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MC gets plan to improve city traffic situation
Three sambar deaths in city: Experts blame forest division
Girls to be trained in martial arts for self-defence
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City inspector awarded prestigious President’s Police Medal
Nights continue to be biting cold
Encroachments by roadside vendors
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MC gets plan to improve city traffic situation
Jalandhar, January 28 From proposing new bus routes to suggesting one-way traffic routes, a team of consultants hired for the survey has made several other suggestions, including constructing 11 new ROBs or flyovers, four Foot Overbridges (FOBs) and nine new parking lots. The consultants have proposed a Bus Rapid Transport System as per which bus shelters have to be installed on central verges for alighting and boarding the City Bus. The first lane of all roads through which the City Bus will ply has been proposed to be dedicated for the purpose. It has been proposed that there will be a bus shelter after every 0.5 km spacing in commercial areas and 1-2 km spacing on other areas and as such 180 bus shelters of the sort need to be constructed. Viney Bublani, Commissioner, said the MC was planning on similar lines, as the contract with the previous company was scheduled to expire this August. “We have got the copy of the CMP just a few days back. We will finalise the next contract accordingly. Smaller buses will be hired for smaller routes and larger for longer routes. Nearly 45 buses will ply against the existing 15 in the next contract,” he said. New bus routes proposed
Seven one-ways suggested
Flyovers and ROBs proposed
Multi-level/basement parking lots
Proposed Foot Overbridge
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Three sambar deaths in city: Experts blame forest division
If sources are to be believed, the Jalandhar Forest Division does not have a tranquilising gun, nets or a vehicle - all equipment of key importance in an emergency when a wild animal strays into the city. Nor does the department have any veterinary doctor. So far, three sambars in the city have died, as the precious animals were not handled properly by the forest department experts. While the death of animals was largely blamed on the public, the onus clearly also lies with an - almost without equipment - forest department and lack of government foresight in the provision of expertise and infrastructure to handle the straying in of a huge amount of sambars (and/or other wild visitors to the city) every season. Many straying cases
A couple of years ago as many as 65 sambar deer had strayed into the city during winters. This winter season, as many as 25 to 30 sambars have strayed into the city, as per forest officials themselves. Still, the crisis is being called just a seasonal problem and no serious action has been taken to prevent the death of innocent animals. No vets
The entire district does not have a vet with expertise or experience with wild When a wild animal strays in, either the PFA (People for Animals) or vets from the animal husbandry department are left to grope with the situation - even as their expertise is limited to livestock or domestic (or stray) city animals. The only training veterinary staff has in wild animals is a two-day training attended by two animal husbandry vets. Proper training requires at least a one-year course. Inside sources agree that the forest department can't traquilise animals even if it wants because it might end up giving an overdose. Tranquilisers
The only tranquilising gun in the city is with the animal husbandry department. Last year, a bull had died due to a supposed overdose from a tranquilsing gun. This year, the Sant Nagar sambar wasn't even tranquilised when it needed
to be. Experts opine that the use of the gun in time, when the said sambar was being chased by people, might have prevented its death. Chaos by the public and the shock to the animal (which went berserk) caused profuse bleeding. Notably, the department teams also reached an hour late, when the harm had been done. "Forest officials tied the animal with a rope and took it forcibly to their vehicle. If the sambar had just been tranquilised instead, it could have been transported safely without any injury," said an expert. While a heart attack was termed as the reason for the death, sources say that is questionable. No penalty
Experts also say negligence by residents in putting the safety of an animal in jeopardy is also liable to action under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. But so far, not a single person has been penalised. Nor has the department spread any information among residents about the guidelines of the Wildlife Protection Act. Despite the region receiving so many wild visitors, every time the same mistakes are being repeated. Vehicle
