R E G I O N A L   B R I E F S

PUNJAB

Abohar
Girl’s body found in tube well: The body of seven-year-old Arshdeep Kaur, who was allegedly kidnapped on February 24 from her house in a village of Sriganganagar district (Rajasthan), was found in a tube well in a nearby village on Friday. The police found the body after some farmers complained about foul smell emanating from the tube well. The girl's father had on February 25 told the police that Arshdeep was kidnapped when he and his wife had gone to attend a function, leaving their children at home, the earlier night.

1 booked under NDPS Act: Tejinder Singh of Jatanwala Chauntra village (Patiala) has been booked under the NDPS Act by the Rajasthan Police in the border town Srikaranpur. The police said 4 kg opium was seized from a Maruti car (PB 11 R 1731) abandoned by unidentified persons near the Municipal Council office in the town. A case has been registered on the basis of the documents found in the vehicle, SHO Shrawan Dass Sant said.

Banur
New principal: Dr AS Grover, Head, Department of Surgery, Gian Sagar Medical College and Hospital, has taken over as principal of the college. He has earlier worked as professor in the Department of Surgery, Government Medical College and Rajindra Hospital, Patiala. Dr Grover is an eminent surgeon and an able administrator.

Hoshiarpur
5 booked in suicide case: Five people, including a woman, were booked on the charge of abetment to suicide on the basis of the deceased’s father Tilak Raj on Friday. Raj of Krishna Nagar alleged travel agents duped his son of Rs 50 lakh on the pretext of sending his students abroad. The accused have been identified as Gurvinder Kahlon of Ludhiana, his wife Simran, his father Gurdeep, Avtar Singh and Shams of Malerkotla.

Ludhiana
Labourers pledge to vote: The daily wage labourers have taken a resolution to cast their franchise during the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. This was told by the representatives of various labour unions during a special programme organised by the District Administration at Gobindgarh village near Focal Point in Ludhiana on Friday.

Muktsar
Man electrocuted, 2 booked: A Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO) and Junior Engineer (JE) of the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) were booked for their alleged dereliction of duty. This led to a man being electrocuted to death. The complaint stated that local resident Joginder Singh had gone to spray pesticide in the fields on Kabarwala Road when he accidentally touched an exposed electric wire.

Sangrur
3 held for damaging ATM: Three persons, allegedly involved in attempting to break open a Dena Bank ATM on March 5, were arrested on Friday. They had also attacked police personnel on the same night, injuring Punjab Home Guard jawan Malkiat Singh. The accused are Pappi Singh of Sekhuwas village (Lehra), Swaran Singh and Kuldip Kumar of Sangrur. They have been sent to police custody for a day.

Defused hand grenade found: A defused hand grenade was found in an empty water tank of Mata Raj Rajeshwari temple near the military area here on Thursday. The grenade was reportedly spotted by Shubham, son of the temple priest, and his friend when they entered the tank to play cricket. On being informed, the police examined the grenade and was found to be about 50 years old.

World Forestry Day: The Kalpana Chawla Science Club of the Desh Bhagat College of Education, Bardwal (near Dhuri), on Friday organised a seminar on World Forestry Day to create awareness about the importance and conservation of forests. Tree saplings were planted on the campus. On being informed, the police examined the grenade and was found to be about 50 years old. Station House Officer Harinder Singh said the police would dump it in a deep bore.