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Organised sector hoteliers upset
12-yr-old boy strangled to death at Tanel Purana
Sunday evening storm brings misery to city residents
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Pollution control panel files RTI application with civic body
Amritsar, September 16 The Pollution Control Committee Amritsar (PCCA), a local NGO, has filed an RTI application with the Municipal Corporation (MC), seeking information about the steps being taken to facilitate the solid waste management plant.
Health Dept fails to shift ‘tainted’ employee
Train passengers resent inconvenience
Police seeks public help to curb drug menace
Commissioner of Police, Amritsar, Jatinder Singh Aulakh at a meeting with representatives of various social and trade organisations in Amritsar on Monday. A Tribune Photograph
15 arrested with narcotics, illicit liquor
Notice issued to Tarn Taran police
from schools and colleges
Problems of minorities discussed
Another global flavour comes to city’s rich platter
Over 1 lakh kids to be given polio drops
Shawl industry seeks say in national forum on tax issues
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Organised sector hoteliers upset
Amritsar, September 16 They resented that their business got hampered due to the hefty taxes they have to bear unlike the illegal hotels which enjoy immunity from the burden of taxes, as these hotels are not in any records. Located in narrow lanes of residential areas, these have also been denting the state exchequer as no tax (luxury, service, VAT etc) is charged from them, as these units are not registered with any government body. Hence they enjoy immunity from any liability to pay taxes. Their mode of operation is through auto-rickshaw or cycle-rickshawalas, who bring tourists to their doorstep. On the other hand, the hotels in the organised sector here charge huge administrative taxes to the tune of 15.42 per cent luxury tax on rooms (8 per cent of luxury tax, 7.42 per cent as sales tax), besides 19.26 per cent tax on food (12.36 per cent VAT, 7.42 per cent service tax). Even as an official survey describes this figure as just 21, there are over 500 hotels operating in the walled city, out of which 400 are running illegally. Since being the oldest part of the city which barred this area to come under the change of land use norms, it is definitely required to comply with the norms stipulated under the Sarai Act, which makes them mandatory to have provision for a parking lot, building with permissible height (not exceeding 38 foot). It is also mandatory for them to obtain an NOC from the Fire Brigade and environment clearance from the Punjab Pollution Control Board and other relevant NOCs from the MC. The fact is that barring a few, these hotels, some even raised to six storeys on just 50-60 square yard "residential" plots, never obtained the mandatory NOCs. With no alternative fire escape route, there were only "narrow stairs" leading to upper floors. This also poses a threat to the lives of the visitors. AP Singh Chatha, president of the Amritsar Hotel and Restaurant Association Civil Lines, said, “The government may take it as profitable, but lately there is very less movement of tourists due to various factors like the Leh cloudburst last year followed by tragic affairs in Uttarakhand. Those who come here are dejected by the hefty cost of accommodation which is bound to escalate due to the heavy tax structure imposed on us. We are the leading contributors towards generating revenue for the government and also pay a vital role in the overall economics of the state. We request the government to give us tax relief for our survival. MC Commissioner DPS Kharbanda said, “We are tightening noose around the illegal operation of hotels. We have submitted a list of 15 hotels/inns which fall within the galliara area and do not comply with the Sarai Act with the High Court as well as with the police. Action will be taken against them as per the law, definitely the others too will be dealt with sternly."
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12-yr-old boy strangled to death at Tanel Purana
Amritsar, September 16 The victim, Sajan Singh, was alone at home while his parents had gone out of the house for work. The incident came to light when the family members of the boy returned home and found him missing. Later, following a search, they found his body on the roof of the bathroom. The initial police probe hinted towards the involvement of an insider in the brutal murder. Jagtar Singh, the victim's father, stated to the police that his wife used to run a chit fund scheme. On September 1, she had held an auction and the prize money collected through the scheme was kept in the almirah at the home. Jagtar used to work for the digging of bore wells. Yesterday, he stated that he, along with his eldest son Ranjit Singh, had gone for work, while his wife Sukhwinder Kaur and second son Jobanjit Singh went to Tarsikka, the paternal home of his wife. Sajan Singh, who was youngest among the three siblings, was alone at home. He said some unidentified persons came to the house and took away the prize money. Before escaping, they also strangled Sajan to death and hid his body on the roof of the bathroom. The police said there were no signs of forced entry into the house. The body was handed over to the family after the postmortem,
the report of which was yet to be received.
