20112024-ATR-01.qxd 11/19/2024 11:14 PM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune FORECAST FOG MAX 25°C | MIN 09°C YESTERDAY MAX 25°C | MIN 09°C LITERATURE FEST BEGINS AT KHALSA COLLEGE I CRY A LOT IN MY BATHROOM, SAYS ACTOR SHAH RUKH KHAN ACTOR KEERTHY SURESH TO TIE THE KNOT WITH FRIEND The fair aims to remember freedom fighters, says acting principal Taminder Singh Bhatia. P2 Shah Rukh Khan attended the Global Freight Summit in Dubai, where he got candid about his life. P4 Popular South Indian actress Keerthy Suresh is all set to tie the knot with her long-time friend Antony Thattil. P4 » » » SUNSET WEDNESDAY 5.29 PM SUNRISE THURSDAY 7.04 AM WEDNESDAY | 20 NOVEMBER 2024 | AMRITSAR Solid waste mgmt firm told to speed up bioremediation Minister Dhaliwal slams former CM Channi for remarks against women Tribune News Service Amritsar, November 19 Deputy Commissioner Sakshi Sawhney and Municipal Corporation Commissioner Gulpreet Singh inspected the Bhagtanwala dumping ground here on Tuesday. After visiting the dump, the Deputy Commissioner said the bioremediation of waste will be expedited in the city. During the visit, they reviewed the progress of the bioremediation work being carried out by solid waste management company AVERDA and expressed dissatisfaction over the slow pace of work. The Deputy Commissioner and the MC Commissioner met the representatives of the Averda company and reviewed the implementation of the action plan for processing the waste. Officials directed the company to submit a written explanation for the delay in bioremediation and instructed them to speed up the process and start separate collection of wet and dry waste. “The district administration continued on page 2 Travel to Delhi gets costlier as pvt bus operators hike fare Move comes after cancellation of trains for this month by Rlys Neeraj Bagga Tribune News Service Newly elected panches and sarpanches take oath during a district-level programme in Amritsar on Tuesday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR Tribune News Service Amritsar, November 19 Cabinet minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal has slammed former Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi of the Congress for making derogatory remarks against women and demanded an apology from him. Speaking on the sidelines of a swearing-in ceremony for 5,526 newly elected sarpanches and panches, the minister recalled that as a Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Minister, he had organised four seminars across the state for women panches and sarpanches. It may be mentioned that Channi is in the eye of a storm for comments made during election campaigning in Gidderbaha that drew sharp reactions. Present as the chief guest at the district-level oath-taking ceremony at Guru Nanak Stadium here today, Dhaliwal congratulated them for being elected gram panchayat members and exhorted them to rise above the politics of revenge, inviting them to work for the development of villages. He said that the government under the leadership of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had made health, education, employment and public welfare its priority as a new way of working out politics. “That is the reason why the newly elected gram panchayats should move forward with this new thought to bolster growth in villages,” he said. He told the panches about the efforts being made by the government to keep the youth away from drugs and appealed to them to have a drug-free village mission. He also asked the panches to work in close coordination in continued on page 2 Amritsar, November 19 Private bus transporters have hiked the bus fare per passenger by over 40 per cent between Amritsar and Delhi after the Railways changed the schedule of over 140 trains. As per the new schedule, around 58 trains have been cancelled, 48 rescheduled, 10 short-terminated and nine short-originated. Besides, 16 trains will be plied on diverted routes for the remaining period of this month. The hike will compel a large number of railway passengers to shift to state transport or their own vehicles. About 40 buses are being plied by private public transporters on the busy Amritsar-Delhi route. Most of them would charge ~600 (for ordinary seat) and ~700 (for sleeper) per passenger on normal days. But after the revised train schedule and the rise in the number of passengers, the bus fare has gone up to ~900 for ordinary and ~1,000 for sleeper. Aggrieved passengers sit outside the Amritsar railway station on Tuesday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR On the other hand, tour and taxi operators who