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Ex-serviceman held for stealing vehicles, cylinders
Ludhiana, December 21 The accused, Kulwant Singh, resident of Humayunpur village, under Sadar police station here has served Sikh Light Infantry as wireless operator for six years. The exact reason of his leaving the Army is not clear. He claims to have been rendered medically unfit after suffering injuries in an accident involving an ammunition-carrying Army vehicle that overturned in the Kargil hills just days before the Indo-Pak Kargil War in 1999. But DSP (Sarabha Nagar) Ravcharan Singh Brar said the accused claimed to be a victim of the Kargil War, but his activities suggested otherwise. He said the police was verifying his claims that he had to leave the Army because of the accident. Mr Brar said the Army rehabilitates the injured soldiers but the man in this case claimed that he was just disowned and left out after being declared medically unfit. The ex-serviceman has remained posted in Kargil, Arunachal Pradesh and Jaipur. The police was verifying his antecedents from the Army. The police was also taking help of the Army Intelligence to find out if the accused was involved in some espionage-related activity as he had worked at sensitive places. Kulwant Singh claimed that he had to steal to earn livelihood. He had spent the compensation money given by the Army on renovating his house besides giving some amount to his parents. However, later on his family members refused to bear his expenses and he strayed into the crime world. He claims to have been falsely implicated in the robbery case of a liquor vend but admits stealing a motorcycle and a LPG cylinder from different parts of the city. DSP Brar said the accused was caught by a team of the Model Town police headed by SI Rajesh Kumar and ASI Vinod Kumar. The officials revealed that the accused was roaming around on a stolen motorcycle claiming at police nakas that he was an ex-serviceman. The motorcycle No. PB-10-AX-0130, recovered from the accused actually belongs to Anuj Jindal of Block -G in BRS Nagar here. The police explained the method used by the accused to steal cylinders. He used to spot cylinders lying in the open compound of a house. Then in late evening hours, he used to cut cable wire going over the house and lift the cylinder by passing the wire through the round handle. The police has recovered four LPG cylinders sold to other people by the accused. He, however, could not sell off the motorcycle and was using the vehicle himself. DSP Brar said the police would also take action against those who brought the stolen LPG cylinders from him.
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Overflowing sewer
water irks Pindi street residents
Ludhiana, December 21 Claiming that they had complained to the Municipal Corporation authorities a number of times, the residents alleged that their complaints were not being paid any heed to. They alleged that a sewer pipe had broken in the street and sewerage water was leaking from the place. Instead of repairing it MC employees had dug up a pit and left it there only. The pit, after getting filled up with water, was overflowing and causing problems for them. Mr Om Parkash Tandon, a retired Principal of Arya Senior Secondary School, who is a resident of the area said that they had been facing the same problem for the past many months. He added that since he was a senior citizen and could not see well. He had to confine himself to his house as he could not move on the dirty road. ‘‘For persons of at least 15 houses coming out of the house is an uphill task everyday. The discharge keeps entering our houses when we move on the street. The surroundings have has become stinking and unhealthy. I have filed many complaints in writing to the authorities and have copies of all of these too.’’ added Mr Tandon. Another resident, Mr Shallu Gogna, said that they had complained to the area councillor several times but to no avail. ‘‘Everytime we complain to authorities, the employees come and clean the pit with a stick. But next day the condition becomes the same,’’ he said. Mr Ashwini Kumar, Junior Engineer in the area, said that he had received a complaint and sent a party to clean the manhole. He added that he had received the complaint only today and had acted promptly.
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BSNL subscribers an unhappy lot?
Against a scenario in which private telecom operators were introducing a host of customer-friendly services, BSNL subscribers are an unhappy lot where the payment of bills is concerned. In particular, post offices have refused to accept the payment of bills after due date even when the late payment surcharge was added. TRA offices of BSNL are located at far away places. For example, the subscribers in Civil Lines have to go to TRA office in Model Town because the office located in Civil Lines is for subscribers of some other area. In a rather unique case, Mr Gurpreet Singh, a resident of the Chhawni Mohalla locality, has been issued a bill by BSNL for a telephone, which did not exist. The affected person had applied for a new telephone connection and the demand note issued in this regard was paid on November 9, 2004. However, he was shocked when he received a telephone bill (for Phone No 2745136) a few days back, which not only included the security deposit and rent for part of the month but also charges for 47 calls during November 18 to November 30, 2004. The fact remained that the new telephone line has yet to be installed at the premises of Mr Gurpreet Singh. In response to the call made to the telephone number, a recorded voice announced that the number did not exist. In these circumstances, it still remained a mystery as to how 47 calls were made from the non-existent telephone. Mr Parveen Kumar, SDO, Mata Rani Exchange, said the installation of a new telephone at the premises of Mr Gurpreet Singh was purposely stopped because he was a defaulter for another telephone working earlier on the premises. On the telephone bill issued to the said person which showed a number of calls having been made, he said it might be due to an oversight and the bill was being cancelled.