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Sunday evening storm brings misery to city residents
Amritsar, September 16 A resident, Nirmaljit Singh, said the power supply remained snapped from late evening till past midnight in the New Amritsar locality. Rajpal Singh of Shourie Nagar near Chheharta said the power supply remained off in his residential area and around for entire night. Since morning it has been coming intermittently. “Power went out at about 5 pm last evening and returned only at 8 in the morning today. It again went out at 10 am and returned at 3 pm. After one and half hours, it was snapped again and till now (at 7.40 pm), it has not come,” he said. Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) Chief Engineer (Border Range) Iqbal Singh Maan said strong winds had damaged about 1,800 electric poles in the border zone, which comprise Tarn Taran, Gurdaspur, Pathankot, besides Amritsar. He said the workforce was engaged in replacing and rectifying the power lines and electric poles to normalise the situation. He said 250 transformers were also damaged in the process and efforts were on to rectify them as early as possible.
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Pollution control panel files RTI application with civic body
Scrapping the writ petitions filed by various agencies, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had already given its nod to the authorities to go ahead with the plan and directed the MC authorities to make the plant operational within a span of six months i.e., by January. Stressing the need to follow the norms laid under the Municipal Solid Waste (management and handling) Rules 2000, president of the PCCA, Parkash Singh, said, "The information has been sought to make a follow-up of There are specific guidelines of solid waste collection, its segregation, storage, transportation, processing or disposal which need to be followed to make it an environment-friendly mechanism. The civic authorities
are bound to follow them in the larger interest of the general public. Bhatti said there was a need to obtain an environment clearance certificate from the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) after submitting the detailed plan of the plant, but, apparently, nothing seemed to have been
done so far. "The MC authorities have never obtained any NOC (no-objection certificate) from the PPCB before dumping the municipal solid waste at Bhaktanwala. It does not comply with the MSW rules 2000 while causing great inconvenience and unhygienic conditions to the residents living around. We want that the MC shouldn't refrain from furnishing the stipulated guidelines under the MSW," he said. It is compulsory to prepare a layout plan of the project site, showing solid waste storage, green belt, all roads, prominent
wind direction, landfill facility, compost area and building etc. "Similarly, the status of the ambient air quality and surface ground water quality, soil type, anticipated air and water pollution report, too, has to be prepared. But nothing concrete has been done by the authorities till date. We have sought information from the authorities over these vital issues," he told. Clarifying it, MC Commissioner DPS Kharbanda said every care was being taken into consideration for establishing the solid waste management plant which was the need of the hour for the holy city. "Every thing will be done as per the directions of the High Court. The process is on for hiring the executing company," he said.
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Health Dept fails to shift ‘tainted’ employee
Amritsar, September 16 The Director (Health) had issued instructions for the transfer of a multi-purpose health worker Vajinder Randhawa, posted at the birth and death registration office, to Primary Health Centre at Gharyala in Tarn Taran district. However, even after 10 days, the district health department has not relieved the said employee. The transfer was made after the employee's conduct was found unsatisfactory in a bribery complaint by a local resident. A joint director of the department had conducted the inquiry. The appointment of pharmacists and MPHWs at public dealing seats, where usually ministerial staff workers (clerks) are appointed, had earlier, too, raised many questions. The ministerial staff union had gone to the extent of filing a formal complaint with the Director, Health Services. Acting on the complaint, the Department of Health and Family Welfare had instructed the District Health Department not to take clerical work from the paramedical staff, in a letter issued in December last year. The letter had clearly mentioned the names of two paramedical workers - pharmacist Satish Kumar and MPHW Navdeep Singh - and passed orders for sending them to their place of posting. However, the said employees are reportedly still working at the same seat as the instructions were not complied with. Civil Surgeon Dr Yash Mitra denied there was any corruption in the birth and death registration office. He said the transfer of the said employee was a routine matter and his relieving was in process.
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Train passengers resent inconvenience
Amritsar, September 16 A passenger Rachanpuneet said the train was parked on the outskirts of the city, adding that it was a wastage of time due to the lack of infrastructure at the railway station. He said the train was stopped at Manawala village's railway station at 9:45 pm. While the train was kept there for about 60 minutes, four other trains, including Sachkhand and Shatabdi, were allowed to pass. "It was really disgusting that the passengers were made to wait despite the train arriving on the outskirts of the city on time." Railways officials cited the disruption of power lines due to the high-velocity winds which struck yesterday. Besides, it has only six platforms, namely one to five and 1A. On the other hand, the railway station has been witnessing the departure and arrival of about 130 trains daily. The holy city receives tourists and pilgrims from across the country and all over the world. On an average, the daily footfall of passengers is about 30,000 at the railway station.