would charge ~10,000 for a five-seater and ~16,000 for a seven-seater are now demanding ~2,000 more. Rail traffic across North India has been affected this month amid a traffic block at the Chiheru railway station (in Kapurthala district) on the Sahnewal-Amritsar section in Ferozepur division owing to development work. Railway authorities said inconvenience to the rail passengers is unavoidable due to fortnight-long addition and alteration works at the Chiheru railway station as part of the longer loops project. Railway officials said most of the time all trains being plied on the Amritsar-Delhi route record hundred per cent booking. A similar situation still prevails. They said other trains to and fro Delhi are coming jam-packed. Meanwhile, passengers and vendors are dismayed at the blocking of the railway line. continued on page 2 Police seize 3.9-kg heroin, Glock Wedding season rush Tributes paid to martyrs of two pistols, nab 8 in separate cases leads to traffic jams, World Wars at Sultanwind encroachments in city Charanjit Singh Teja Tribune News Service Amritsar, November 19 The Amritsar Rural Police have arrested eight persons and recovered 3.970 kg of heroin and weapons in three separate cases. In the first case, the police arrested five accused — Jaspinder Singh, alias Bagga, Pawan Pal, Harsukhmanpreet Singh, Akash Masih and Beant Roop — and recovered 3.5 kg of heroin, a 9mm pistol, and a .32-bore pistol. In another case, Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) personnel acted on a tip-off and arrested Shaganpreet Singh of Hardo Ratan village with two 9mm Glock pistols and also recovered a motorcycle. SSP Amrit, sar (Rural), Charanjit Singh said they will check whether he procured these pistols from cross-border arms smugglers or some local supplier. In the third case, the police apprehended Rachhpal Singh, a resident of Kot Khalsa, with 470 grams of heroin, based on a secret tip-off. A case was registered under Sections Tribune News Service The seized heroin in custody of the Amritsar Rural Police on Tuesday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR 21, 23, 61 and 85 of the NDPS Act. SSP Charanjit Singh said to expose the extensive network involved they will ascertain forward and backward links and take action against anyone found involved. Meanwhile, the police found that a constable of Punjab Police was the kingpin in the case of cross-border drug trafficking in which 450 gm of heroin and a .32 bore revolver along with four live rounds were recovered from Akashdeep Singh of Mastgarh village in Khemkaran, Gurbax Singh, alias Babbal, of Patti and Simranpreet Singh of Mugal Chakk Pannuan village. They were arrested from Khasa area on November 16. The SSP did not reveal the name of the constable claiming that the operation is going on and details would be released soon after the arrest of the main accused. Amritsar, November 19 The ongoing wedding season has turned markets in the interior of the city into a nightmare with rampant encroachment and chaotic parking causing massive inconvenience and traffic jams. The situation was especially challenging in prominent cloth markets, including Katra Jaimal Singh, Shastri Market and Hall Bazaar, which are among the worst affected areas, making navigation within the walled city extremely challenging. A large number of people from towns and villages in the periphery come to shop for weddings in these congested markets. The woollen cloth market near the telephone exchange also witnessed a rush with mercury dipping significantly in the last few days Residents and traders alike are demanding swift action from the authorities to restore order in city markets. “It has become impossible to drive through these markets,” said Lovleen, a frustrated local resident. “The traffic police and the estate department of the Municipal Corporation need to intervene urgently to clear encroachments and regulate parking.” Jaswinder Singh, a local leader, echoed these concerns, urging the police to take swift action. “The administration must address the issue to prevent further suffering for commuters and traders,” he emphasised. Traders, too, are feeling the pinch, citing significant losses due to traffic congestion. “Customers are deterred by the chaos, affecting our business severely. The traffic police should make an action plan to address the issue,” said a local shopkeeper Vijay Kumar. Tribune News Service Amritsar, November 19 Vishav Yudh Pehla and Duja Shaheed Welfare Society organised an event to pay tributes to the martyrs of the First and Second World Wars at village Sultanwind near here last evening. The event started