Ludhiana, August 8
Bowing down to pressure from developers of unauthorised colonies in the state, the Punjab Government is learnt to have agreed in principle to slash the compounding fee and development charges for the regularisation of unauthorised colonies. The state Cabinet is likely to give its approval to the revised rates for compounding of unlicensed colonies at its meeting scheduled for tomorrow.

Ever since the government had announced the revised policy for the regularisation of unauthorised colonies, the developers had launched an agitation against the "exorbitant compounding fee and development charges" which both the colonisers and plot holders were liable to pay for colonies developed prior to August 2007 and thereafter.

According to sources, what made the developers win this particular round of battle against the government was the support extended by a section of senior political leaders from the SAD-BJP coalition, who allegedly have high stakes in the business of property development all across the state.

It was after a series of meetings of the stakeholders with the sub-committee comprising Cabinet Ministers Bikramjit Singh Majithia and Sharanjit Singh Dhillon, along with legislator Som Parkash that a decision was taken to review the policy and cut down the development charges as well as the compounding fee.

If sources in the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Punjab, are to be believed, as per recommendations of the sub-committee, the developer will have to pay half a per cent of the collector's rate subject to a minimum amount of Rs 25,000 and a maximum of Rs 1 lakh per acre for compounding of colonies developed prior to August 17, 2007. Similarly, in colonies which came into existence after the cut-off date, the compounding fee will be 2 per cent of the collector's rate with a minimum amount of Rs 1 lakh and a maximum of Rs 5 lakh per acre. The development charges to be collected from plot/property owners have also been substantially cut down, depending on the area of plots, according to the sources.

Kultar Singh Jogi, president of the Punjab Colonisers and Property Dealers Association, said the government had taken a step in the right direction by conceding the demands of developers and owners of plots and houses in unlicensed colonies to cut down the rates to a realistic level. "While the exact extent of relief that the government intends to provide to the colonisers and plot/property owners is not known, we expect it to be massive," he said.

Ludhiana, August 8
"As many as 11,000 candidates have so far taken part in an Army recruitment rally which commenced on August 5. Of them, nearly 5,000 have managed to clear the physical fitness test," said the Director, Recruitment, Col MS Mahar. The rally is being held at the Dholewal Military Complex and will continue till August 13.

Brig Udai Yadav, Deputy Director General, Recruitment (Punjab and J&K), said the candidates were being screened for their physical fitness and medical status. Successful candidates would have to undergo a written test.

The selected candidates would be inducted into the Army.

He said the recruitment rally would meet the aspirations of the youths of the area, who wanted to join the Army to serve the nation.

Yadav said the recruitment process was computerised and transparent.

Ludhiana, August 8
The death of a 19-year-old youth, who was suspected to have been murdered, has turned out to be a case of suicide.

Shockingly, the deceased's parents dumped the body near Nanaksar Gurdwara on Ferozepur Road to avoid legal tangles.

The deceased, identified as Ram Pratap, a resident of Sunet, was spotted by area residents while visiting the gurdwara this morning.

They informed the police about the incident, which went to the spot. Ram Pratap was identified from a document lying in the auto-rickshaw.

Initially, the police suspected it to be a case of murder. SHO, PAU, Paramdeep Singh even went on to say that the victim had injuries on his neck.

"It appears that Ram Partap was murdered and his body dumped near Nanaksar Gurdwara to evade suspicion," said SHO Paramdeep Singh, while ruling out of the theory of robbery as the motive.

However, during the course of the investigation, it was found that Ram Pratap had committed suicide at his house in Sunet following a heated argument.

During questioning, Ram Pratap's father Hari Ram said around midnight last night they spotted Ram Pratap's body hanging from a ceiling fan.

Fearing that the police would ask them all sorts of questions and to avoid legal tangles, they dumped his body near Nanaksar Gurdwara.

Ram Pratap's mother, who was inconsolable, told the police that he left the house at 10 pm after having dinner.

She said her son did not return home the whole night. She was worried and could not sleep properly. She tried to contact him several times but his phone was not working. However, all her claims fell flat and the police soon came to know from the mobile details that Ram Pratap was in the house.

ADCP-III Joginder Singh said residents should cooperate with the police instead of posing a hurdle in the investigation.

Ludhiana, August 8
Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Manish Tewari has written to Railway Minister Malikarjun Kharge seeking his intervention in the completion of the foot bridge at the Ludhiana railway station.

In his letter, Tewari wrote that the work on the foot bridge had been started on his initiative a few years ago. However, the Railways stopped the work midway without giving any reasons.

