R E G I O N A L   B R I E F S

PUNJAB

Amritsar
MLA Sidhu to meet Capt over green cover: Concerned over the loss of green cover in the holy city due to various development projects, Chief Parliamentary Secretary Dr Navjot Kaur Sidhu on Saturday said she along with representatives of various NGOs would meet Amritsar MP Capt Amarinder Singh and take up the issue with him. Dr Sidhu said being a nature lover, she was dejected at the “ruthless” chopping of trees on the pretext of development.

Jalandhar
Cop suspended:The Jalandhar Commissionerate Police today placed an SI, posted at the Police Lines here, under suspension after he was booked by the Amritsar police under the NDPS Act. SI Gurbinder Singh, a resident of Khurmanian village of Amritsar, had been on a 44-day earned leave from May 10 to June 22. He was arrested by the Khilchian police station cops, falling under Amritsar Rural Police, with 15 gm of heroin today. He said an FIR had been lodged against him there.

DEHRADUN

Bageshwar
Woman injured in forest fire: A woman Khimuli Devi (45) was injured at Dafaut area of Bageshwar district when she was extinguishing fire from the forest near her home last evening as thousands of hectares of forests got burnt in the fire that has erupted in the area four days ago. ''Khimuli Devi is being treated at local PHC but needs to be referred to a hospital as she has incurred deep burns,'' said Puran Singh Rawat, a local social worker from Dafaut area of the district.

Haldwani
School manager robbed:An aged school manager was beaten mercilessly and lakhs of cash and jewellery were looted from her house by some armed miscreants at Indira Nagar colony in Haldwani today. According to Haldwani police, Sayada begum (55), who runs a school at Indira Nagar, was first abducted at gunpoint at the corner of her house and beaten before being looted of case and jewellery. ''The police are trying to trace the three armed looters and investigating the case,'' said Pankaj Bhatt, Assistant Superintendent of Police, Haldwani.

Nainital
HC recalls own order: Delivering a decision on a recall application filed by the state government, Uttarakhand High Court today recalled its own order of investigation by CBI into alleged illegal mining acts for the expansion of Jolly Grant airport near Dehradun and ordered the government to file its reply by June 30 this year. ''The companies from Agra and Bangalore have violated environmental laws by undertaking illegal mining in the area, on which District Magistrate, Dehradun, had imposed a fine of Rs 18 crore and Rs 2 crore, respectively, which was later revoked by the principal secretary, before the case was reported in the court through a PIL,'' said Dharmvir Saini, the petitioner, who had filed the PIL.

Ramnagar
Two youths drown:Two youths, who had gone to take part in a marriage, drowned in river Ramganga, where they had gone to take a bath today. The bodies of the youths have been recovered after hours of search, Almora police said. '' A marriage party which had gone from Syahi to Nawalgaon was returning after completion of the marriage ceremony when the youths, Rakesh (14) and Gopal (13), took a dip in the river. They were drowned,'' said Surendra Singh, patwari of the area.

(Compiled by BD Kasniyal)