The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Chandigarh Stories

NEIGHBOURHOOD

Rs 43 crore approved for water supply, sewerage
Our correspondent

Dera Bassi, June 6
The Punjab Government has approved Rs 43 crore for the provision of 100 per cent water supply and sewerage coverage in the emerging cities, including Derabassi, Lalru, Zirakpur and Banur in the current year, as an initial step to provide world class civic infrastructure there. This was disclosed this here today, by NK Sharma, chief parliamentary secretary industries and commerce.

He said that there would be no dearth of funds for the overall development of this area as the State Government was committed to provide quality infrastructure in all the developing towns and cities of Punjab.

He further revealed that Rs 10 crore has been provided to Derabassi, out of which Rs 3 crore and Rs 7 crore would be spent on augmentation of water supply and laying of remaining sewerage line respectively.

Similarly, Rs 3 crore and Rs 7 crore were being released for water supply and sewerage facilities in Lalru. He further said that Rs 16 crore has been sanctioned for Zirakpur city for water supply as well as sewerage facilities.

Out of which Rs 4 crore and Rs 12 crore to be spent on augmenting water supply and covering the uncovered areas for laying sewerage lines.

Banur town would also get Rs 6 crore and Rs 1 crore respectively for provision of sewerage and drinking water supply.

Deputy Commissioner inspects mining sites
Our Correspondent

Dera Bassi, June 6
The Deputy Commissioner of Mohali, Tejinderpal Singh Sidhu, inspected the mining sites to ensure the stoppage of illegal sand mining and see check the stability in the prices of sand and gravel could be brought. He visited the Ghaggar river and other areas of Dera Bassi to create the new mining areas in the near future.

He said that effective steps would be taken to stop the illegal mining and bring the stability in the prices of sand. He further added that a strict action would be taken against those, who would be found involved in the illegal sand mining.

He further assured that the full fledge sand mining would start soon, after completing all legal requirements. Notably, sand mining was lying blocked for over one year due to the high court orders and later orders of State Government.

The report about new mining sites would be sent to appropriate department, Diputy Commissioner added.

Among other officials who were present on this occasion included Assisstant Diputy Commissioner Parveen Kumar Thind, district mining official HS pannu, Sub-Divisional Magistrate Inderjeet Kaur Kang, DDPO Gurvinder Singh and BDPO Arun Sharma.

Bhupindra school students excel in NEET
Tribune News Service

Patiala, June 6
Bhupindra International Public School (BIPS), Patiala, students excelled in the first-ever NEET, which will help students in getting admissions to medical colleges of India.

Nishant Aggarwal of BIPS has secured ninth rank in all-India in the NEET. He has attained second place in Punjab in the same. He had secured 92 per cent in the CBSE Class XII examinations.

Nishant has been selected for an international Olympiad to be held in Spain. He is currently taking training at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai.

Meanwhile, Urvashi has attained all-India 433 rank and 44th rank at the state level, Rahat Malhotra secured 1,420 rank in the NEET and his state rank is 106. Rohan Garg has attained 1,062 all-India rank and 59 state rank in the NEET. Harry Mehta secured 5,433 rank allover India and his state rank is 223.

COURTS

No progress in cyber slur case
Nine months on, case headed for closure, say sources
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 6
Over nine months after the UT police received much flak for registration of a case against a 22-year-old girl for using abusive language against the police on Facebook, the case is still hanging fire, with the police investigations leading nowhere and the second accused still beyond the reach of the department.

The cyber crime cell of the UT police had booked Henna Bakshi, an IPS aspirant, national bravery award winner and daughter of an Army officer, on September 14, last year, for abusing the police on the Facebook page of the Chandigarh traffic police. She was booked under Sections 66 and 67-A of the IT Act.

The FIR had mentioned another person, Kamalpreet Singh, as an accused for hurling a number of abuses at the police on Facebook. Till date, however, the cyber crime cell is not aware of the accused’s identity, raising a big question mark on its investigations.

The UT police had sent a communique to Facebook a number of times, asking them about details of the IP address of the computer from which the accused had posted the comments. The social networking site, however, had denied any help to the police.

The case, which caused much embarrassment to the police at the time it was registered for booking a young girl who was only expressing her resentment, is now headed for closure, said sources.