Seeking an inquiry into the abandoning of work on the foot bridge, he said, “It should be found out why the work on the foot bridge was abandoned and how much money was spent on it before the work was stopped”. He wanted to know why the project was cancelled and whether any penalty had been fixed and what action had been taken in this regard.

Emphasising the need for early completion of the foot bridge, Tewari wrote, “Ludhiana is one of the important cities in Punjab with a lot of railway traffic. The new foot bridge is needed urgently as the existing one is narrow."

Ludhiana, August 8
Eight suspected cases of dengue, including two women, were reported from the DMCH, Ludhiana, today. Of them, while three belong to Ludhiana (one each from Shiv Puri, Shimla Puri and BRS Nagar), two are from Hoshiarpur and one each from Jalandhar, Amritsar and Kangra.

A team of the Health Department today found dengue larvae in coolers at the doctors' hostel.

Following directions issued by the District Epidemiologist, Dr Anil Verma, anti-larva teams from the Civil Surgeon's office visited New DMCH, Ludhiana, and found dengue larvae in five coolers at the doctors' hostel opposite Hero Heart Centre and also in a container kept in the open in an under-construction building of the hospital. The team destroyed the larvae by spraying "larvicide temephos". The team also checked the old DMCH and found dengue larvae in five containers, which were also destroyed by the team.

The Medical Superintendent of the DMCH was informed about it following which a meeting was held with the Civil Engineer, the Chief Fire Officer and other technical staff of the DMCH to ensure that coolers were emptied once a week to check breeding of mosquitoes.

Ludhiana, August 8
A truck driver, Dharminder Kumar, of the Shimlapuri area, has been booked for a murder bid. He allegedly knocked down Head Constable Nahar Singh with his truck. 

The victim was taken to a hospital in a serious condition. The incident took place near Sherpur Chowk when Nahar Singh signalled the truck to stop, but the driver sped away, hitting Nahar Singh. 

Ludhiana, August 8
During a review meeting held in connection with the state-level Independence Day function to be held at SCD Government College here on August 15, Deputy Commissioner Rahul Tiwari today asked officials to make all the arrangements for an uninterrupted programme, as even if it rained heavily on August 14 or 15, the venue would not be changed at the last moment. The meeting was held at the Bachat Bhawan here.

He asked the officials to arrange pumps, power generator sets, sand etc so that even if it rained heavily, the function could not held uninterrupted.

The Deputy Commissioner instructed the officials to convey to their staff not to skip this state-level function and their attendance would be marked by the nodal officer. Those absent will face departmental action, stressed Tiwari.

The DC asked the Civil Surgeon to arrange safe potable water, medical kits and ORS packets for students. "No student should fall unconscious due to this humid weather and health teams must monitor them properly," said the DC. He asked the officials from the Police Department to make all the security arrangements for the VVIPs, including Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, DGP Sumedh Saini.

Besides, he asked the officials to pay due respect to the freedom fighters and make arrangement for their stay and transportation to the venue. Tiwari told the Municipal Corporation officials that the roads near the venue must be kept clean and colourful flags should be hoisted on both the sides to welcome the dignitaries.

He asked the PSPCL officials to ensure uninterrupted power supply to the venue. Tiwari asked the District Transport Officer to ensure sufficient number of vehicles for ferrying students and freedom fighters to the venue. 

Ludhiana, August 8
The Bharti Kisan Union Ekta submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner here today. The district president of the union, Darshan Singh Koohli, said a survey was conducted in 291 villages, which revealed a staggering figure of 638 suicides by farmers. He alleged that many villages were not covered under the survey.

The farmers said around 4,800 farmers had committed suicide in Punjab and the government had announced Rs 2 lakh each for the families. While Rs 1 lakh each has been distributed among the affected families, the remaining relief is yet to reach them. They have urged the Chief Minister to release the remaining part of the relief at the earliest.

Ludhiana, August 8
Punjab Local Bodies Minister Chuni Lal Bhagat said today that the state government had chalked out an ambitious plan involving an expenditure of Rs 1,914 crore for the development of the towns and cities in Punjab. He said master plans had been prepared for a planned and regulated urban growth and a Rs 9,840 crore project report for running Metro in Ludhiana was awaiting approval of the Union Government.