While a proper vehicle is required to rescue and ferry such wild animals, the local forest division still does not have a proper vehicle. The one they have isn?t even big enough to house big wild animals and does not have a cage mechanism to keep them in. Chander Bhushan who heads the PFA in Jalandhar, says, "A number of times we have been asked to rescue sambars in our own vehicle because the forest teams do not have a vehicle." Bhushan has now offered to provide his own vehicle to forest teams. PFA
The PFA, alone, this season rescued six sambars. One died. Two of them are still at the PFA shelter at Civil Lines, Jalandhar. There have been times, when dearth of a vehicle caused the entire operation to be conducted by the PFA team. Rescuing wild animals, sheltering them and treating them, are essentially tasks which the forest department is responsible for. Action so far
So far, one forest guard has been suspended for delaying action in the case of the Rama Mandi sambar death, wherein the sambar drowned in a pond. While there was delay (and inadequate action) in the Sant Nagar incident too, there no action has been initiated so far. OffcialSpeak
DFO Vishal Chauhan
says the public creates a lot of problems for officials, plus the seasonal spate are the key problems. Equipment — "We have the adequate nets and tranquilsing gun. And we use them when need be. In the case of the Sant Nagar sambar, the animal wasn't tranquilised because there was no harm to the
public. In the bull's case (last year), it was hitting people." Awareness — "We plan to put up guidelines in public places, informing people about being careful with wild animals." Staff — "Just today we have had an addition of 18 guards in the Jalandhar division. So while we had 23 earlier, now there are 41 guards in the Jalandhar Forest Division, which includes districts Kapurthala and Nawanshahr tehsil. |
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Girls to be trained in martial arts for self-defence
Jalandhar, January 28 Talking to The Tribune, the district president of the BJP Mahila Morcha Urmil Vaid said, “I had planned to hold martial arts camps in education institutions to train girls in self-defence soon after the Delhi gang-rape incident.” One such hour-long camp was organised at the Bharat Vikas Parishad office at Central Town on Republic Day where over 75 women, mostly BJP Mahila Morcha workers, were imparted initial martial arts training by karate expert Sanjay. When asked was a single hour-long camp sufficient to provide training to women in self-defence, Urmil replied, “Our basic purpose is to make them confident that they are capable in self-defence and to spread awareness among them about the importance of martial arts in self-protection by imparting them initial karate training.” Urmil further said, “Dates for holding such camps at education institutions will be finalised soon. I have also talked to martial arts trainers and some of the representatives of education institutions regarding holding such camps.” When asked are you also spreading awareness among women against the misuse of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 and Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005, she did not give any direct reply. However, admitting that the provision of these laws were misused by women, she said, “A number of males approach her for help when their wives lodge false complaints against them under
these acts.” |
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Protesting councillor wields broom
Jalandhar, January 28 Representing ward number 40, the councillor has a huge area under his ward, with colonies Babu Labh Singh Nagar, New Babu Labh Singh Nagar, Amar Nagar, New Aman Nagar, Sham Nagar, Rattan Nagar, New Rattan Nagar, Baba Kahan Dass Nagar, Guru Nanak Colony, New Guru Nanak Colony, Shiv Nagar and New Shiv Nagar falling in it. The councillor rued that there were just eight safai karamcharis for his ward, of whom only five turned up and marked their attendance. He said most residents were forced to themselves clean their roads
and often came to him with their problems. He said he had repeatedly made representations in this regard to Mayor Sunil Jyoti and Commissioner Viney Bublani but to
no avail. Jyoti, however, claimed that he had not received any representation from the councillor. “The councillor has chosen a wrong way to lodge the protest. Had he come to
me directly, I would have helped him solve the problem,” he said. At this, councillor Rai said
he had to resort to demonstration only after the authorities had failed to bail him out. “I have entry numbers of my complaints addressed to the
Mayor as well as Commissioner,” he countered. The Mayor, at his first MC House meeting, had received similar complaints from almost all councillors. The Mayor had then said that the rationalisation of safai karamcharis would be soon done. |
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City inspector awarded prestigious President’s Police Medal
