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4 snatching incidents rock city
Residents, traders force MC to take stock of overflowing dumpyard
Flesh trade racket busted, 4 arrested
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5 years on, lifts lie dysfunctional in Civil Hospital
Deadline falls flat but ‘illegal’ hoardings stand tall
Attempt to murder charges slapped on in-laws
‘Dabbawala’ food finds favour in city
Delhi HC terror strike condemned
Manch Rangmanch artists celebrate two decades of journey called art
Tough time for applicants as birth records go missing
Literacy Day celebrated
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4 snatching incidents rock city
Amritsar, September 9 In his complaint to the police, Randip Singh, the victim and a resident of Kapoor Nagar, Druma Wala Bazaar, located at Sultanwind Road, said the accused struck him with their motorcycle and started beating him up. He was going to shop at Tahli Wala Chowk when the incident took place near street number 1 of Kot Atma Ram. He said his bag contained gold nosepins weighing 743 grams. The Sultanwind police has registered a case under Section 379-B of Indian Penal Code (IPC) against unidentified youths. In another incident, two unidentified motorcycle borne youths snatched purse of a woman, who along with his husband Surinder Singh, residents of New Kapoor Nagar (Sultanwind Road), were going to their house by motorcycle near the Rambagh area. The snatchers came by a motorcycle and took away the purse having Rs 10,000 in cash, one gold set, a pair of anklets and one mobile phone. Surinder said they chased the snatchers but they managed to flee. The Kotwali police has registered a case in this connection. Meanwhile, the police has nabbed one Jagjit Singh of Kamboj village who was trying to escape after snatching a gold earring of Kuldeep Kaur of Tole Nangal village situated on Ajnala road here. The incident took place near the old vegetable market where Kuldeep Kaur alighted from a bus. She was passing through the vegetable market when accused Jagjit Singh, who also alighted from same bus, came from behind and snatched the earring. She immediately raised an alarm after which the people in the market caught hold of the snatcher. In the meantime, the police jawans also reached the spot and arrested him. He was booked under Section 379-B of the IPC by the Kotwali police. An unknown person snatched away a purse of Satwant Kaur, a resident of Nanaksar area in Tarn Taran, when she was going to the office of Ammway, located at B-block Ranjit Avenue, on a rickshaw. The Civil Lines police has registered a case in this connection. She claimed that her purse had Rs 8,000 in cash, a mobile phone and other necessary provisions. Precautions are not being taken: POLICE
Prithvi Raj, SHO, Kotwali police station, said he had introduced the beat system besides alerting the PCR teams in his jurisdiction to make regular rounds in their respective areas to effectively check the menace of snatching. The Civil Lines police authorities also stressed that even though they had been advising the rickshaw-pullers to raise the canopy of their vehicles to thwart attempts of snatchers, but they hardly ever bothered to act on the directives. He said even passengers do not allow rickshaw-pullers to raise the canopy as it hampers their vision.
