R E G I O N A L   B R I E F S

PUNJAB

Pathankot
Rain hits life: Incessant rain and severe cold wave has disrupted normal life in the town and surrounding areas on Sunday and forced people to stay indoors. Dr Karnail Singh MD (Medicine) said winters pose greater threat to patients who are suffering from blood pressure, asthma, arthritis and heart related problems. He advised such patients to avoid exposure and to put on proper woollen clothes. 

Phagwara
Man killed: Jatin Kumar of local Urban Estate was killed on the spot when his motorcycle collided with a Scorpio car on the Phagwara-Bhanoki road on Saturday. A case has been registered against the car driver and the body has been sent to the local Civil Hospital for post-mortem. 

Day of SMSes: Due to heavy rain on Sunday election campaigners preferred sending SMS and emails to voters than conducting outdoor campaigns. Traffic jams were seen between Phagwara and Paragpur due to the rain.

DEHRADUN

Kumaon Briefs

Tiwari has narrow escape
Senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister Narayan Dutt Tewari had a narrow escape when the car in which he was travelling was forced to descend from the road into an unmetalled patch near Pantnagar by a bus. The incident took place near Patharchatta when Tewari was on his way to Rudrapur. He did not sustain any injury in the incident. The driver of the car had shown a great presence of mind to avert what could have been a major accident.

Man reported missing
An owner of a motor-training school in Haldwani has been reported missing by his brother. It is learnt that Gajendra Pal of Haripur Purnanand Colony had not returned home since Friday evening. He had left his mobile phone at home. It is learnt that he had been mentally disturbed. The police has started looking for him. The motor training school run by him is located in the Gorapadav area of the town.

Motorcyclist killed
A motorcycle-borne person was killed when he was hit by a private bus in the Sitarganj area of Udham Singh Nagar. The deceased has been identified as 50-year-old Nirmal Singh of Ajniyan village. The head on collision took place on the Khatima road. The victim was rushed to a hospital where he was declared dead on arrival. He was employed at a flour mill in Sisaikheda village.

Drive against those without helmet
Carrying out a special drive against the youth not wearing helmets while driving two wheelers, the Rudrapur police has imposed a fine on more than 150 persons. The drive has been initiated keeping in view the high incidence of road accidents and the drivers of two wheelers sustaining injuries. The vehicle owners who without proper number plates were also warned by the police during the drive. At the same time, the police carried out checking of cars on highways and forced several car owners to remove the black film from the windowpanes.

Three cattle heads perish in fire
Three cattle heads perished in a fire that broke out in a house in the Garud area of Bageshwar district. The incident took place in Naukana Khumtiya village. Two cows along with a calf were charred to death in the incident. The owner of the house has put the losses incurred in the incident at Rs 1 lakh. The reason behind the fire outbreak is yet unknown. The residents of the house had a narrow escape. The fire was brought under control by the neighbours.

(Compiled by Rajeev Khanna)