The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	Man drowns in resort’s septic tank Owner of the resort booked for alleged negligence Rajay Deep Tribune News Service Bathinda, May 17 The owner of the Bahia resort has been booked for alleged negligence, after a 35-year-old man drowned in an uncovered septic tank located in the parking lot of the resort in the wee hours today. Avneesh Kumar, the deceased, had come to attend the wedding from the bride’s side on Sunday night. He is survived by his wife and a four-year-old son. Kin of the deceased informed that till 1.20 am, Avneesh was in touch with them but after that his mobile phone went out of order. After waiting for him at dinner for sometime, the family members started looking out for him. “As he had said he was going to the parking lot to bring something from car, we searched for him in the parking lot. But due to poor light arrangement, we could not find him. We searched for him using a torch and after hours-long efforts, we found him dead in an uncovered septic tank,” said Subhash Wadhwa, uncle of the deceased. The family members then informed the police. Meanwhile, volunteers of an NGO — Sahara Jan Seva — reached the spot. They pulled the body out and after completing legal formalities, the body was taken to the Civil Hospital, Bathinda, for post-mortem examination. The SHO of the Cantonment police station, Jagdish Singh, visited the spot, inspected the depth of the tank and recorded the statement of the bereaved family. SDM Bathinda KPS Mahi also visited the spot. Acting upon the post-mortem examination report, the police booked Bikram Bahia, the owner of the resort, under Section 304-A of the IPC (causing death due to a negligent act). Confirming the facts, the SHO said the accused was not arrested as the police would wait for the viscera report to ascertain the cause of death. Speaking over phone, Bikram Bahia suspected it to be a design of an unidentified person, as he claimed that he had personally witnessed the tank on Sunday evening and it was covered then. Claiming that he was innocent, Bahia said, “There were various points, which the police should not ignore while investigating the case. Firstly, the manhole of the tank was located at a corner not in the middle. Secondly, the way Avneesh fell into the tank is also doubtful, as the hole was just 18-inch wide.”
	Illegal buildings issue dominate BMC meeting Tribune News Service Bathinda, May 17 Illegal constructed buildings again dominated the proceedings during the general house meeting of the Bathinda Municipal Corporation (BMC), here today. Soon after commencement of the meeting, the assistant commissioner BMC Najar Singh submitted the investigation report of the controversial building, located at Hanuman chowk, which snowballed into major row as councilors levelled allegations upon the engineers of the BMC for having share in that building. Findings of the report suggested that the building was declared unauthorized and all formalities were completed to demolish it, but it had been lying pending at the level corporation engineer for past two-and-half year. While concluding the report, the inquiry officer fixed the responsibility of the then officials of the BMC for all irregularities, which he mentioned in a sequence wise manner. It may be mentioned that the BMC councilor, Krishan Garg, who was the first one to raise voice against the illegal construction of the building. During the past meetings of the house, he had openly accused a superintending engineer (SE) for having his Benami share in the property. Taking a dig on that particular official, Garg today demanded his transfer floating another reason. He claimed that the SE belonged to mechanical wing but he was given charge of SE (Civil) and urged the house to withdraw the charge from him. Raising another issue of current duty charge, councilors asked the house to stop disbursing salaries to all officers posted at other stations but withdrawing salaries from BMC account. Speaking over the issue, BMC commissioner Ravi Bhagat said he had already brought the matter to the notice of the state government from where the reply was pending. Further, the Congress councilors alleged the BMC officials and the Mayor for not giving them their due respect. They also alleged that even after assuring to accept their demands of pending works in their respective wards, the authorities did not bother. It was not only the Congress, the BJP councilors were also having the similar grievance. One councilor Raj Kumar Sood even expressed his wish to submit resignation if his ward would not be given its due. While passing agenda items related to water supply and sewerage, cleanliness, fire brigade, councilors kept on accusing the concerned officials for performing their duties callously. Among others, Mithu Ram Gurpta, Harmander Singh, Jagroop Singh Gill, Bhupinder Singh Bhullar, Santosh Mahant, Tarsem Goyal, Raju Sra, Rajinder Kaur were prominent, who kept on raising their voice in the house.
	Benevolent NRI, wife revive old-age home project Raj Sadosh Abohar, May 17 NRI Dr Prem Singhmar, born and groomed in a dusty village Dharampura near Abohar, and his wife Dr Saroj have donated Rs 2.51 lakh for developing the old age home near village Alamgarh located on the Abohar-Sriganganagar road (NH 15). The charity will actually help in raising Rs 10 lakh since the state government had offered to release matching grant three times of the contribution made by any NRI for a social welfare project. Interestingly an IAS officer Amit Dhaka, who played a brief but impressive innings as SDM here, came to know about Dr Prem as a story appeared in the weekly Malwa Diary of The Tribune about the NRI’s contribution in renovation of Edmonton Art Gallery in Alberta’s capital in Canada. Earlier, the family had funded the Chair in Classical Indian Polity and Society at a Canadian university to be devoted to the study of ancient India. Dhaka was quick in contacting the NRI over the phone through his close relative Ratan Lal a former sarpanch of village Alamgarh. Dr Prem immediately rushed a cheque for Rs 2.51 lakh and asked Ratan Lal to contact Sewa Singh Sekhwan minister for NRI affairs for the matching grant. Sekhwan had visited the Singhmar family during foreign tour. He spoke to DC Kamal Kishore Yadav. The DC confirmed today that the file had been submitted to the state govt. It is pertinent to mention that Dhaka had silently pursued the old age home project and was able to pursue the philanthropists contribute about Rs 60 lakh through the Red Cross Society for it. The Rs one crore project is expected to become a truth by the year-end. Notably the idea was conceived in 1993 by Sarvesh Kaushal, and then posted as Deputy Commissioner. A social activist provided land located on the main highway road. Some construction was done but none of the successive officers later sincerely pursued the project. Meanwhile, foundation stone along with iron bars used in the construction were stolen by unscrupulous elements. The dream is now becoming a truth, old age citizens can hope for relief at the fag end of life. The old age home was designed to have kitchen besides library and reading room also.