Addressing a function organised by the Municipal Karamchari Dal to mark Kabir Jayanti here, the minister claimed that the government was in the process of regularising services of safai workers in the urban areas and their salaries were also being increased. He placed on record the role played by the safai workers in keeping the cities clean and green. "On its own part, the state government is making all out efforts to provide all civic amenities to people," he said.

Focusing on several welfare schemes launched by the government for the Dalit as well as those belonging to SCs and STs, Bhagat said an amount of Rs 595 crore had been earmarked for this purpose during the current financial year.

Ludhiana, August 8
A book titled “Oirs” was released at Ramgarhia College today. Deputy Commissioner Rahul Tewari was the chief guest on the occasion.

Penned by Ranjodh Singh, the book has interesting quotes, some inspired from other quotes, some given a twist, while others are entirely his own ingenuity.

The 1001 lines in the book are about different facets of life, some insightful, some humorous, while others twist the popular quotes and sayings.

Quotes like “There is a woman behind every successful man, and two behind every unsuccessful one” abound the book. Another quote says that “opportunity is like a biscuit in hot tea, a little delay and it is gone forever”.

“Though I have always been interested in collecting nuggets of wisdom and quotations, and writing my own as well, the lines that shape the book are crisp, interesting and contemporary,” Ranjodh said.

Regarding the cryptic-looking title, starting with the smiling face forming an O, the title 'Oi@rs' expands into “Original ideas @ Ranjodh Singh”.

"The book has no page numbers and can be read from any page. These days, people don't have time to read. So, one can read one or two-line quotes at any time and in any order. These are from various facets of life,” Ranjodh said.

Ludhiana, August 8
His "namak shamak", "kya bat hai" style cooking shows have won him many fans. Celebrity chef Harpal Singh Sokhi brought his entertaining style of cooking and teaching to the city. He spiced up a few dishes during his live cooking show at Laxmi Ladies Club today.

Sokhi said he liked the gastronomic spirit of the city. His style of cooking is his way of connecting to people, he says.

Despite having worked in various countries, Indian cuisine remains his favourite. Apart from great taste, the Indian food is very versatile, he says.

Talking about the food industry, he said it was one industry that would only grow. Whether it is restaurants, food outlets, television, reality shows, food is one area that would keep growing and evolving, he says.

It is good to see that hospitality sector and chefs are now much respected, which was not the case 25 years ago. The youth now wants to join the industry, he said.

The father of two daughters has been campaigning against female foeticide, and may visit the city the next year, for women empowerment. When asked about the reason why most celebrity chefs are Punjabis, he says Punjabi men are equally passionate about cooking as are women.

Ludhiana, August 8
With a letter written to Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, the protesting teachers of aided schools ended their four-days protest today.

The teachers have requested the Chief Minister to intervene in the matter as the subject of merger of aided schools with the government schools was very important. Devinder Rehan, press secretary of the association, in the letter written to Badal said government aided schools were lagging behind because of unavailability of the required infrastructure. Rehan said the other states like Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan were in favour of the merger.

Khanna, August 8
A woman constable posted at Khanna was killed when her two-wheeler was hit by a container truck near the Samrala Chowk, Khanna. The deceased has been identified as Sandeep Kaur (23), a resident of Rahoun village, near here.

As per information, Sandeep had just completed her training and was posted at the Police Lines, Khanna.

Today around 11 AM, she was returning from the rehearsal of the Independence Day parade at the AS College for Women on her two-wheeler. When she reached near the Samrala Chowk, suddenly a container truck coming from the Mandi Gobindgarh side hit her scooty. She died on the spot.

The driver of the container tried to flee the spot, leaving the container truck behind, but he was overpowered by the police. The driver has been identified as Avtar Singh, a resident of Ludhiana.

The victim’s body was handed over to her family after post-mortem. She was laid to rest with police honours at her native village, Rahaun. The police has registered a case against the truck driver.

Sandeep Kaur belonged to a poor family. She had joined the police about nine months ago. She was the eldest daughter of her parents and had a younger brother and two younger sisters. Her father is a labourer.

Satinder Pal Singh, SP (H), Khanna, said the woman constable died while on duty, and her family would be dealt with as per the rules of the police.

Jagraon, August 8
The police has arrested a proclaimed offender wanted in a case of abetting to suicide and duping people on the pretext of sending them abroad.

The accused, identified as Gurtej Singh, a resident of Jaito in Faridkot district, was a travel agent. He was arrested by a police team from the local PO wing.

Giving details about the matter, PO wing in-charge officer Jaspal Chopra said the accused, Gurtej Singh, had duped Sukhchain Singh, a youth from Jandi village near Sidhwan Bet, of Rs 4 lakh on the pretext of sending him to Canada around four years ago.

