, at the same time, to assimilate the warmth of the joy of living. For those unreal days of the uncertainty of the creative urge and the hallucinations during the nights, when the attempt seems to be an exercise in futility, there is 'an abundant recompense' in the satisfaction of the work accomplished and 'the calm of mind', that ensues. —
N.S. Tasneem
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Traders demonstrate against dist YC Chief
Ludhiana, November 26 Mr Vishal Sharma and Mr Sanjay Singla, two traders alleged that they had sold crackers to Mr Khanna. He had promised to pay them after the festival. However, when they approached him for money, he refused and allegedly threatened them they said. Mr Khanna denied the allegations and said that there was a dispute over the price of crackers. He claimed that the two traders were charging excessive rates.
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Jatinder Hans’ book released
Samrala, November 26 Another paper was presented by Dr Gurmeet Kalarmazri, who described the stories of Hans as true depiction of human relation in a rural scenario. According to another scholar Dr Surjit, Jatinder’s stories give a new look to sexual aspect in human relations. Punjabi story writer Prem Parkash Editor of Literary Magazine “Lakeer” said that there were many new things to be learned, in story writing from Hans. According to him his stories are different from those of others in the field. Mohan Bhandari, another prominent story writer of Chandigarh observed that story seemed to be coming to Jatinder’s mind quite naturally. He described his flow, command of language as remarkable. Others who participated in discussion were Dr Gurtaran Singh, Dr Baljinder Nasrali, Balwinder Grewal, Gurdial Dalaal, Dr Gulzar Mohamad Goriya, Dr Tarsem Rana, Dr Gurmeet Kaur, Mohan Singh Malhans and Jasvir Singh Rana.
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One held for stealing car
Ludhiana, November 26 Setting up of check points led to the arrest of the accused, identified as Ravdeep Singh, resident of Street No. 7, opposite Baba Farid College, Moga. Ravdeep Singh was caught late last night with the car (PB-10-AP-5900). He was under the influence of liquor. On verification of his papers, the police found out that the vehicle was stolen. The real owner was called and the suspicion confirmed. The man had taken such a high dose of some drug that he was in an inebriated condition. Though he mumbled that he had taken poppy husk, the police was suspecting that he had consumed some strong drug. SP-Detective Gurpreet Singh said the man was in semi-conscious state revealed that he had stolen three more cars. The police was waiting for him to gain full sense before proceeding with the investigation. The police official said the man was going past after stealing the vehicle from near a hotel on Ferozepore road. He could not get through a special police Nakka on the road by the police to check the movement of criminals.
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Police claims solving murder case
Ludhiana, November 26 Addressing a press conference today afternoon, Mr R.K. Jaiswal SP-City-I said the police claimed that Zaheer Abhas alias Shibbu was murdered by another embroider Razul alias Mohd Phool Babu. The accused killed him with a motive of looting Rs 2000. However, Razul after his arrest admitted to the police that he had killed the victim to defend himself. He claimed the victim tried to sodomise him. The police, however, said he was cooking the story in defence.
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Kanungo, patwari booked for fraud
Ludhiana, November 26 The accused patwari Darbara Singh and kanungo Shingara Singh have been booked for changing the revenue record of nearly 8 acres of land to one Shiv Charan in January last year. The case has been registered after more than one-and-a-half year . According to the FIR, the case has been registered on the recommendation of the Deputy Commissioner Ludhiana. Interestingly, the recommendation was sent in June this ear and the case was registered after a gap of five months.
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