Jalandhar, November 16
It’s good news for road users traveling underneath the railway over bridge adjacent to the Lyallpur Khasla College, as the Punjab Infrastructure Development Board (PIDB) has decided to construct two subways across the rail track.

The subways, which could come up at a cost of Rs 7 crore, will be a major relief for slow moving vehicles heading towards the BSF Chowk from the ISBT and vice versa. The provincial wing of the PWD will be the executing authority.

Sources in the department revealed that the final drawing of the subways has been submitted to the RITES, a consulting agency of the railway authorities, for amendments and the final approval, as the section where the paths are to be constructed fall under the jurisdictions of railways.

Talking to the Tribune, executive engineer, PWD (Provincial wing) BS Tulli revealed that the passages are meant for slow moving traffic, including cars, auto-rickshaws, scooters, motorcycles and cyclists, besides pedestrians.

Presently, there is no approach for pedestrians and light vehicles commuting on either side of the railway track. If one has to go from one side of the track to another, he has to take a detour of over 1 km, and that too from over the railway bridge, he added.

The ROB (1,110-metre-long with four legs), which came up with a cost of over Rs 52 crore and which was thrown open to traffic recently, has reduced traffic congestion in the city to a great extent.

Tulli has also asked the Jalandhar Municipal Corporation to get the land under the ROB free from encroachers.

In a communication to the corporation, the executive engineer has also asked authorities to beautify the land, so that it could 
turn out to be a cynosure for visitors. 

Phillaur, November 16
In a shocking incident, a woman verification officer from the Germany Immigration Office, Chandigarh, was allegedly sexually assaulted by two waiters and a manager of a local hotel last night.

In her complaint to the police, Nidhi (not real name) alleged that she along with her driver Jagjit Singh came from Nakodar after a verification and was on her way to Nawanshahr in her Indica car (CH-01AD-2782) when she decided to stay at Phillaur to avoid going in night hours. That’s why she went to a Phillaur Hotel on the Railway Road where she asked the bank manager Vipin Kumar to provide a room in the hotel.

She said the manager sent two waiters Budhi Singh and Deepak to show the room. She asked one of the waiter to check the geyser of the bathroom, who switched on the geyser and wait for few minutes and later asked her to check the hot water from the geyser. Victim alleged that as soon as she went to check the geyser, one of the waiter locked the room from inside and attempted to rape her.

She told the police that she succeeded to free herself from the clutches of the accused and ran away towards downstairs, but the bank manager and the second waiter too misbehaved with her and tried to sexually assault her.

Phillaur SHO Jaswinderpal Singh while talking to The Tribune here today said the police had arrested all three accused and registered a case under section 376, 511, 342 and 120B of the IPC. The accused would be produced before the Judicial Magistrate on Wednesday, said the SHO.

Gurdaspur, November 16
Gurdaspur MP Partap Singh Bajwa led a delegation of the Rice Millers Association (Jalandhar Division), which met Sharad Pawar, Minister of Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution and apprised him of the problems being faced by the rice millers of Majha region.

Bajwa told the minister that a substantial quantity of custom-milled rice for the year 2009-10 had been left undelivered as the FCI was not lifting the stocks as the rice allegedly did not conform to specifications.

Bajwa, who was accompanied by Balkrishen Mittal, president of the Rice Millers Association (Jalandhar Division), which comprises Gurdaspur, Kapurthala, Tarn Taran, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar and Nawashahar districts, claimed that the Central Government should pay Rs 100 per quintal for upgradation purposes so that the rice meets the requisite specifications following which the FCI would be in a position to accept rice stocks.

He added that the Central Government had given the state government Rs 189.20 crore so that millers could upgrade the quality of rice. “The state was to distribute the money equally among all the rice millers in the state but somehow that money has not been distributed to millers falling under the jurisdiction of Jalandhar division,” remarked Bajwa.

Balkrishen Mittal claimed that the Punjab Government had given Rs 200 per quintal to millers of Mansa and Bathinda districts and Rs 100 per quintal to farmers belonging to other districts of Punjab.

However, he claimed, not a single penny had been paid to millers of Jalandhar division, which was totally unjustifiable on the part of the Punjab Government and was gross injustice to millers of Jalandhar region.

Hoshiarpur, November 16
The district police would produce dreaded terrorist of the Babbar Khalsa International outfit Makhan Singh before a local court tomorrow for his further police remand, permission for his narco and lie detector tests to know the reality of his statements made by him before the police.

Makhan Singh was jointly arrested by the Uttar Pardesh (UP) and Khanna (Punjab) police in the third week of October from UP and was handed over to the Hoshiarpur police on November 11 in connection with the murder of the in charge of a dera at Baddon in Mahilpur block of the district, Sant Pardhan Singh, who was shot dead on May 16.

Disclosing this, SSP Rakesh Aggarwal told mediapersons today that during interrogation Makhan Singh confessed to killing of Sant Pardhan Singh with one of his accomplice Karanvir Singh, alias Bablu, resident of Daroli, Adampur, who was arrested on October 18 from Qila Barun (Chhotta Bajwara) and later fled from the CIA staff custody. The police had already recovered one AK-47 rifle from Karanvir Singh used in the killing of Sant Pardhan Singh.

Makhan Singh revealed that the motive of the murder of Sant Pardhan Singh was his disrespect for Guru Granth Sahib and his anti-Panthic activities.

Makhan Singh, who is 44-year-old and hails from Nurpur Jattan village in Mahilpur of the district, was married in 1987. Soon after his marriage, he went to Thailand from where he migrated to the USA under fear of the police due to his involvement in terrorists activities.

He became a taxi driver in The USA and later came in contact of Wadhawa Singh, who was living in Pakistan and was running terrorist activities. Makhan Singh stayed with him in Pakistan and got training in operating firearms from ISI agents.

On January 1, 2010, he came to India with an aim to disturb peace and to create terror. In India he came in contact with Pal Singh, Karanvir Singh, Narain Singh Chaura, etc, and hatched a conspiracy to wage a war against all those persons who were disrespecting Guru Granth Sahib and were indulging in anti-Panthic activities. Under their aforesaid mission, they murdered Sant Pardhan Singh.

On account of the arrests of Pal Singh, Darshan Singh, Sewa Singh and Sukhdev Singh Sukha, all members of the Babbar Khalsa International outfit, in July and August, 2010, Makhan Singh and his accomplice Karanvir Singh hid themselves in Rajasthan and later in Nepal.

Makhan Singh was produced before the mediapersons. He admitted that he had done a big blunder of his life by joining the terrorist outfit. His family life became a hell and he had not seen any of his family member, including his wife and a daughter since 1987. He did not even attend the marriage of his daughter.

Describing about his experience in Pakistan, he said the main aim of the ISI was to disturb peace and harmony in India, for which it was imparting training to Punjabi youths. He was also imparted a 15-day training in weapon operating by the ISI agents. At least 50 youths from Punjab were getting training in Pakistan, he added.

Hoshiarpur, November 16
The Tanda police has booked Sarabjit Singh of Moonak Kalan, Rajvir Singh and Iqbaljit Singh of Khuda along with five unidentified persons under Sections 302, 328 and 34 of the IPC for allegedly killing Arapkasnt Toni of Khun Khun Kalan last evening.

According to police sources, Shakian, mother of Arapkasnt Toni, alleged that the accused made her son Arapkasnt Toni swallow a poison, due to which he died.

Meanwhile, the Chabbewal police has registered a case under Sections 302 and 201 of the IPC following the recovery of an unidentified partially burnt body of about 50-year old man from the fields of Jandoli village.

The police has sent it to the Civil Hospital for postmortem and identification. — OC