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Little work, more deadlines
Ludhiana, August 21 The much-awaited expressway project is already running behind schedule and is a perfect example of lack of coordination among different government departments. On March 31, state PWD minister Sharanjit Singh Dhillon had announced that the project would be ready by October this year, but today, Dhillon announced a new date, March 31. Prior to this, February was the deadline. Dhillon claims that the delay in completion of the project is due to the railways department. “They have failed to submit the drawings of the two ROBs on time, due to which our project is getting delayed. Only the first drawings of the ROBs have been submitted,” he said. Due to lack of coordination between several government departments, the project kept getting delayed. A review meeting for the Rs 416-crore project was held in Chandigarh on July 18 last year, which was presided over by Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal. He had then announced that the project would be opened to traffic on October 1 last year. During the paddy season last year, the irrigation department had released water into the Sidhwan Canal, resulting in stoppage Dhillon visited the project today and asked officials to speed up the work so that the project could be constructed by March 31. “We will start work on all the flyovers and bridges, except the two ROBs and the Gurthali Bridge, within the stipulated time frame. The remaining work will also be completed soon,” he claimed. Expressway project
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Encroachment on prime land worth
Rs 50 crore cleared
Ludhiana, August 21 Dr Rishi Pal Singh, administrator of the Trust, said the scheme was notified in 1976 and acquisition proceedings were taken up in 1984. However, the owner of land measuring 43 kanals continued to occupy the land even after the mutation of land was decided in favour of the LIT and compensation of around Rs 2.22 lakh was deposited with the court. The owner continued with a legal battle and sought exemption of his land from the scheme, but his plea was rejected by a civil court in 2002. In the meantime, the LIT had also deposited the enhanced amount of compensation worth Rs 11.11 lakh with the court. When efforts of the Trust to get the land cleared of encroachment failed to fructify, the matter was taken up with the District Magistrate for providing police protection and deploy a Duty Magistrate so that the LIT could evict the unlawful occupant and take possession of the land. However, before the LIT could move to repossess the land, Gajjan Singh appeared in the Trust office and offered to relinquish his claim on the condition that compensation due to him was paid to him and a plot measuring 500 sq yards under the "locally displaced person" was allotted to him as per rules. Work on the construction of roads on the said piece of land has now been taken up in the presence of Gajjan Singh. "After carrying out development works as per the original layout of the scheme, possession of residential plots will be handed over to 175 eligible allottees," he said. What went wrong |
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Sewage being dumped into canal
Ludhiana, August 21 Instead of making alternative arrangements for the disposal of sewage coming out of the damaged line, MC officials dumped it directly into the canal, making a mockery of the directions of the district administration boards which restrict residents from throwing garbage or any other solid waste into Sidhwan Canal. A senior MC official said: “We have no option, but to dump sewage into the canal. Where else can we dump it? Had there been any vacant piece of land nearby, we would have dumped it there.” Manjit Singh, Additional Commissioner (Technical), operations and maintenance cell of the MC, said the company digging the site for the expressway project did not inform either the MC or the sewerage board before starting the digging. “Had they informed us, we would have told them about the exact location of the pipe and it could have been saved from getting damaged. Even when the pipe was damaged, they did not inform us and quietly left the spot. We came to know about it only when residents started facing problems,” he said. Even the water supply to the affected areas has been cut by almost 50 per cent. “Repair work is going on and the line would be repaired by tomorrow,” assured Manjit Singh, who said the sewage was being disposed into the canal only as a temporary measure. PWD Minister Sharanjit Singh Dhillon visited the spot today and MC officials raised the issue of the pipe getting damaged. “We told him everything, but he did not pay heed to our concerns. Instead of taking action against the company, he said the main priority was completion of the project,” said an MC official. Dhillon claimed that the pipe got damaged as the sewerage board had provided wrong drawings of the sewer. “The digging was done away from the spot identified as a sewer line. Had the board officials provided the right drawing, the pipe would not have got damaged,” he stated. |
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Thieves strike at IAS officer's house
Ludhiana, August 21 The house belonged to Raminder Singh, Commissioner (Ferozepur Division), who used to visit the house on weekends. It is learnt that he had not visited the house lately and it used to remain locked. The incident came to light last evening when the caretaker, Shalender Sharma, noticed that the grills of a window had been broken. When he peeped through the window, he saw that the house had been ransacked. He informed the police and Raminder Singh about the incident. He said he still had to make the list of valuables that had been stolen. The Sarabha Nagar police has registered a case of theft against unidentified persons and started investigation. The theft seems to be the handiwork of an organised gang of thieves. Earlier too, the gang had struck at a house in Sarabha Nagar and decamped with an LED television, DVD, crockery and mattresses. The gang had recently struck at a boutique in Sarabha Nagar and fled with cash and expensive dress material. Four cylinders raise eyebrows |