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Residents, traders force MC to take stock of overflowing dumpyard
Amritsar, September 9 Anticipating worsening of the situation at the dumping site and the apprehension of an impending epidemic, people lodged the protest as soon as they saw the AMC delegation arriving at the site. Residents of the area complained that the dumping site, spread over 21 acres, was artificially brought to saturation point as the AMC staff did not leave sufficient vacant space to approach the dumping site from the rear side. Arhtiya Association Bhagtanwala Mandi president Narinder Kumar Behal said: “As a result of the saturation, the garbage-disposal staff started off-loading garbage on the adjoining road of the dumping site. The adjoining road belongs to the market committee. Perturbed at the situation, he stated that off-loading of garbage close to the shops of the grain market, which has nearly 550 shops and about 10,000 employees working in them. Besides, a large number of farmers and traders visit the market daily. He said unhygienic conditions did not allow these visitors to remain in the market for long and this was harming their business interest. He rued that many commission agents had established shops after shelling out Rs 40 lakh for a shop and in return they were getting unhygienic conditions. A resident of the nearest residential area, Sharma Colony, Subhash Kumar said their repeated pleas for shifting of the garbage dumpyard to an area far from human habitation did not yield any positive response from the authorities. He said many persons in the area, including in the localities across the Railway crossing, complain of skin ailments. He opined that the AMC must also intensify preventive medical measures to avoid any breakout of epidemic. Another Commission Agent, Ranjit Singh said the market received foodgrains the year round and it was dispatched to various parts of the country. Besides, the market was well-known for exporting Basmati rice to the Gulf countries. It was difficult to withstand the stench, he quipped. He added that “The AMC’s ambitious plan for setting up a waste-management plant with a capacity to handle about 600-700 metric tonnes of garbage, being generated daily by the residents and small-scale industry, has not seen the light of the day till date. According to the plan, the dumpsite at Bhagtanwala was also be reshaped by raising its boundary wall by about three feet and setting up of a greenbelt remained on paper. The Market Committee chairman Raghbir Singh Mattewal said that the committee had to issue a notice to the Municipal Corporation after its staff did not stop off-loading garbage on the roads of the market committee. He said since the MC had responded positively, they were confident that garbage would be lifted soon. Mayor Shwait Mailk said that after visiting the dumpyard site, he had given instructions to the concerned officials to lift the garbage from the area outside the dumping yard. He added that they had also been asked to make an approach road inside the dumping yard to offload garbage on the rear side of the dump yard.
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Flesh trade racket busted, 4 arrested
Amritsar, September 9 A case under Sections 3, 4 and 5 of the Immoral Trafficking Act has been registered in this connection. The police authorities said the kingpin of the racket dodged the police team and managed to flee. Nirmal Singh, SHO, Sultanwind police, said the police received a tip-off that a woman ran a brothel at her residence. During the raid, the police nabbed Baldev and Kuldeep with two girls in objectionable position. He said investigations have begun and raids were being conducted to nab the kingpin.
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5 years on, lifts lie dysfunctional in Civil Hospital
Amritsar, September 9 In the absence of the facility, the patients either have to take the painful walk or to wait for a wheelchair, whose supply often falls short of the demand. An attendant at hospital’s emergency informed that 10 wheelchairs are made available at emergency, from where those who need them can get one on the first come, first serve basis. Lying dysfunctional for the last five years, elevators were last got repaired in December, 2006. However the delight was short lived as a fault developed again within one month. The management of the hospital claims to have taken up the matter many a times with the civil wing of the Health Systems Corporation. Talking about the problem, Gurdev Singh, a patient from Verka, said, “I had come for dressing of an injury in my leg. My son had to push the wheelchair to the third floor for it.” He demanded that management must get the facility restored as soon as possible. Another visitor Amanpreet Singh commented, “Pushing the wheelchair on the ramp up to the fifth floor is not everybody’s cup of tea. It would be better if at least patients are moved on the elevators.” Sources said snag in elevators had developed because of absence of an operator. Already short of manpower, the hospital could not spare a person to operate the system. The patients coming to the emergency were seen waiting for those who had gone with the wheelchairs to return. In 2006 when elevators had developed a snag, the hospital had paid Rs 38,000 to the civil wing. However, the fault recurred after a month and none has come to repair these again. A reminder to the Executive Engineer of the civil wing was sent on July 5. The hospital had made the chairman of the Health Systems Corporation and Civil Surgeon aware of the
problem. Balbir Singh Dhillon, Senior Medical Officer
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Deadline falls flat but ‘illegal’ hoardings stand tall
Amritsar, September 9 Chief Commissioner, Gurdwara elections, Justice HS Brar (retd) has set the deadline. Posters of the candidates belonging to the ruling and opposition parties were spotted at various parts of the city. A poster of victorious Akali candidate Rajinder Singh Mehta was spotted at on electricity poles outside the Golden Temple. A pilgrim from Delhi, Surjit Singh said the large poster block the view of the Golden Temple. He said the authorities concerned must take concerted efforts to remove these hoardings especially in the vicinity of the Golden Temple. In another parts of the city like Dam Ganj and Nawa kot, falling in West constituency where the prime contest is between the ruling Akali party and opposition Panthic Morcha, the scene is no different. Here again electricity poles have been utilised to install hoardings of various sizes. A hoarding of SAD’s joint candidates from the Amritsar West, Bawa Singh Gumanpura and Bibi Kiranjot Kair, was found on electricity pole. On the other hand, another hoarding of Panthic candidate Pardeep Singh Walia from the same constituency was spotted on another pole. Walia said that was a rule only for the opposition parties and not for the ruling party. He claimed that the ruling party’s candidates had installed over 200 hoardings while he had splashed not more than 25 billboards. Mehta said he was away to Anandpur Sahib and would direct his supports to remove all hoardings. Gumanpura and Bibi Kiranjot Kaur said they had issued instructions to their supports to remove all kind of banners and would cross check the same.