Advocate TS Sudan said the case should not have been registered at all. “The case has adversely affected the image of the police. The case could have been dealt in a subtle way,” he said. DSP Rajesh Kalia, who is in charge of the cyber cell of the police, could not be contacted despite several attempts.

The incident happened after Henna Bakshi’s white Safari car was stolen on August 11, last year, from outside her friend’s house in Sector 18. She went to lodge an FIR at the Sector 19 police station, but found the process “stressful”.

She alleged that she was not contacted by the police regarding any progress in her case, and was not given any satisfactory response when she tried to enquire about her stolen car.

After undergoing "harassment" for four days, Henna logged on to the official page of the Chandigarh traffic police on August 15 and narrated her trauma by posting comments. While friends shared and responded to her comment, she used the platform to vent her frustration and abused the police a number of times using a particular objectionable word.

5 yrs on, trial set to begin
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 6
Five years after a UT police Sub-Inspector was booked in a corruption case by the CBI, the trial in the case is soon to begin in the CBI court with charges framed against SI Sanjiv Kumar and two others today.

Case was registered against Sanjiv Kumar, the then in-charge of the Neelam police post, his colleague SI Ramesh Chand and Subhash Kataria, a representative of traders in the Sector 17 market, in November 2008.

In November 8, that year, the CBI had arrested Sanjiv Kumar, recipient of President’s Medal, along with Subash Kataria of Delhi Jewellers, Sector 17. Book store owner Arvind Kumar Pandey had alleged the SI had demanded ‘kickback’ from him for evicting a tenant from his shop at the bridge market. Kataria had allegedly accepted the bribe amount on Sanjiv’s behalf. Ramesh Chand, another SI posted at the police post, was named as an accused after his voice samples matched with the recorded conversation in which the bribe was demanded.

Sanjiv Kumar, however, was later reinstated, and the case was hanging fire all these years, as the accused had moved applications in the High Court against his arrest. The trial in the case will now begin on July 25 when evidence will be recorded.

CBI court likely to decide on closure report today
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 6
The CBI court is likely to pronounce orders in the theme park case tomorrow on whether the closure report will be accepted by it. CBI Special Judge Vimal Kumar today after hearing arguments on the closure report in the infamous theme-cum-amusement park case adjourned the case for tomorrow.

The scam first came to light after Vivek Aditya, a Chandigarh resident, filed a series of complaints with the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC), alleging corruption in the allotment of the multi-crore project.

This was the second time that the Central Bureau of Investigation filed a closure report in the case. The first report was rejected by the court on May 18, 2012. A fresh probe was ordered on August 30, last year.

The closure report submitted by the CBI stated that the agency had already recommended and written to the Ministry of Home Affairs, recommending action against the then UT Home Secretary, Krishna Mohan, and tht then IT director, Vivek Attray, for alleged departmental lapses.

The scam also popped up names of former UT Adviser Lalit Sharma and Unitech Limited managing director Ajay Chandra.

Theme park case

The infamous theme-cum-amusement park scam first came to light after Vivek Aditya, a Chandigarh resident, filed a series of complaints with the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC), alleging corruption in the allotment of the multi-crore project. This was the second time that the CBI filed a closure report in the case.

CRIME

Two cousins killed in road mishap on Zirakpur flyover
Tribune News Service

Mohali, June 6
Two cousins, both in their early 20s, died when their motorcycle was hit by a car on the Zirakpur flyover last night. The victims, Inderjit Singh, a resident of Basantpur village and his cousin Manpreet Singh from Chhat village, were on their way to Panchkula, when a black Honda car, bearing registration number CH54T-2636, hit their motorcycle (HR01T 2832) from rear. Manpreet's father Satnam Singh was also with them on the other motorcycle.

Satnam Singh told the police that the impact was so strong that his son Manpreet Singh tossed in the air and fell down from the flyover. “When I went down the flyover to check the condition of my son, the car driver fled away from the scene”, alleged Satnam Singh.

Manpreet Singh succumbed to his injuries on the way to General Hospital at Sector 6 in Panchkula while Inderjit Singh also died in the hospital. Both the cousins were working as private security guards. The police has registered a case under Sections 279, 304 A of IPC against the car driver at Zirakpur police station.