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Police seeks public help to curb drug menace
Amritsar, September 16 “The war against drugs would be as serious as it was towards curbing terrorism in the past,” he said. Representatives of various organisations stressed on the serious steps to control the drug peddlers, rising traffic problem, domestic violence, snatching and eve-teasing incidents. They also emphasised on the need to revive tourism police, increase in night vigil, holding police meetings, regular meetings of police advisory committee and the strengthening of the NRI Police Station. The Commissioner of Police assured sincere and dedicated efforts towards controlling the drug menace. He stressed on the need of strong public support system in the war against drug. He also promised an honest and transparent police administration system with zero tolerance towards corruption. In order to resolve the intricate traffic problem, Aulakh, said Deputy Commissioner of Police Dr Kaustubh Sharma, and ACP Gaurav Behal has been assigned the duties to conduct a study regarding what should be done to improve the traffic system. He also promised revival of tourism police and informed that efforts are afoot in this direction. He promised to look into the need of setting up a police post in the Subzi Mandi area and the strengthening of police suvida centres.
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15 arrested with narcotics, illicit liquor
Amritsar, September 16 Meanwhile, the city police arrested Sonu, a resident of Basti Lohgarh, with 100 gm of intoxicant powder, Pardeep Singh, a resident of Ram Avenue, with 200 intoxicated capsules, Ranjit Singh, a resident of Patti Mansoor Di, with 125 intoxicated capsules, Jagmit Singh, a resident of Preet Vihar, with 120 capsules, Pawan Kumar of Vikas Nagar and Mandeep Singh of Gobindpura both with 150 capsules each, Mandeep Singh of Arjun Nagar Batha with 220 grams of narcotic powder, Paramjit Singh and German Singh of Gumanpura with 18 bottles of illicit liquor, Pal Singh of Indira colony with 40 bottles of illicit liquor and Major Singh of Mudhal village with 7,500 ml of Illicit liquor.
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Notice issued to Tarn Taran police
Amritsar, September 16 Though the accused was later arrested and sent to jail, the victim, who approached Rajkumar Verka, vice-chairman of the commission, alleged that she and her family was being pressurised by the police under the influence of the family of the accused to withdraw the case. She alleged that the police was threatening to lodge a false case against her father and other family members. Taking a serious note of this, Verka asked the police administration to register a complaint against the accused under SC/ST Act besides providing a suitable compensation to the family. The victim’s father alleged that the culprit identified as Raj Harvinder Singh, alias Raja, had an old enmity with the family as they were the supporters of the opposite political party. He said the accused entered their residence in the intervening night of June 3-4 and raped his daughter and threatened to kill her if she told anybody about this. He said the incident came to light when the condition of the girl deteriorated. The medical examination of the girl confirmed rape. He alleged that earlier the police registered a false case under the NDPS act against him which was now pending in the court and the accused was out on bail. He said, “Yesterday, I was threatened again that I will be implicated in a false case again.” Perturbed over this, the accused ran away from the house, but the police arrested his 12-year-old son, he said. Verka while ordering to issue a notice to the Tarn Taran police asked the SSP to get the matter investigated by a senior police official.
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Camp on wheat allergy
Amritsar: To create awareness among the citizens regarding wheat allergy (Celiac disease), especially among children, the National Service Scheme (NSS) unit of DAV College organised a day long camp in its campus sponsored by Tango stores. In the first session, medical college principal Dr Karnail Singh delivered a guest lecture followed by Dr Neerja, a Pediatrician. Both the doctors discussed various aspects of aetiology, symptoms, diagnosis and management of celiac disease. In the second session, RC Gupta, Punjab Head, Elken International Private Limited, Malaysia and TPS Gambhir, former student of the college, discussed various aspects of nutrition. In the camp participants were provided gluten-free products at minimal prices and arrangement was made for gluten allergy detection test at highly discounted prices. Gurgaddi Diwas celebrated
World Ozone Day
Various city schools organised programmes to mark Ozone Day on Monday. Students of Spring Dale Senior School, led by the Youth For Change Club of the school, observed World Ozone Day by displaying models and holding talks to sensitise the students of the primary wing about the importance of the Ozone layer, which is depleting because of the emission
of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), bromine chemicals, halons, carbon tetrachloride and hydrofluorocarbons. Rajiv Kumar Sharma, principal of the school, said the students set up a model depicting Earth and Ozone layer, besides preparing charts that outlined the reasons for the depletion of the Ozone layer and its consequences. An informative lecture focusing on the importance of Ozone Layer was delivered during the World Ozone Day celebrations at DAV International School. A debate and declamation contests on the topic, “Curbing of pollution can save the ozone layer”, was also held. —
TNS
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Problems of minorities discussed
Amritsar, September 16 Taking up the matter of illegal occupation on graveyard land at Tungbala, he instructed the officials for getting the land vacated in 20 days. The members of the community also put forward the problem of the shortage of lands for graveyards in the city. Masih ordered for the identification of such lands which could be used for the purpose. He said the commission since its inception had received 1,100 complaints of which around 800 have duly been solved. He said the state government had appointed special registrars for registering marriages in five cities so that the members of the minority community don’t face any problem. Masih took a stock of the progress in the pension scheme, shagun scheme, scholarship schemes, aadhar card and ration card from the officials of the department concerned.