with recitation of path and bhog ceremony at Gurdwara Attari Sahib. A march was also taken out by the participants, dignitaries, students, NCC cadets and gatka teams, to the plaque in the village which was installed by the British, honouring and recognising the sacrifice of Indian soldiers in the two World Wars. Rich tributes were paid by placing wreaths at the plaque. A guard of honour was presented by Punjab Home Guards personnel and NCC cadets. Family members of the martyrs who came from different places, including Haryana, were honoured during the event held at Gurdwara Attari Sahib. Ripudaman Singh from Residents pay tributes to the martyrs of the World Wars at Sultanwind village in Amritsar. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR Haryana whose grandfather Subedar Ram Swaroop Singh was awarded the Victoria Cross (VC), the highest and most prestigious decoration of the British, also took part in the event and said he felt proud of what his grandfather did and was pleased to be a part of it again. The organisation appealed to the government to take special notice of the condition of the plaque, the place where it is installed and its sur- roundings. A proper memorial needs to be built where the plaque should be installed with dignity and honour which it deserves, it said. Famous Sikh historian, author and patron of the society, Bhupinder Singh Holland led the march in which its president Gurinder Singh Mahal, Jaskaran Singh, Balwinder Singh Chhina, Amandeep Singh Walia, Rajkumar Mishra, Sukhdeep Kaur and others were present. 3 drones seized from border area Will address industrialists’ issues Sarpanch’s murder: soon, says Invest Punjab CEO Cops arrest accused Tribune News Service Amritsar, November 19 The Border Security Force (BSF) today seized three drones in the border districts of Tarn Taran and Amritsar. A DJI Mavic 3 Classic drone was recovered by a joint team of the BSF and Punjab Police after a search operation at about 7:12 am from a field adjacent to village Wan in district Tarn Taran. Another DJI Matrice 300 RTK drone, in damaged condition, was recovered by BSF troops from a farming field ahead of the border fence at about 8:30 am, adjacent to village Naushera Dhalla of district Tarn Taran. In the third instance, one The drone recovered by the BSF from the Amritsar-Tarn Taran belt more DJI Mavic 3 Classic was recovered from a farming field ahead of the border fence at about 10:42 am, adjacent to village Rajatal in district Amritsar. Amritsar, November 19 Director, Industries and Commerce, DPS Kharbanda who is also the CEO, Invest Punjab, has assured industrialists and traders that the government would resolve their grievances and make serious efforts to meet their demands. The Director said this during an interaction held here today. The Punjab government is committed to solving the problems of industrialists and their pending cases will be disposed of in a time-bound manner, he said after a meeting with the industrialists. Listening to the problems of industrialists, Kharbanda instructed the officials to settle their cases on pri- c m y b Our Correspondent Director Industry and Commerce Punjab-cum-CEO Invest Punjab DPS Kharbanda (2nd from right) talks to industrialists in Amritsar. ority basis. He said a cap has been imposed today to settle the incentive and regulatory clearance cases which have been pending for a long time. He also claimed that the industrialists will bring in new investments which will herald more employment opportunities in the region. — TNS Tarn Taran, November 19 One of the accused nominated in the killing of AAP leader Partap Singh who was elected Sarpanch of Lalu Ghuman recently and was gunned down in his native village, has been arrested with a revolver and magazine. The police have recovered seven empty cartridges from the spot. Rivalry during the panchayat election is said to be the cause behind the tragedy with gangsters based abroad accused of playing a major role. Ajayraj Singh, SP (Detective), said that the accused who are absconding have been identified as Bikramjit Singh, Nishan Singh, Ranjit Singh and Balram Singh of the same Lalu Ghuman village. Gangster Ranjit Singh, a resident of the same Lalu Ghuman and settled in Canada and Amritpal Singh Bath of nearby Mianpur village who is also settled in Canada, have also been nominated as accused besides an unidentified person. Partap Singh was gunned down by an assailant from the rear when he was on his way back from the village gurdwara. Budh Singh, a friend of the deceased, received injuries in the incident. The SP said a case has been registered against the accused.