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Double whammy for family
Jagraon, August 21 The incident came to light when the family members of the deceased saw their bodies at their respective houses. The police took both the bodies in its custody and sent them for post-mortem at the local civil hospital. No suicide note was recovered from both the spots, said Station House Officer Rachpal Singh. Family of the deceased told the police that both Balwinder Singh and Amandeep Kaur had been under depression for some time. "The exact reason that made the boy and the girl take this extreme step is not yet clear," said the SHO. The police has registered a case under the Section 174 of CrPC and started the investigation. |
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Two more snatchers arrested
Ludhiana, August 21 The accused have been identified as Sunny and Shivam, who were nabbed following a tip- off by the police. During questioning, the accused cracked soon and confessed to having committed eight snatchings. The police also recovered a dagger, a toy pistol and eight
mobile phones from their possession, besides two motorcycles. The investigating officer said the third member of the gang identified as Raman Kumar was on the run. In the meantime, the Shimlapuri police has also nabbed two snatchers identified as Harman Kumar and Surjit Singh, both residents of Ishar Nagar, and recovered five mobile phones from the possession of the accused. |
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Filling station owner, wife nabbed for peddling drugs
Ludhiana, August 21 Deputy Commissioner of Police GS Toor said the accused were travelling in a Maruti Gypsy and were stopped by a team of the anti-narcotics cell. During a search, the police found 100 gm of smack worth Rs 25 lakh in the international market from the possession of the duo. The police also recovered 10 kg of poppy husk from them. The DCP said Bhajan Ram was a habitual offender and nine cases of drug peddling were registered against him. Preliminary investigation revealed that Bhajan Ram owned a filling station in Nabha. He told the police that after making enough money from peddling drugs, he took the filling station on lease.
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Bank employees to go on strike from today
Ludhiana, August 21 PBEF secretary Naresh Gaur said the striking bank employees would hold a massive rally in front of Canara Bank at Bharat Nagar Chowk here on August 22 which would be addressed by prominent trade union leaders. He said the bank employees were agitating for immediate settlement of all pending issues which were hanging fire due to indifferent attitude of the bank managements and the government. The pending demands of the bank employees, he added, included scrapping all arbitrary guidelines on human resource issues, stopping unilateral implementation of the recommendations of Khandelwal Committee, doing away with outsourcing of bank jobs, stopping banking sector reforms and review of the prevailing policy on closure of rural branches of the banks. Gaur said the normal banking business at the nationalised banks was bound to be affected during the period of strike and asked the members of public to bear with the bank employees who were forced to adopt the path of agitation to seek justice. demands
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Farmer burns crop
Jagraon, August 21 While speaking to mediapersons after destroying the paddy, farmer Chand Singh stated that neither the rain god nor the state government could provide water for irrigation, which forced him to take this unusual step. "Firstly, there has been scanty rainfall this year, which made farmers dependent on electricity for irrigating their paddy crop. But the prolonged unscheduled power cuts made the situation worse, otherwise you will see no farmer destroying the crop he has sown with his own hands," rued Chand Singh while narrating his tale. Chand Singh said that he had sown paddy on two acres of his agricultural land about one and half months ago. "Till now I had been irrigating the fields with a generator set with the hope that the situation may improve sooner or later. But neither the rain god nor the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited altered its stance and it became impossible for me to pay for the diesel," added Chand Singh. Chand Singh complained that the electricity department has failed to provide sufficient power supply to the farming sector which forced him to take this step. "But it was not me alone who has been going through hardships. There are many other who are thinking of following in my steps and if the situation does not improve in coming days," claimed Chand Singh. Other farmers present there also rued that they were facing tough times and if the situation did not improve in thecoming days, the farmers were bound to suffer heavy financial losses. The farming community has appealed the state government to urge the electricity department to provide them with sufficient required amount of power.
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200 saplings planted at RIMT
Mandi Gobindgarh, August 21 RIMT Group chairman Dr. Hukam Chand Bansal, vice-chairman Vijyant Bansal and Dorector Dr Harsh Sadawarti planted shrubs and trees on the campus. NSS programme officer Prof. Sandeep Singla along with 100 volunteers organised the campaign. Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Hukam Chand Bansal emphasised on adopting, nurturing and protecting plants. He said that RIMT had started tree plantation and would continue to do so throughout the year. Sawdawarti, while interacting with students of the institute, appealed to them to nurse at least one tree each and look after it. He said that this would help to ensure that the RIMT campus remained pollution free. This is an effort towards reducing global warming and encourages students to be aware of the significance that trees have in our life. About 100 students of various departments of the institute also planted saplings. Saplings include mango, jamun, neem, jacaranda, gulmohar, silver oak, kachnaar, palm, magnolia, bottle brush, nimbu, and various other ever green and ornamental plants. A total of 200 saplings were planted during the drive.