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Ban on slaughtering of animals in open
Ludhiana, December 21 The slaughter house had been lying non-functional for the past many years. The MC ordered its reopening on December 11 but due to the un-availability of water and power meat dealers were facing problems. The water supply and power connections were restored here today but being Tuesday no slaughtering was done. Dr Jaswant Singh, Joint Commissioner, MC, said he would deal strictly with violators. He added that sanitary inspectors were in the field to ensure that no slaughtering was being done in the open. Dr Usha Dhingra, Medical Officer of the MC, said she had visited 23 meat shops and made sure that all animals had a stamp by medical officer. She said everyday the number of animals was increasing as more and more shopkeepers were coming to know about it. She warned them that those who would not get the large animals for slaughtering would be challaned and meat would be destroyed. As the house had been lying non-functional for months, the meat being sold to residents was unchecked and slaughtered in an unhygienic conditions. As the slaughter house remained closed, illegal butcheries were having a field day. The People for Animals had taken the matter to the PHRC which had directed the MC to enforce its operations at the slaughter house. On an average 800 animals are slaughtered in the city everyday. Till recently these had been sold directly for consumption. As per the rules any animal brought for slaughter had to be medically examined by the veterinary surgeon and after the animal was declared medically fit only then the slaughtering was permitted. But the animals were being butchered in the illegal slaughter houses mushrooming in the city. Sources reveal that there are around 700 butcheries in the city. The sources said that the meat shop owners preferred doing the slaughtering themselves as they had to pay Rs 5 per animal to the MC. Moreover, in the morning they were not sure whether the number of slaughtered animals would be sold by the evening or not. So they preferred to slaughter animals one by one. Officials said that unless the MC was serious to ensure the compliance of the rules of slaughtering, it was very difficult to check the meat owners. As per the provisions of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960, notified in the Government Gazette on
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Grocer, family attacked, 3 hurt
Ludhiana, December 21 The three injured, Ram Nath (35), his wife Meenakshi (30) and her brother Raju Gupta (20), were admitted to Civil Hospital this morning and then shifted to Pahwa Hospital. They claimed that they were attacked by the “robbers” after midnight. The robbers demanded Rs 50,000 from them while they only had a few hundred rupees. At this the “robbers” brandishing knives, iron rods and sticks beat them up. The Shimla Puri police, however, said it had strong reservations about the incident. SHO Jogi Raj claimed that the police was investigating the matter and the attackers seemed to have personal enmity with the victims and were not robbers. The injured have denied having personal enmity with anyone. The area residents told Ludhiana Tribune that the attackers had bolted the doors of their houses from outside and they could not come to the rescue of the victim family.
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Bid to loot bank: police clueless about suspects
Mandi Ahmedgarh, December 21 The incident was noticed on Monday morning when staff of the bank found the doors open and some of the articles lying outside the bank. According to a complaint lodged by Mr Balwinder Singh, Manager of the branch, some unidentified persons attempted to break open the currency box having around Rs 3.41 lakh but could not succeed, as they could not fuse the metallic safe with the gas cutter they had used to break into the strong room. The burglars had probably started their attempt on Saturday night after the bank was closed. Though they succeeded in breaking the outer grills, the doors and the main door of the strong room, the thick wall of the currency safe could not be fused with the heat of the cutter. The miscreants damaged the three computers installed in the bank and threw CPUs in the open place along the bank. Mr Rajiv Ahir, SSP, Jagraon, viewed that a local gang who was well informed about the internal structures of the bank had made the attempt. The building of the bank is open from three sides and is prone to burglary. Despite repeated warnings by the police, the bank authorities did not bother to appoint a night watchman.