“Gurtej failed to send Sukhchain abroad. When the youth asked Gurtej to return his money, he refused. The accused did not even return Sukhchain’s passport,” said Chopra.

Jaspal said the victim sold his agricultural land to arrange money to realise his dream of going abroad.

“When Gurtej did not return his money despite repeated requests, Sukhchain committed suicide in September 2009,” said Chopra.

Following this, a case was registered against Gurtej at the Sidhwan Bet police station. The police failed to arrest Gurtej, and he had been absconding since the registration of the case against him. Jaspal said other cases were also registered against Gurtej at different places for duping innocent people on the pretext of sending them abroad. — OC

Jagraon, August 8
With the arrest of three persons, the local police claimed to have busted a gang of power generator thieves, which had been active in the area for the past many months.

The arrested members of the gang have been identified as Gurpreet Singh of Cheemna village, Yadwinder Singh of Bodalwala village and Paramjit Singh, alias Pamma of Shastri Nagar, Jagraon. The fourth member, Amandeep Singh of Aatam Nagar, Jagraon, escaped.

They were arrested on the Bodalwala-Cheemna link road by a police party following a tip-off. — TNS 

Ludhiana, August 8
Players of Green Land Senior Secondary School performed exceedingly well to enable PAU Zone to emerge as champions in chess and basketball in the Ludhiana District Schools Inter-Zonal Games being held here today.

In chess, Pras Narang, Mahdur, Punit Jain, Rajan and Rohit Jain from Green Land School gave good account of themselves and played a pivot role for PAU Zone to secure 12 points and clinch the title in the boys’ U-17 category.

Similarly, in the boys’ U-19 category, Shubham Shukla, Jashanpreet Singh, Divyanshu Jain, Dilbagh Singh and Samyak Jain, all from Green Land School, proved their mettle to fashion victory for PAU.

However, in the boys’ U-14 group, Gaurav Sood, Ujawal Bhasin, Ryan Sood, Abhishek and Aryan of Green Land School played well, but had to content with second position.

On the basis of their performance in this tournament, the following boys from Green Land School have been selected to take part in the Punjab State Chess Championship. They include Gaurav Sood, Ujwal Bhasin, Paras Narang, Madhur, Shubham Shukla and Dilbagh Singh.

In basketball, too, players from this school excelled that enabled PAU Zone to bag top honours in the boys’ U-17 and U-19 categories.

Ankush Chopra, Umesh Garg, Manthan Kaushal and Gursimran Singh of Green Land School helped PAU Zone to outplay Ludhiana-II Zone (36-30) in the boys’ U-17 final, while Akash Hazra, Tapinder Singh and Baldeep Singh enabled PAU to defeat Ludhiana-II Zone (46-40) to lift the title in the boys’ U-19 category.

Meanwhile, Green Land School won the title (boys’ U-19) in the Ludhiana Sahodaya School Complex Table Tennis Tournament and secured second place in the girls’ section in the same age group, besides finishing at the third place in the girls’ U-16 category.

Rajesh Rudhra and Baldeep Pandher, chairman of the chain of Green Land Schools, and principal of the Jalandhar bypass branch, respectively, congratulated the students on this outstanding performance.

Ludhiana, August 8
Students of Kundan Vidya Mandir (KVM), Civil Lines, who represented PAU Zone, helped their side to thrash Khanna Zone by eight wickets and assure themselves a berth in the final in the Ludhiana District Schools Inter-Zonal Cricket Tournament (U-14), being organised by the District Education Department, here today.

The semifinal was played at Baba Ishar Singh Nanaksar Senior Secondary School, BRS Nagar ground, in which PAU Zone romped home victorious without being challenged.

Batting first, after winning the toss, Khanna Zone could not survive their quota of 15 overs as their innings folded at 24 runs in 10.3 overs. Parkash and Kamaljit contributed 11 runs and 9 runs, respectively. For PAU Zone, Ankit and Mohan captured three wickets each.

PAU Zone required just 4.5 overs to surpass the Khanna Zone's score. They lost just two wickets in the process to book a place in the final.

Shubham Dyal Singh and Arjun Puri from KVM chipped in with nine runs and five runs, respectively, while Sameer scored six runs to steer PAU Zone to achieve the target comfortably.

For the loser, Tarsem bagged both the wickets. The final will be played between Ludhiana Zone-II and PAU Zone tomorrow. — OC