Youth held for raping minor
Our Correspondent

Mohali, June 6
The Mohali police today arrested a youth on the charge of raping a seven-year-old girl at Gobind Nagar, Naya Gaon. Senior Superintendent of Police Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said the accused, Sanjiv (21), a resident of Sector 15, Chandigarh, hailed from Uttar Pradesh.

The victim’s father, in his complaint to the police, said his daughter, a Class I student, who had gone to sleep after having dinner, was found missing from the house when he got up around 1.30 at night.

He, along with his wife, started looking for her. Around 3.30 am, the girl returned and told her parents that she was taken away by someone when she was sleeping. The person later allegedly gagged and raped her, before dropping her back near her house.

The SSP said the accused had broken the wire mesh on the door to unbolt it. He had also allegedly taken away a mobile phone, which was recovered from the possession of Sanjiv.

The police has registered a case under Sections 363, 365 and 376 of the IPC and Sections 4 and 6 of the Prevention of Sexual Offences against Children Act, 2012, against an unidentified person.

Physical assault case
INLD candidate, 3 supporters in custody of Panchkula police
Nishad accuses complainants of attacking his house
Tribune News Service

Panchkula, June 6
Following an attack on five persons, the local police arrested Subhash Nishad, an Indian National Lok Dal candidate who recently lost the Panchkula MC elections, and his three supporters last night. Nishad, who along with his supporters, was remanded for one day under police custody by court today, claimed that he was falsely implicated in the case.

Nishad alleged that the complainants in the case had in fact attacked his house at around 1 am last night. “They broke windowpanes of my SUV. The police is not taking any action against them,” said Nishad.

Subhash and others were booked by the police on charges of assaulting five persons, including Munni Devi, Jaggi Deswal and Tejbahadur, for allegedly not supporting them during the recently held poll. Munni Devi, who sustained injuries in the clash, had been admitted to General Hospital, Sector 6, yesterday.

A case in this connection has been registered at the Sector 19 police post. On Nishad’s complaint, the police has also registered a case regarding the alleged attack on his house and vehicle.

SPORTS

Children allowed to use school ground
Deepankar Sharda
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 6
If the tall claims and upcoming project of opening up 26 school grounds for the "gully" players were not enough, here comes another project by the UT Administration in collaboration with the Municipal Corporation.

In yet another pilot project, the UT Administration has allowed the Municipal Corporation to use the ground of Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 21, on trial basis for facilitating "gully" players during evening hours. During these evening hours, caretakers appointed by the Municipal Corporation will look after the property of the school and all children will be allowed to use the ground at that particular time. Initially, only basketball and cricket will be allowed to play on the ground.

Earlier, a proposal at the Education Secretary level was made, in which the authorities had selected 26 schools, mostly senior secondary schools of the city, for children.

According to the proposal, children were allowed to use the groundsas per the present infrastructure for a specific period of 2 hour 15 minutes. In summers, the playing hours were expected to remain from 4:15 to 6:30 pm while for winters the timings were 3.15 to 5.50 pm. For this purpose, the authorities had decided to provide children with playing items, including balls and other equipments, under the supervision of Physical Training Instructors (PTI).

The scheme is already running in eight schools but unaware of the scheme, the authorities have come up with yet another pilot project. On the long list of projects with no ground action, the officials are in no mood to break the silence.

According to sources, the burning issue of playing grounds for "gully" players is hanging in balance due to politics. “Now, if one department of the UT Administration had decided to target 26 schools, then what was the need to come up with another project? This clearly indicates the personal motives and the failure of the political leadership and the top officials, in forging a consensus over the issue,” said an official.

Another official added, “ Handing over the school ground to the Municipal Corporation in absence of school authorities is a tedious task. Children should be allowed to use the grounds for specific timing and under the existing infrastructure of the school. Otherwise, every ground will become a cricket ground. The authorities should think and act on one project instead of brining 10 projects at a time. ”

Manveer, a resident of Sector 24 said, “The same Municipal Corporation has failed to maintain the green belt parks and now they are claiming to handle grounds of government schools. It is a sheer eye-wash and the decision will serve politicians in their public speeches.”