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Attempt to murder charges slapped on in-laws
Amritsar, September 9 Gurmeet, who is battling for her life with 90 per cent burns at a private hospital, was set afire by her in-laws as she failed to bear a male child besides meeting to their expectations of dowry. The police has booked her husband Sukhdev Singh, her father-in-law, Bal Singh, mother-in-law Kulwinder Kaur, sister-in-laws Rekha and Kanwal and brother-in-law Baldev Singh against whom Gurmeet alleged that they used to harass and beat her. Amolak Singh, SHO Verowal police station, said a case under Sections 307, 148 and 149 of the IPC has been registered against the in-laws of Gurmeet Kaur. He said Gurmeet in her statement alleged that her in-laws family set her afire. Meanwhile, her conditions continued to remain critical at the hospital. The doctors attending on her had said that her chances of survival were very bleak. Gurmeet was married to Sukhdev Singh about three years back. According to her mother, the in-laws tortured Gurmeet for dowry. And after she gave birth to two girls, her problems aggravated.
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‘Dabbawala’ food finds favour in city
Amritsar, September 9 A city that is neither a corporate hub nor a metropolitan and has always found time and leisure to enjoy food has turned home-cooked food into a full-fledged business opportunity. Ask Ritu Arora, a housewife who turned business woman, thanks to her culinary skills. Running a tiffin service from Kennedy Avenue for the past four years, she explains the reason behind the surge, “There is a lot of demand for home-cooked tiffin service within the city as recent privatisation has bought in a lot of young professionals to the city. As a lot of them are living away from their families, so they find tiffin services an easy and healthy option rather than eating out everyday. Our potential client base has moved from students to professionals.” Cooking three meals a day in large quantities wasn’t new to her as she runs a paying guest facility, she says. When she saw a potential of expansion with the demand of home-cooked food in tiffins, all she had to do was multi-task, she adds. “On an average, we send 70 tiffins a day and I have a staff that is responsible for the packing, distribution and collection of the tiffins,” she says. The value addition comes in the form of a personalised meal preparation. The service can be availed as per meal, per day or monthly grounds and at a price of Rs 40 per meal. “The menu is different each day without any repetition and includes a dessert as well,” says Ritu. Apart from the taste, the idea of getting home-cooked food even away from home is for sure the selling point here. “There is nothing like home-cooked food. That’s why people order food from us because they get a healthy meal, cooked just like home,” says Renu Arora, another tiffin service provider from the city. “We take orders in advance as well. Sometimes our customers want some special recipes and so we cater to their needs as well,” she says. That means arranging a decent Chinese meal once in a while but that’s just occasional. “People mostly want simple, home-cooked food without any fancy recipes or additions. So it is important to keep their taste in mind,” says Renu. While most stick to a vegetarian menu there are some who serve non-veg treats available as well, “But it’s only on Sundays,” says Amit Dean, who runs Aastha Catering service. But it is his wife who calls the shots here. “She has been in this business for past five years and ever since she has started the demand has only increased,” he adds. The couple has to outsource the distribution work to keep up with the demand, they say. “We have staffers working in shifts sometimes.” With the increasing demand comes competition, “The business depends on how good your food tastes, it doesn’t have to be anything fancy,” says Renu.