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‘Shaheedon ki chitaon par lagenge har baras mele, watan par marne walon ko yahi baaki nishan hoga’. This couplet does not seem to be have much value for the city residents and the administration. That we are found wanting in respecting our martyrs was evident from an exposure made by the Ludhiana Tribune of the theft of plaques from the martyrs’ statues recently. It was quite distressing that no government official could spot the missing plaques from the statues installed in Mini Secretariat and other busy points in the city. Not even a single city resident reported the missing plaques as no one seemed to be aware of their theft. Though thousands of people, including officials, pass these statues, yet it required the Fourth Estate to point out the glaring theft. The person, who had stolen the plaques, must have earned a few hundred rupees but he has definitely done a huge damage to the martyrs memory.
As the Christmas season is on, there is a festival spirit prevailing in the city. With the weather is becoming colder by the day, it is Santa all the way in the city. Various shops and gift houses are seen exhibiting Santas in various sizes. These are found in the form of soft toys, on the pencils, on other small knick-knacks and in the form of masks. Schools are also organising fancy dress shows where children are getting dressed up as Santa. Chill brings cheer The added chill in the weather has done good to at least one segment of society — Hosiery industry. Manufacturers and dealers who were quite disappointed till a couple of days ago, as stocks had remained piled up with winters having remained mild till now, have cheered up now. Earlier they were adopting strategies like increased discounts. But now the hopes for better profits have revived. “We had thought the season would leave us with little profits but thanks to declined temperatures business has started picking up again,” a dealer said. Holidaying abroad! City residents are truly growing cosmopolitan. While business houses, including hotels, are all geared up for the New Year celebrations, a large section of denizens seems to have other options. Quite a number are preferring foreign destinations to enjoy their New Year Eve. “We are bored with the routine. All that you have here is some booze or may be a dance party or a couple of games.. abroad it is gonna be fun!,” a Civil Lines area resident exclaimed. Flowers’ fate These days it has become the in thing to use floral decorations for all sorts of occasions- be it marriage, engagement, birthday or a ring ceremony, a large number of flowers are used at the gates, inside the hall or the garden. The flowers are so much in vogue that they are air lifted from as far as Bangalore. The exotic varieties of flowers in their vivid hues and sweet smelling scent welcome the guests. The children ruthlessly destroy the flowers during the party. The parents are hardly concerned about this wanton destruction. After the even, the flowers are thrown away in garbage dump. The flowers did not bloom to meet such a cruel fate. Year-end leaves As the year is coming to an end, the presence of staff in government offices in particular, and private offices in general, is appallingly low. The employees are trying to exhaust their casual leave because as the year-ends the leave lapses. While the employees are enjoying, it is the commonman who has to bear the brunt of the situation. Everytime people visit public offices to get their work done, they have to come back because someone or the other is absent. If only something could be done about casual leaves! Reflectors please The fog not only brings in chilly weather but becomes a cause of several accidents as well. With the fog engulfing the city, a number of accidents are reported everyday. While one has no control over the nature, one can always adopt some means to avoid being hit in this weather. The answer is fog lights and reflectors. For umpteen times, the city traffic police has asked the public to use these for a safe drive but a very few seem to listen as is reflected by the growing number of accidents. — Sentinel
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Repair of roads begin to welcome ‘Ganga Sagar’
Raikot (Ahmedgarh), December 21 Observation revealed that the Municipal Council had started renovation of the main entries of the town and proposed to undertake repairs of some roads leading to Gurdwara Tahliana Sahib. The renovation of Talwandi Gate and Kutba Gate was going on, which was being restructured to preserve their original form. The gates made up of Nanak Shahi bricks had developed cracks in the main walls. Mr Sudarshan Joshi, who was supervising the repair of the Talwandi Gate on Tuesday, claimed that the civic body had taken care to preserve the originality of the gates. “The Rs 35 lakh project is meant to preserve the cultural and historical values of all structures constructed by erstwhile rulers of the Raikot state. Technical staff at the council has been asked to be careful while altering any part of the structures,” claimed Mr Joshi. Though the works might not be completed before the scheduled arrival of the sacred urn, the council had decided to complete as much as it could do by then. Terming the proposed arrival of “Ganga Sagar” as a historic event for the town and the area, Mr Joshi expressed hope that various organisations would join hands to make the event memorable. All help would be extended to the management committee of Gurdwara Tahliana Sahib in making the necessary arrangements, assured the council chief. Besides, the council and other organisations, including the Truck Operators Union, the Kalgidhar Federation, management committees of various gurdwaras were doing much at their own to welcome the religious procession that would accompany the urn.
