Jalandhar, December 2
Drunken driving claimed lives of three people, including two small children in Kurla Kingra village, here on Sunday. According to eyewitness, the school bus (PB 08 AW 9895) was being rashly  driven by the driver who was reportedly drunk.

The bus swerved on the road many times before hitting a rickshaw, injuring the rickshaw puller. The driver then fled from there with the vehicle and hit a motorcycle killing the pillion riders, a woman and two kids, and seriously injuring its driver Amrik Singh. The bus finally came to standstill after hitting a makeshift tent on a road berm.

The deceased have been identified as Navreet Kaur, her daughter Kamalpreet Kaur and Amrik’s nephew Sukhpreet Singh. While, Amrik has been referred to Ludhiana his condition is stated to be serious. Rama, who was inside the tent when the bus rammed into it, had a miraculous escape and did not suffer any injuries.

The accused Jatinder Kumar, a resident of West Bengal, was caught by the people and handed over to the police in an inebriated condition. The bus belonged to Saint George Convent, Kurla Kingra.

After hearing of deaths, Amrik’s family was in a state of shock. Amrik, who works in the Gulf, was on leave and had to report back for work in four days. They were on their way to pay obeisance at a Gurdwara in Johlan village.

A case under Section 304 -A, 279, 337, 427 of the IPC has been registered against the accused, who has been arrested. 

Nawanshahr, December 2
The process of electing as many as 12 members of the district planning committee (DPC), as per the provisions of the district planning act-2005, would be completed by December 10. While giving this information, Arshdeep Singh Thind, SDM-cum-presiding officer, district planning committee, told media persons that a notification to this effect had been issued on November 30.

While 10 members would be elected from the Zila Parishad, 2 members would be elected from municipal councils and 3 members would be nominated by the state government.

The SDM further said the whole process of electing members from Zila Parishad - filing and scrutiny of nomination papers, voting, declaration of results etc. would be completed on the spot here at Dilbagh Hall on December 8.

Similarly, the process of electing 2 members from municipal councils would be completed on December 10. While the tenure of nominated members would be one year, that of the elected members would depend on the tenure of the respective Zila Parishad and municipal councils. SDM Arshdeep Singh Thind and DDPO Avtar Singh Bhullar have been made presiding officer and assistant presiding officer respectively. — OC

Amritsar, December 2
The District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum in an important decision has directed the Amritsar Improvement Trust to remove all the encroachments and obstructions in the verandahs created by some of the shopkeepers in one of the posh markets of the holy city.

The forum in its order to the Improvement Trust said the encroachment in Ranjit Avenue Market must be removed within one month of the issuing of the order failing which proceedings under Section 27 of the Consumer Protection Act would be initiated against the department.

It is pertinent to mention here that the representatives of the Peoples Welfare Society had filed a complaint against the improvement trust and two other shopkeepers for creating hindrance and obstruction on the footpaths meant for the use of the general public which was totally illegal. It further alleged that the Improvement trust officials had also committed acts of negligence and deficiency in service, unfair trade practice besides being grossly negligent in the performance of its duties.

However, the counsel for the respondents had claimed that the complaint was not legally maintainable as the complainant was not a consumer within the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act and had no right to invoke the jurisdiction of the forum. They further submitted that the there was no deficiency of service on their part in any manner towards the complainant. He further said that the complaint had been filed with malafide intention of harassing, pressurising and blackmailing the respondents.

But the counsel for the complainant argued that as the improvement trust was a department of the government which was being run by the tax payers’ money it was responsible for the maintenance, upkeep and proper use of these pathways by the general public.

The consumer forum, while citing the Apex Court’s orders, said that the it was the duty of the improvement trust to have ensured that pathways constructed for the use of the general public were free from any hindrance or obstruction and the department had completely failed to perform its duties and their acts not only amount to deficiency of service, but it was also breach of an obligation on the part of the officers of the department.

Amritsar, December 2
The Punjab Pradesh Beopar Mandal (PPBM) has urged the state government to withdraw the entry tax on yarn used for manufacturing shawls, blankets and textiles.

In a missive to the local body minister Manoranjan Kalia and finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal, the PPBM president Amrit Lal Jain said 4 per cent entry tax imposed on the goods and raw material coming to the state would sound death knell for the local industry. More than 50,000 workers, working in textile and woolen industry, in Amritsar would be rendered jobless.

He said, “The entry tax is against the spirit of Value Added Tax (VAT) and the state government, while introducing VAT, had promised that there would be no entry tax in the VAT regime.” At present the yarn was being imported from other states and the buyers pay central sales tax @ 3 per cent and imposition of entry tax would force the manufacturers to close their units or shift them to neighboring states like Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh, he added.

The PPBM president said either the government should withdraw the entry tax or defer it and hold a meeting with the representatives of the manufacturers to save shawl, blanket and textile industries in the state. 

Nawanshahr, December 2
Getting the correct date of birth certificate of his son has virtually become a Herculean task for Pakher Singh of Mehatpur village. Narrating his tale of woes, Singh said his son Amarjit Singh was born on November 28, 1998 at Bheen village in Nawanshahr district.