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For this young painter art is life
Ludhiana, August 21 Talking about her paintings, Ayushi said, "I made my first canvas in Class V. For me, art is my life. I have worked on different ideas but people like my "Jagannath Ji" painting a lot. I have made that painting with mescal.Studying in BA final year at Khalsa College for Women, Ayushi says, "I have worked on oil, water color and fabric paintings. Today was my second day and I got a good response from the public."
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Residents inconvenienced at Suvidha Centre
Ludhiana, August 21
This happened despite the state government's claims of successful implementation of the Right to Service Act. Harjinder Singh Bedi, a local resident, said, "I have been standing in the queue for the last four hours. The Duty Magistrate is not there that is leading to an inconvenience." Additional Deputy Commissioner Neeru Katyal said that the Duty Magistrate was assigned to some different task by the deputy sub-divisional magistrate. ADC Katyal said that she had directed the SDM to make alternative arrangements to tackle the problem. Meanwhile, District Transport Office had also changed the venue of its licensing window to the Suvidha Centre Hall No. 3. No arrangements were made, however, to inform the public that the window had shifted. There were, moreover, more than 10 windows in the hall, without any proper demarcation. "I had been standing outside the window no. 39 for two hours when my turn came, but the person at the counter informed me to stand outside the window no. 37 instead," said Kulwinder Singh, an applicant. District Transport Officer Manpreet Singh said as it was the first day, some problems were encountered. "We have changed the location of the licensing window for the convenience of the public. The things will get normal within one or two days," he said. Despite all the efforts of the district administration, commission agents could also be seen at the Suvidha Centre. No courtesy Timings not suitable *
Gurmukh Singh of Jagraon said: "Earlier one could meet the officers till 4pm, but now officials are not even available at 2pm. Government should increase the working hours of government offices instead of this relaxation."
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Metro project for city on track
Ludhiana, August 21 During the meeting, the detailed project report (DPR) prepared by DMRC in 2008 and the recently conducted survey of the LMRC will be discussed. Apart from the LMRC officials, senior officials of the Ludhiana municipal corporation, the state local bodies department and Punjab Infrastructure Development Board will also attend the meeting. "Presently the Ludhiana Metro Rail project is in its initial stages of planning, but once the meeting is held, the project will fall on track and we expect that the construction work will start soon," said a senior MC official. The corridor I is 15. 798 km long and will start from the Ayali Chowk on the Ferozepur Road and will go till the BBMB Power House on Chandigarh Road. It will have a total of 14 stations, including 10 elevated and four underground. The corridor II is 13.035 km long and will start from Gill village and will end at the Rahon Road Octroi post. The corridor will have 13 stations, including six elevated and seven underground. The corridors will be elevated as the metro rail will run some 26 feet above the ground level and for underground corridor, the metro rail will run 15-20 m below the ground. To speed up the work concerning the Ludhiana Metro Rail project, the Ludhiana municipal corporation Commissioner has already constituted a three-member "support cell" that will look into various aspects of the project, including the acquisition of land and liaisoning with other government departments. The team includes Assistant Commissioner (Technical) HS Khosa, who will oversee the work of Ludhiana Metro Rail project as a coordinator-cum-nodal officer, senior town planner (STP) Hemant Batra will study and prepare a detailed report regarding all government and private properties to be acquired for the project and SDO (bridges and roads) Sanjay Kanwar will look into the office work of the support cell.
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'Ambulance 108' staff rescue another drowning girl
Ludhiana, August 21 Both of them jumped into the canal and rescued the 20-year-old girl. The girl was rushed to the Civil hospital." Meanwhile, Senior Medical Officer of the Civil Hospital Dr Karamvir Goel, said, "She was admitted here at 1 pm and was discharged at 5 pm." Past incidents *
In March, the staff of "Ambulance 108" saved two persons who were drowning in Neelon Canal
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Six challaned for smoking at public places, officials collect
Rs 800 as fine
Ludhiana, August 21 Dr Puneet Juneja said, "The violators were challaned under the Anti Tobacco Act -2003. One challan was issued outside the DC's office while the other five were issued at the city bus terminus. We collected Rs 800 as fine from the violators." The Act was enforced three years ago, still people continue to violate it. In 2011, 102 persons were challaned in the city alone for smoking at public places. Meanwhile, no fresh case of dengue was reported today.