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Keralites make ‘a home away from home’
Ludhiana, December 21 According to Mr N.V. Rajan, president of the Sree Ayyappa Temple, Ludhiana, there are about 20,000 Keralites settled in Ludhiana. Although they adhere to different religious faiths and beliefs, Malyalam, their mother tongue, remains the strong bond that binds them together. Mostly the Christians and the Hindus keralites observe a distinct cultural life. Most of the Christian community in Ludhiana is settled around the Christian Medical College and Hospital. They have made immense contribution to the development of the CMC. In fact most of the CMC alumni is from Kerala and it ensures that the institution keeps on growing. They have been making generous contributions for the success of the institution. However, it is not that there are Christian Keralites alone in the CMC, a number of non Christian Keralites are also working there. Some of the Keralites like Mr P.N. Nair have made it big in the business as well. Mr Nair, who came here in 1983, has a well established export business. There are other Keralites who are well placed in the industrial management, like Mr N.V. Rajan. As the number of Keralites kept on growing they founded the local chapter of the Sree Ayyappa Temple trust and also constructed an Ayappa Temple at Jamalpur near here. It is spread over an area of 4000 sq yard and has been constructed in the South Indian temple architecture style. On every Makkar Sankrati there is a religious congregation. The local Ayyappa Temple is affiliated to the parent trust in Kerala also. There is also another Ayyappa Temple constructed by another group of Keralites, who do not carry on well with the Jamalpur management. The Keralites have been found to be most polite and caring, particularly in the field of nursing. A leading doctor of a local nursing home disclosed that he always preferred the Keralite nursing staff. Besides having a sharp pick up, they are usually sincere and hardworking. No wonder, most of the hospitals in Ludhiana have mostly Keralite nurses. But that does not mean they are not excelling in other fields like education, industry and trade. They are also in other private sector services they are doing exceptionally well. And most of them have already picked up the Punjabi language, besides the Punjabi food habits and dress.
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Poet lauds PAU promoting Punjabi
Ludhiana, December 21 Appreciating the efforts of Dr K.S. Aulakh, Vice-Chancellor of PAU for his love for mother-tongue, he said that under his guidance, PAU had achieved the higher status for writing the agricultural literature in the Punjabi language, mother-tongue of the people. During a meeting with the members of PAU Sahit Sabha, Mr Rampuri said that he had stared writing after following in the footsteps of Gurbaksh Singh Preet Lari and I have written more than 10 poetry books so far. Dr Joginder Singh Niralaa, Presidnet, PAU Sahit Sabha, welcomed Mr Rampuri and Mr Gurbhajan Gill, Editor ‘Changi Kheti’ said that due to his efforts, he had become a leading poet of the day. Mr Gulzar Pandher, Mr Purdaman Singh Bedi, New Story writer Mr Jasbir Rana, Dr Narinder Pal Singh and other were also present on the occasion.
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Winter carnival
Ludhiana, December 21 A scene of ‘mera pind’ showing a Ludhiana village and its culture was the main attraction for all where people enjoyed makki di roti the sarson da saag sitting on the cot. A fancy dress competition was also organised in which number of tiny tots up to the age of five participated. Winners of fancy dress competition were awarded prizes by the chief guest, Mr V.K. Goyal, CEO of Vardhman.
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DC lays stone of chambers for lawyers
Amloh, December 21 Mr S.S. Panesar, Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate, Mr. Gopal Arora, Judicial Magistrate First Class, and local lawyers were present. Mr Ahluwalia announced Rs 21,000 for the chambers. Mr Amrik Singh Rurkee, local Bar chief, asserted that permission for the construction of the chambers was given by the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The cost of construction of the chambers would be met by the lawyers.
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Call for dharna on Dec 23
Jagraon, December 21
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Medical camp and natak mela
Khanna, December 21
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Land sold on fabricated agreement, 5 booked
Jagraon, December 21 Theft: 5 booked for assault:
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Manhandling case: accused still at large
Ludhiana, December 21 Mr Mahadev Gupta has, in a representation sent to SSP Narinderpal Singh, alleged that a group of persons, inclduing Sonu, Matta and other, had beaten them last month and the case was registered after much delay. However, the police was not arresting the accused who were allegedly threatening them. DSP Simratpal Singh, however, denied the allegation, saying that the police had registered an FIR and further action was being taken.
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Ludhiana, December 21
Santa comes calling
