Amritsar, September 28
With the arrest of four persons, the city police today claimed to have busted a gang of robbers who used to loot people and snatch their vehicles on bypass road here. Those arrested are Sitara Singh, a resident of Tungpai, Ramesh Kumar of Milap Avenue, Chheharta, Harbhajan Singh of Chheharta and Jaswant Singh of Bhikhiwind (falling in Tarn Taran).

As per the police, as many as seven criminal cases have been registered against Sitara Singh at various police stations.

The Rambagh police has registered a case under Sections 399 and 402 of the IPC and Sections 25, 54 and 59 of the Arms Act against the accused. The police has also recovered two country-made pistols, two live cartridges and sharp-edged weapons from them.

The Sadar police has nabbed Gurjit Singh, a resident of Naushehra Khurd village, the main accused who had slit the throat of co-worker’s wife. According to police investigations, the accused had tried to molest the victim after entering the house. However, when she tried to raise an alarm, the accused slit her throat by a knife.

Admitting his crime, Gurjit said he ran away from the spot and buried the knife outside the village. The police has recovered the knife besides 60 gram of narcotic powder from his possession. It has slapped another case under Section 22, 61 and 85 of NDPS Act against him. 

Amritsar, September 28
District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum has issued a notice to the Amritsar Improvement Trust for its failure to extend basic amenities to residents of Guru Teg Bahadur Nagar in Mal Mandi area of the city despite its orders.

Following a complaint filed by a Katra Moti Ram resident, Kanwar Rajinder Singh, the forum has asked the Improvement Trust to file a reply on October 21. Earlier, in the orders issued on March 7 this year, deciding on a complaint filed by Singh, the forum had directed the Improvement Trust to provide basic amenities like water supply, motorable roads and sewerage at Guru Teg Bahadur Nagar within six months of the order.

The forum had also directed the trust to pay a compensation of Rs 10,000 to the complainant, who told the forum that the Improvement Trust neither provided the basic amenities within a span of six months nor it had paid the amount of compensation as directed. He added that he had filed the complaint in the forum under Section 27 of The Consumer Protection Act 1986, citing a deficiency in the services.

Kanwar Pahul Singh, advocate for the complainant, said, “The trust has deliberately failed to comply with the orders of the forum. We have prayed that forum should take action against the Trust for not complying with the orders.”

The complainant informed the forum that the trust has not made any effort to provide the services even after six months’ time. “The trust has wilfully defied the orders of the forum and deprived the residents of their rightful services,” said Kanwar Rajinder Singh. 

Amritsar, September 28
Within a year and a half of its inauguration, the much-hyped light and sound show at the historic Jallianwalla Bagh faced disruption for three days each during the past two weeks, leaving the tourists disappointed. However, the authorities are now claiming that the show is back on track now.

The notice displayed at Jallianwala Bagh about disruption of light and sound show in Amritsar. (Right) Souvenir shop at the Jallianwala Bagh has limited souvenirs for sale. Tribune Photos: Vishal Kumar

Amritsar, September 28
As the festive season begins, make sure you get a list of who all you would like to wish. As the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India limits the number of text messages one can send in a day, the list might not be as long as previous years. As the new ruling of just 100 SMSes per day gets implemented, the consumers, specially younger ones are filled with disapproval, calling it unnecessary and infringement of their right of freedom of expression (well, some of them are really that upset).

While the latest rule comes in the wake of reported harassment experienced by consumers through unsolicited messaging, it is not going down well with a section of society. Especially students, who heavily depend on messaging as a tool of communication. “This is very bad. My gang and I mostly chat through SMS only. We specially get service packs with unlimited messages and now it would go waste. Though people like me can manage 80-100 SMSes per day but many people are there who send everyday 150 SMSes,” says Damanpreet Walia, student of BCom I, Khalsa College. Another one, Ranjodh Madaan, pursuing CA too shares his woes, “Messaging is ‘the other facebook’ for most people. All our plans and schedules are discussed through messages. Setting the limit to 100 is not enough. Now, we will have to pay more after exhausting the limit. As a student, it will hurt my pocket badly.”

