R E G I O N A L   B R I E F S

PUNJAB

Faridkot
Ex-reader gets jail: A judicial officer's former assistant was on Saturday sentenced to life by Faridkot district and sessions judge for killing a youth. Following a tiff, Gian Chand, former reader, and his son Yashu shot a youth named Vishal Chopra dead with a revolver in Kotkapura in December 2011. Yashu is still on the run.

Hoshiarpur
Woman robbed of Rs 50,000: Two motorcycle-borne youths snatched a bag containing Rs 50,000 cash from Sudesh Rani in Mukerian on Friday. Sources said the unidentified youths robbed Sudesh after she had withdrawn the money from a Punjab National Bank branch in Mukerian. A case has been registered.

Ludhiana
City gets new ADCP: Swapan Sharma was posted as the Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police-4 (ADCP-4) on Saturday. Earlier, he was transferred to the security of the Chief Minister from the city. During the term of the ADCP traffic, he initiated the tow away drive effectively.

Moga
Married woman kills self: A 35-year old woman, Charanjit Kaur allegedly committed suicide by electrocuting herself in Baghapurana town of Moga district on Friday. Her father Surinder Singh alleged she had been harassed by her husband Surinder Mohan for the past few years. A case of abetment to suicide against Surinder Mohan has been registered.

Ropar
Hockey tournament kicks off: The two-day school hockey tournament being organised by the Rupnagar Hockey Academy began at Gobind Valley, began here today. As many as eight teams are participating in the tournament.

CHANDIGARH

Chandigarh
Five booked: The police has booked five persons, including an NRI from the UK, Jeevan Singh, and Nawab Singh from Patiala, for allegedly implicating a Mohali resident in a rape case. A case was registered on the complaint of Amarjit Singh Virk.

HARYANA

Kurukshetra
Man killed in mishap: A person was killed and two others were injured in a road accident. The police said Ashu of Tunda Majra district, Saharanpur, his grandmother Chambhi Devi and his aunt were injured when a motorcycle hit their motorcycle near Dabdalan village on Friday. Chambhi Devi succumbed to her injuries during treatment at LNJP Hospital here on Saturday. The police has registered a case.

Two held for kidnapping: The police has arrested Jabbar and Narender Kumar, both residents of Babain, for allegedly kidnapping a minor girl on the pretext of marrying her. The police had lodged a complaint on July 29 this year in this regard. They were produced in a local court, which remanded them to police custody for five days.

Rewari
Teenager kidnapped: A teenaged girl (19), a student of the BA (Final) studying in a local college and resident of the nearby Mundi village, was allegedly kidnapped by a youth on September 14. When a week-long search by her parents remained fruitless, her mother Kamlesh Devi on Friday filed a complaint.

Sirsa
2 held with cough syrup bottles: The police last night seized large qualities of medical intoxicants from two persons at Kalanwali in the district. The police stopped a car at Kalawali and seized 720 bottles of cough syrup containing codeine, 90,000 tablets of diphenoxylate and atropine and 730 gram white coloured powder from the car.

DEHRADUN

Almora
Father protests son’s arrest: KD Mishra, father of arrested JNU student Hem Mishra, has said he will sit on an indefinite fast if his son was not released soon. The Maharashtra Police has arrested Hem on the charge of involvement in Maoist activities. “The Maharashtra Police has tortured my son in the Garchiroli jail from where I am coming after meeting him. I have decided to sit on an indefinite fast until he is released. My son may be a Leftist but definitely not a Naxalite,” said KD Mishra, a retired teacher.

Champawat
NSUI candidates victorious: Congress-supported NSUI candidate Lalit Singh Patni and four others of his group were declared winners in the students’ union election held in Degree College at Lohaghat in Champawat district on Saturday. The BJP-supported ABVP candidates could win only one seat in the five-member executive. “The NSUI candidates also won the students’ union elections in Pithoragarh, Haldwani and Didihat colleges and were likely to emerge victorious in Almora and Tanakpur colleges,” said Rishendra Singh Mahar, a former students’ union leader in Pithoragarh district.

Dehradun
Seminar on water conservation: The Institution of Engineers, Uttarakhand state centre's two-day seminar on ground water conservation started in Dehradun today. Inaugurating the seminar, Union Water Resources Minister Harish Rawat stressed on efforts for checking the fall of ground water level in parts of the country. Civil Engineering Board Chairman HCS Berry also addressed in the inaugural session.

MLA's dharna at CM house: Uttarakhand's Ganshali BJP MLA Bhimlal Arya today staged a dharna at Chief Minister's residence in Dehradun alleging neglect of his constituency. Arya alleged that the condition of roads in his constituency was pathetic. He said further long-standing demand of his constituency for making Maletha a separate gram panchayat was not being considered. He pledged to continue with his protest till the genuine concerns of his constituency were not addressed.

Cheque for relief fund: Kumudam Publications Private Limited today handed over a cheque of Rs 31 lakh to Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna as part of the contribution to Chief Minister's Disaster Relief Fund. Kumudam Publications Private Limited's Group Editor Koshalram handed over the the cheque to the Chief Minister.

Hunger strike by jobless: Seeking employment, BPEd Unemployed Employees' Association today started a relay hunger strike in Dehradun. The protesters alleged that there should be at least one physical education instructor at every high school. Vikram Singh Chandpuri, Vijay Tiwari, Ramesh, Rajiv Semwal, Ramesh Padiyar and Harish Dangwal were prominent among the protesters.

Dharchula
NHPC loses Rs 1 crore daily: NHPC is suffering a loss of Rs 1 crore per day as its powerhouse and dam on the Dhauliganga have remained closed for the last three months after flash floods in June. According to NHPC sources, the project has so far suffered a loss of Rs 400 crore due to the disaster. “We have deputed a private company to clean the slush from the dam and the powerhouse of the project. It has earmarked four months to clear the project of slush so that we could resume electricity generation from April, 2014,” said VK Singh, director of the project.

Ramnagar
Jhirna zone open to tourists: Businessmen at the Corbett Park were happy that the Jhirna zone of the Corbett Tiger Reserve was thrown open to tourists from Saturday. The zone remained closed for the last three months because of heavy rains in the area. “The tourist flow to the zone will not only benefit businessmen near the Corbett Tiger Reserve but also give the impression that except some remote areas, the rest of the state is safe for tourists,” said Saket Badola, deputy director of the Corbett Tiger Reserve.

(Compiled by BD Kasniyal)