	Handyaya Nagar Panchayat Member alleges forging of signature Shariq Majeed Tribune News Service Barnala, May 17 Close on the heels of Nagar Panchayat Handyaya allegedly running streetlights on Kundi connection, in a bizarre incident, a member of the Nagar Panchayat had complained that someone had made her fake signatures even as while she was not present in the meeting. Member of Nagar Panchayat, Jaspal Kaur, who claims that she was not present in the weekly meeting of the Panchayat but still someone had made her signatures on the resolution adopted by the local body, now said that she would take legal action against the accused and also approach Deputy Commissioner in this regard. Local sources claimed that not only these, this female member of the Handyaya Nagar Panchayat in a written complaint to the DC has said that she would set herself ablaze in the Sangat Darshan, if action was not taken against the accused. They added that since the Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) had imposed a fine of lakhs of rupees on Nagar Panchayat for running streetlights on Kundi connections, the meeting of the members of Panchayat presided ovet by chief was called on March 11 to decide the future course of action as also to bring unanimity among members on the issue. Sources further said that in the said meeting unanimity could not be achieved over whether to pay the fine imposed on the Nagar Panchayat and five members of the total 11 members supported the move whereas other five opposed it. They added that someone allegedly made the signatures of the woman member even as she was not present in the meeting. Sources further added that the matter came to light when resolution with fake signature of female member along with signatures of other 10 members was sent to the Deputy Director of local bodies in Patiala for adoption. They added that the woman had sent a written complaint to the Deputy Director local bodies and other officials on April 27 for action but no one took it seriously. Sources added that this woman has also sought the help of the DC on the issue in the Sangat Darshan meeting held on May 11 wherein she has submitted a written complaint into the matter. They added that the woman in her complaint had said that if action is not taken against the accused, she would set herself ablaze. President of the Nagar Panchayat Handyaya, Harjinder Kaur revealed to the media that Jaspal Kaur was present in the meeting and it is she who had made signatures on the resolution. She said that because of some mistake they could not record her attendance. However, some of the members of Nagar Panchayat told media persons that Jaspal Kaur was not present in the meeting.
	Narco-terrorism on the rise in state Chander Parkash Tribune News Service Ferozepur, May 17 The state, sharing about 550 kilometres long border with 'hostile' Pakistan, has been witnessing 'menacing' rise in narco-terrorism as the forces inimical to India have started pushing in huge quantity pg drugs, weapons and fake currency from across the border. Though the cobra wire fencing erected alongside the Zero Line on the Indo-Pak border in Punjab has managed to bring the infiltration of the trained terrorists to negligible, the smuggling of narcotics, weapons and fake Indian currency notes (FICN) has witnessed a significant jump in the past few years. The status of smuggling, which has been taking place on the Indo-Pak border, can be judged from the fact that recovery of heroin, which was in few kilograms in a year about 10 years ago, has now been running into hundreds of kilograms. Information gathered by TNS revealed that the State Special Operation Cell (SSOC) arrested 89 persons in operations and recovered 137.545 KGs heroin, 11 weapons and Rs 26,12,500 fake currency in the past about one year. All the smugglers, who were involved in these activities, were functioning from across the Indo-Pak border. Besides, the anti-narcotics task force, Punjab, which seized about 155 kilograms of heroin in 2009, managed to recover 114 kilogram of heroin in the first three months of year 2010. Similarly, the quantum of narcotics, FICN and arms and ammunition, which was seized by the BSF personnel in different sectors of Punjab in the first four months of 2010 has crossed the figure of the seizure made by them in 2009. “The alarming jump in smuggling activities has become a major source of concern for us," pointed out a senior functionary of the BSF adding that smugglers putting up on the border pockets of both sides of the Indo-Pak Zero Line enjoyed good rapport for decades and hence had been carrying out their illegal operations from those areas, where the border had become pours for them. The other factor, which had given boost to smuggling activities, was that a section of Punjab-based militants, who had been residing in Pakistan after Operation Blue Star, was trying to generate enough money through drugs and FICN so that they could fund the 'operations' of their hidden associates in Punjab. The smugglers had also been using new modus oprandi to bring narcotics into Punjab from across the border and one such modus oprandi was exposed by the BSF personnel in Abohar sector, said Vimal Satyarthi, DIG, BSF adding a comprehensive campaign could put an effective check on smugglers. “What has become another problem for us is the fact that near and dear ones of old smugglers, who are either in jail or lying low after competing their respective sentences in smuggling cases, have become active in the same profession,” said a senior functionary of the Punjab police adding unemployment among border youths was another factor for forcing them to enter into the world of smuggling.