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Delhi HC terror strike condemned
Amritsar, September 9 The Front led by Mohinder Singh Sidhu, senior vice-president, AIATF, Punjab, also burnt an effigy of HuJI (Harkat-ul-Jihal Islami) for its alleged involvement in terrorist activities in the country. Addressing the protesters Sidhu alleged that Pakistan’s ISI was behind such strikes in which innocent lives of civilians and security force personnel were lost. He said India had always taken a lenient view of this which has resulted in increased terrorist strikes. According to him, the Union Government should not review the death penalty of the convicts languishing in jails for their involvement in various bomb blasts.
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Manch Rangmanch artists celebrate two decades of journey called art
Amritsar, September 9 "We started this group in 1991 as a platform to spread social and artistic awareness. We have staged over 2,000 shows and 150 plays in this time span and have visited every state in the country as well as US, Canada, Norway and Pakistan to stage shows," said Hewal Dhaliwal, president of Manch Ramngmanch. As many as 100 artistes associated with the group were felicitated and shared their experiences with the theatre group. "Our main was to highlight the social issues of Punjab and also encourage talent from the region. I am satisfied that we have been successful," said Kewal. "We will hold four theatre festivals which would include some of our popular plays, a short documentary made exclusively on Manch Rangmanch and a book to be published on the group as well."
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Tough time for applicants as birth records go missing
Amritsar, September 9 Several applicants had to return as the officials here failed to locate old record. A bunch of birth certificates could be seen lying unattended which could fall in the wrong hands. One of the applicants Ranjit Kaur, a resident of Sultanwind, said she had come to the office to enter the name of her daughter Manjinder Kaur in her birth certificate but the hospital list mentioning the date and time of her birth has gone missing from the records of the department. She said while procuring the certificate 20 years ago she did not know that it was essential to enter the name of the child in the birth certificate. Ranjit said now the department has asked her to approach the Chief Medical Officer for the confirmation of date and time of her daughter's birth. She said the procedure is cumbersome as the same is to be approved from the Sub divisional Magistrate to get the certificate. Prince, a resident of Islamabad working with the water works department, rued that he had been making rounds of the department for the last one and a half month but every time the officials ask him to come again to get the birth certificate of his daughter. He claimed that the official register containing the details of her birth had got badly damaged. He said the officials instead of guiding him continue to mislead him. The Registrar of Birth and Death, Vijay Kumar, claimed all the records had been kept in a systematic manner and it might be that they have not received the record from the hospital authorities. He said the affected persons have no option but to follow the procedure laid down to get the certificates of their wards.
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Literacy Day celebrated
Amritsar, September 9 School principal Anjana Gupta accompanying the senior students of her school visited the Nav-Chetna centre being run in a slum locality of the city. She exhorted the students to study and teach others to spread education in the society. She said DAV International School aims at holistic development of its students. She said to celebrate this day, competitions in slogan writing, declamation, essay writing were held for the students from classes two to seven of the school.
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The snatching incidents continue to haunt city residents. As many as four such incidents were reported in the city in the past 24 hours.
In the biggest incident, three looters beat up a jeweller and took away the bag containing gold jewellery worth Rs 20 lakh.
Amritsar, September 9
Even after the expiry of two-day deadline to remove all kinds of posters and billboards from public land, roadside and properties, which do not belong to the leaders taking part in the SGPC election and their supporters, nothing has changed on the ground.
Amritsar, September 9
Manch Rangmanch celebrated its 20th anniversary at a function organised on Thursday. Several prominent names from the city's artistic community were present. "We started this group in 1991 as a platform to spread social and artistic awareness. We have staged over 2,000 shows and 150 plays in this time span and have visited every state.