The birth was recorded in the register of the village chowkidar on December 2, 1998 and the proper receipt was obtained by him. Though all the entries - name and sex of the child, father's name, mother's name, place and date of birth are correct in the preliminary record maintained by the village chowkidar in the register, he is yet to get the correct certificate issued from the additional district registrar (birth & death), despite the fact that he has been issued as many as 5 certificates during the past about four years including one which says that no entry relating to birth of Amarjit Singh has been found in the records.

While showing the copies of the different certificates, Pakher said on April 26, 2004, he got the date of birth certificate of his son Amarjit Singh, in which his name was correctly mentioned as "Amarjit", but though the sex of the child was mentioned as 'male', the word 'Kaur' was cut after being written in the name column. A note, that the cutting/over-writing was done as per the original record, was given in the certificate.

However, on April, 2006, he was issued a certificate that no record relating to the birth of Amarjit Singh was found. On November 19, he got another date of birth certificate in the name of Amarjit.

When, he applied for the issuance of the correct certificate again, he got a certificate on April 27, 2007. But, this time though the name of child was written correctly, a wrong entry in the column of mother's name was made in the certificate. The mother's name was changed from Jaswant Kaur to Jasvir Kaur.

Then again, he struggled to get the entry of mother's name rectified in the date of birth certificate of his son. Though he succeeded to get the error rectified in the fifth date of birth certificate issued to him on October 16, now the date of birth of his son had been wrongly entered as November 28, 1988 instead of November 28, 1998.

Hoshiarpur, December 2
The engine and chassis number of a Tata Innova car recovered from a ditch near a rivulet, Bhangi Choe, in Bhagat Nagar area have been found to be fictitious. The car carrying the four passengers including a woman plunged into a ditch after breaking the parapet of an under repaired culvert in the Bhagat Nagar area on Saturday night. Some of the passers-by noticed the incident and raised an alarm. People of the area assembled there for rescuing the occupants.

According to SP (H) Opinderjit Singh Ghuman, the chassis and engine numbers of this car belonged to the car number DL-1B-20-2720, which had allegedly been snatched from a driver Sompal, a resident of Raj Nagar, Palam Colony, New Delhi, on November 4 last. The engine and chassis numbers of the recovered car have been found to be fictitious in the registration records, said the SP.

Four persons, including a woman had hired a Toyota Innova car from the Delhi airport for Hoshiarpur. They had told the driver Sompal that they had to go about 20 kms ahead of Hoshiarpur, said the SP.

Reaching Kahlwan village, they asked the driver to stop to rest. The driver left the car with the ignition on. When he returned, he found the car and the passengers missing. A case under section 379 of the IPC has been registered at Hariana police station.

Meanwhile,in the incident involving the Innova car, it has been learnt that there were four persons in the vehicle. The three male members reportedly managed to save themselves. Later, the trio disappeared from the spot. On hearing the cries of a woman, passers-by rescued her and informed the Model Town police.

The woman, identified as Kulwinder Kaur, claimed that she was wife of Salinder Pal, a Kapurthala resident. However, when the police inquired about the identification of male occupants travelling with her, she could not give any satisfactory information. The police contacted her in-laws and informed them about the incident, but the latter failed to recognise her. Later, Kulwinder was handed over to her parents at Sikandarpur village in late in the night.

The next morning police recovered the car from the ditch and also found a country-made pistol with a live cartridge. A case under sections 482, 411 of the IPC and sections 25, 54 and 59 of the Arms Act has been registered by the police. The SP said driver Sompal had been asked to come from Delhi to identify his vehicle and thereafter Kulwinder Kaur would be interrogated. 

Batala, December 2
A person was killed, while his companion was seriously injured when the tractor trolley in which the duo was travelling overturned near Natt village, here on Sunday.

The deceased has been identified as Sahib Singh, a resident of Sayedpur village, whereas his companion Dharam Singh is undergoing treatment at the civil hospital.

According to the information, the incident occurred when the tractor trolley was carrying sugarcane from Kirri village. The police’s mobile van reached the spot as soon as they received the information and brought the duo to Batala civil hospital, where Sahib Singh’s body was handed over to his relatives after conducting a postmortem.

Meanwhile, a case has been registered in the Rangar Nangal police station.

Hoshiarpur, December 2
The sacred cross, the religious symbol of Christianity was stolen from the prayer tower in Mona Memorial CNI church, Civil Lines, on Saturday night. The cross is two-and-a-half-feet high and one-and-a-half-feet wide.

According to the police, the theft was noticed by some devotees who had gone to clean the church late last Saturday night for weekly morning prayers. They informed general secretary of the management of the church, Rohit Rai who informed the police. A case has been registered.

Jalandhar, December 2
Lt Gen S S Kumar, General Officer Commanding of the corps, today inaugurated a state-of-the-art dental unit of the Vajra Corps.

The new building is equipped with the latest scientific gadgets and has an amiable ambience, which promises specialist dental care.

Others present on the occasion included Maj Gen KMS Shergill, Chief of Staff besides senior retired officers like Lt Gen Surjit Singh Sangra, Lt Gen MS Shergill, and Lt Gen AS Bahia. Dr Ashok Sharma, CMO (Dental) and Dr SK Sareen, member executive body, DCI also graced the occasion. — TNS