Talking to The Tribune, Inspector Bimal Kant said, "My joy knew no bounds when I got a call from the Commissioner of Police Gaurav Yadav for congratulating and informing me that I have been awarded with President's Police Medal." After joining as an ASI in Ropar in 1992, Bimal Kant never looked back in his over 20 years of exemplary service in the Punjab Police. Hailing from Mahilpur in Hoshiarpur district, Bimal Kant cracked down on notorious drug smugglers during his posting as Shahkot SHO. He caught a number of notorious smugglers and froze properties worth Rs 131 crore of six of them under Section 68 of the NDPS Act. However, he faced several hardships for taking action against them, as some of them even filed frivolous complaints against him in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which, however, went in his favour. Besides, he also caught a militant Jaswant Singh Azad during his posting as the SHO police division number eight in Jalandhar a few months ago. He caught Azad after getting secret information that he was in touch with various militant outfits, including the Khalistan Commando Force (KCF), Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) and Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF), and was providing every help to them for their plan to revive militancy in Punjab. During his posting on various posts in eight districts, including Ropar, Gurdaspur, Tarntaran, Amritsar, Kapurthala, Pathankot and Jalandhar, he solved a number of blind murders, including those of a child Robin in Kapurthala, a college teacher in Pathankot, a retired BSF Commandant and his wife in Kapurthala, a woman in Shahkot and blind murder of an aged woman at Bharatgarh in Ropar. His sons Harshid Kaushal (doing BTech on the GNDU campus in Amritsar) and Tapan Kaushal (Plus one student) are also very joyous over his father?s exemplary achievement. An emotional Bimal Kant said, "Had my wife Anju Bala been alive today, she would have been the happiest lady, as I had told her that my aim is to get this prestigious medal by doing extraordinary work." She breathed her last at the PGI due to an ailment a few years ago. Inspector Bimal Kant said, "There is a condition of at least 20 years' of continuous police service for considering any official for this prestigious award. I had never thought, I would be awarded this medal soon after completing this period." He had completed 20 years in the force just three months ago. Bimal Kant taught mathematics and science at Guru Nanak Public School at Mahilpur in Hoshiapur district after doing his BSc from Khalsa College in Mahilpur and Bed from MDU in Rohtak, but he left teaching after a few years to join the Punjab Police in 1992. Terming police service more challenging than teaching, Bimal Kant, who was posted at Rama Mandi about three weeks ago on January 11 this year, said, "I am taking my current posting as a challenge to save the infamous Qazi Mandi area from drug smugglers and chain snatchers." 742 winners in 45 years
The President's Police Medal for Meritorious Services is awarded only to those who have performed service of conspicuous merit and shown utmost devotion to duty within the territory of India. It is a prestigious medal for any member of the police force which is awarded after thorough scrutiny at the state level and then at the Central Government level by a very senior officers' committee. Only 742 police officials of various ranks of the Punjab Police were awarded with this prestigious medal in 45 years from 1967 to 2012. A braveheart
Bimal Kant cracked down on drug smugglers in Shahkot, caught militant Jaswant Singh Azad in Jalandhar and solved a number of blind murders during his posting at various
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Nights continue to be biting cold
Jalandhar, January 28 Meanwhile, the Meteorological Department predicted continuation of cold wave even on Tuesday. As per weather forecast, the sky will remain party cloudy and cloudy with continuous mist and haze and occasional fog. The lowest temperature in Amritsar was 6.5° C, Halwara 7.6° C, Pathankot 9.4° C and in Bathinda 7° C.
— TNS |
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Encroachments by roadside vendors
Jalandhar, January 28 The area on the either side of the road soon after descending the flyover has been badly encroached upon by fruit and vegetable vendors. The buyers, many of whom are commuters on car, park along the vends further leading to traffic congestion. Despite a wide passage available for pedestrians on the either side, there is hardly any space left for those on foot owing to encroachment by shopkeepers and huge stalls by roadside sellers. To add to the chaos there are huge piles of garbage on the either side of the road. The residents of colonies near the area have repeatedly met the MC authorities seeking intervention in the matter. Assistant Commissioner Gurbinder Randhawa said all persons indulgong in encroachments had been warned of strict action repeatedly through public address system. She said a day for flag march would be finalised soon. The tehbazari team today conducted a drive in Rainak Bazaar forcing the shopkeepers to remove their items displayed outside and put them in their shops. |
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A number of martial arts camps will be organised at various education institutions to train girls in self-defence. These camps will be held under the aegis of the BJP Mahila
Morcha.
Jalandhar, January 28
Jalandhar, January 28