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Rail India comes up with mobility plan to end traffic woes
The plan has been prepared keeping in mind the traffic related forecast for the coming 20 years. Under the plan, RITES has proposed three ring roads, 41 new flyovers, a new corridor for Ludhiana Metro Rail project, extension of proposed two metro corridors, 10 new bus rapid transit (BRT) corridors, besides several other such plans. The plan has been prepared keeping in mind Ludhiana, Doraha, Sahnewal, Phillaur and Mullanpur towns, besides a total of 301 other villages located on the outskirts of the city. It includes all those areas that fall under the master plan of the city. For providing some respite from traffic, the RITES team has proposed construction of three new ring roads- outer, inner and middle. Besides, RITES has also proposed that the total length of Ludhiana Metro Rail project should be increased from 29 km to 100 km in the next 20 years. In addition to two already proposed corridors, RITES has proposed a third corridor that would start from Doraha and end at Phillaur. Even the already proposed corridor I, starting from Ayali Chowk on the Ferozepur Road till BBMB Power House on the Chandigarh Road has been extended. The Ayali Chowk starting point has been increased till Raqba village, while the BBMB Power House end point has been extended till Katani Kalan village. The corridor II will start from Gill village and will end at the Rahon Road Octroi post. The Gill village starting point has been increased till Kaind village while the Rahon Road Octroi post end has been increased till Mattewara village. HS Khosa, Assistant Commissioner (Technical), said the BRT corridors had been proposed on the Hambran Road, Pakhowal Road, Road along Sidhwan Canal, Dugri Road, road along Budha Nullah, entire middle ring road and entire inner ring road. “The comprehensive mobility plan is to be carried out in four phases,” he said.
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Students make up for absence of vets at clinic
Ludhiana, August 21 The clinic on the campus is run by students enrolled in various courses in the university, who are not only treating pets, but are also prescribing medicines in the absence of doctors. When this correspondent visited the hospital at 10.30 am, not even a single doctor was found on duty. Some of the pet owners could be seen waiting for the doctors. Two students were treating dogs in the medicine hall while two others were prescribing medicines to pet owners. The clinic in-charge said two doctors and one assistant professor were on duty. There were about 20 persons were waiting for the doctors with their dogs. Jaswinder Singh, a pet owner, said, "I have been waiting for the doctors for the past 45 minutes and not even a single doctor has turned up so far. Only students are seen. I have no problem if students treat my dog, but I want that at least an experienced doctor should diagnose the animal." Meanwhile, Honey Kaushal, another pet owner, said, "When i enquired at the counter, I was told that the doctors were on a tea break. It is strange that not even a single doctor is present in the clinic, if any emergency comes up, how will these students deal with the situation." After an hour, Dr PS Mavi, in-charge of the clinic, said, "Our students are not novice they are well trained. Doctors were here 15 minutes ago." "Mostly students treat the animals at the clinic," said an employee.
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School
Notes
Play marks Eid celebrations Children spend time with senior citizens Meditate for healthy mind and body, says expert Quiz tests students on general awareness Book on transforming
India released Sukhleen makes school proud in declamation Abacus competition Students learn about BPO and IT sector
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College
Notes
Technical workshop held
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Ludhiana
Scan
425 patients examined Nursing complex inaugurated Blood donation camp Awareness campaign BJP employees’ cell Tributes paid
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Theft at house in Dugri
Ludhiana, August 21 She was shocked to see the house ransacked. Gurmeet Singh said the thieves took away 18 tola gold ornaments, Rs 30,000 in cash and other valuables. He said thieves broke open the door of the house. The police has started investigation. — TNS
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50 gm smack recovered, two arrested
Samrala, August 21 The youths allegedly tried to escape but were overpowered. During the search 25-25 gm smack were recovered from both youths. The youths were identified as Kulwinder Singh, alias Titli, and Bahadar Singh, alias Soni, both residents of Ghungrali Sikhan village. JS Cheema, DSP, Samrala, confirmed the arrests and said that a case under the NDPS Act was registered against both the alleged accused.
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2 commit suicide
Ludhiana, August 21 He had suffered losses after the pollution control board department employees raided his unit and levied fine on him for emitting pollution. In the second incident a 30-year-old woman and mother of three children committed suicide by hanging herself from a ceiling fan at her house in Ashok Nagar near Bharat Nagar Chowk. Gurpreet Singh, former sarpanch of Heeran village, was found dead under mysterious circumstances at a vacant plot in Barmali village. The police is suspecting that the victim was poisoned to death.
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Ludhiana, August 21