Amritsar, September 28
A little “movement” to your life could make a big difference to your health and especially help to prevent heart ailments. Considering that India is fast becoming the capital of heart diseases in the world, with the maximum number of cardiac patients. Various experts have advised the people to add exercise and physical activities to their day to day life in order to avoid heart diseases.

It is better to prevent than to repent. This is the clear message from the heart specialists on the occasion of World Heart Day slated to be held tomorrow. The people of Punjab are more prone to heart ailments due to their eating habits and a live-life-kingsize approach. The people must adopt a heart-friendly lifestyle, said Dr Adarsh Kumar, Prof and Head of Department of Cardiology, Government Medical College and Guru Nanak Dev Hospital.

“Eighty per cent of the heart ailments can be prevented by adding physical activity and regular exercise. We should take nutritious food, especially fruits and vegetables in our diet and avoid tobacco, smoking and excessive alcohol consumption,” said Dr Adarsh.

He said only 3-4 percent of people in India could afford advanced treatment in case of heart ailments. Therefore, governments and doctors all over the world are stressing on preventing the disease rather than going in for intervention,” he added.

“One of the biggest problems in the country today is lack of activity.The irony is that people know it's good for them but they avoid it like anything. Movement is movement and the more you do, the healthier you will be. Even moderate activities like gardening and walking can make a huge difference,” said Dr H P Singh, Medical Superintendent, Fortis Escorts hospital.

“The trick to healthy living is making small changes in your daily life like taking more steps, adding fruits to your diet, having an extra glass of water, just a few ways by which you can start living a healthy life. Even if you opt for small changes in your daily routine and a more modest weight loss, you can see the benefits are still pretty good,”said Dr Singh. He said various studies reveal that just a 10 per cent weight reduction helped obese patients reduce their blood pressure and cholesterol which are the major reasons of heart diseases.

Children dressed as langoors dance on the beats of dhol during Langoor Mela in Durgiana Temple in Amritsar on Wednesday. Tribune Photo vishal kumar

Amritsar, September 28
Arjun (6) and Darsh (5), both from London, might not know what was happening, but they were excited on becoming langoors at the world-famous Langoor Mela. Attired in red suits with silver trimmings and conical caps, they were seen dancing to dhol beats and enjoying every bit of it.

With the onset of Navratras celebrations, the mela commenced at Bada Hanuman Temple situated on the premises of the Durgiana Temple here today. Thousands of devotees and children dressed as langoors paid obeisance and sought blessings of Lord Hanuman.

Arjun and Darsh’s father Alok Gupta said, “It has brought back the memories of my childhood when I had become a langoor and visited the temple. In fact it was the wish of my father Parduman Gupta to make his two grandsons as langoors at the festival.”

Parduman, who shifted to London about 40 years ago, was accompanied by his family at the mela. “Such festivals and rituals connect us with our great heritage and culture,” said Parduman.

Remembering old days, he said, my father was a cloth trader and used to live in Chowk Lakshman Sar in the walled city. “We first shifted to Ludhiana in 1957 and then to London,” said Parduman.

“Though we have been living in London for a long time now, we miss our country and its rich culture and heritage,” said Alok Gupta, who came to Amritsar after 26 years. He pointed out the holy city, besides its religious heritage, is also known for its food. “The whole family is going to relish Amritsari food till we are here,” he added.

Another NRI child, Saksham Suri (5) who was accompanied by his father Bikram Rajpoot and mother Lakshami came over from Australia to visit the temple in order to fulfil the wishes of his grandmother. The family which originally belonged to Batala shifted to Australia about six years back.

Meanwhile, a large number of devotees from far away places paid obeisance at the temple. They were seen taking the blessings of Hanuman and dancing to the dhol beats. They also paid obeisance at goddess Sitla temple on the premises.