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Another global flavour comes to city’s rich platter
Amritsar, September 16 With an intimate setting that doesn't go overboard to create an ambience and an interesting Italian spread, the restaurant promises to introduce you to authentic Italian menu in case your knowledge is limited to the pizza and pasta syllable. Their live kitchen, complete with a wood-fired pizza oven for fresh baking, affirms the claim. “We are the first authentic Italian restaurant in the city and since Amritsar is a tourist hub, we hope to make good impression,” says Varun Kumar Shrian, director, marketing and sales, Intercontinental group of Hotels. Capitalising on the fact that Italian recipes work best with simplicity and richness of flavours, the menu has some interesting options like beetroot cannoli with soft butter stuffing, thyme crusted fish, saffron risotto, and deep fried mushroom make for appetizer highlights. “Since Italian and Punjabi food share the richness of flavours and use a lot of fat-based cooking, the acceptability factor is quite high. Till now, only pizza and pasta had an audience but we have tried to bring in some innovations in the traditional recipes like pizza with salmon topping, deep fried squid, ravioli and various cheese-based pasta. The cheese too finds a variety here since it’s the most important ingredient in Italian cooking,” says Puneet ralhan, the executive chef, with an over seven years of experience in Italian cuisine. He says, “Italian recipes use olive oil based cooking and a lot of veggies like tomatoes, bell peppers, zucchini, potatoes, etc. Also, we use some low fat cheese for preparations. So, it's healthy as well.” As for the desserts, the menu here too has some delightful offerings. “Rasberry cheesecake, tiramisu, truffle-based desserts are our speciality,” says Puneet. The best part is the intimate and family-like service that the restaurant will provide. “We will not just serve Italian food but also educate about what you are being served in your plate. Not everyone would be familiar with the authentic ingredients and recipes since it’s a Punjabi food dominant market and those who come with limited knowledge of Italian food, our staff will interact about the preparation, ingredients and the culture of the food being served,” he says.
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Over 1 lakh kids to be given polio drops
Amritsar, September 16 The department has a target to immunise
1, 13,601 children in the age group of 0-5 years. Civil surgeon Dr Yash Mitra said, “The migratory round is meant for
children living in slum areas, factory premises, farm houses and other such places far away
from the city. He said the teams were going door-to-door to make the drive a success. “The country is on
the verge of being declared a polio-free nation and so it becomes even more necessary
for the Health Department to run such campaigns for the betterment and development of
the country,” Dr Yash Mitra said.
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Shawl industry seeks say in national forum on tax issues
Amritsar, September 16 Seth said he received a letter from a conglomerate of industries asking to put in his view on the matter. He said, “It has been observed that the demands and needs of the shawl industry are muzzled since it is a part of the huge textile industry. Besides, majority of the shawl industry is concentrated in certain cities of Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir.” He said the initiative to constitute a forum for exchange of views between industry groups and the government on tax related issues of MSMEs, which contribute around 9 per cent to the GDP, was a golden opportunity to list the aspirations of the industry settled at the fringe part of the country. “The MSME sector accounts for around 45 per cent of the manufacturing output and around 36 per cent of the total value of the export,” Seth said. India is a growing nation of the Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) with about 4.88 crore SMEs employing nearly 8.11 crore people. He said textile in MSME sector must be offered nominal interest rate by the banks and financial institutions equivalent to agricultural sector, as both the sectors are the largest employment generator. Also, the import duty must be reduced to the level of 5 per cent which would pave way for the swift modernisation of the industry.
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The drive against drug abuse is paying off and many peddlers have been caught. Also, efforts are being made to make the city drug-free. This was stated by Jatinder Singh
Aulakh, Commissioner of Police, Amritsar, during an interaction with representatives of various social and trade organisations here today.
For a city that has earned a reputation of being a foodie's paradise, there is always room for more. Making space for innovation, Amritsar welcomed another global flavour to its already rich platter. An Italian cuisine food restaurant opened here recently. It offers a wholesome Italian experience, and not just with the food.
Amritsar, September 16
Students and faculty of Sri Guru Harkrishan Senior Secondary Public School on Monday celebrated the Gurgaddi Divas of Guru Ram Das and Guru Arjan Dev by reciting hymns from Guru Granth Sahib. They paid obeisance at
the gurdwara in the school. School principal Dr Dharamveer Singh instructed the students to lead a high moral life by following the tenets of the Sikh gurus.