13052024-ATR-01.qxd 5/13/2024 12:32 AM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune FORECAST MAINLY CLEAR MLA LALPURA APPEALS TO PEOPLE TO VOTE FOR AAP CANDIDATE BHULLAR JENNIFER DENIES THIS IS ME NOW TOUR WOES AFTER POOR SALES JENNIFER ANISTON PAYS ODE TO RACHEL GREEN’S HAIR ACCESSORIES AAP MLA Manjinder Singh Lalpura appealed to the masses to cast their votes in favour of Laljit Singh Bhullar. P2 Singer-actress Jennifer Lopez is all set to start her tour and is excited to see her fans at the shows. P4 MAX 39°C | MIN 25°C YESTERDAY MAX 32°C | MIN 25°C Actress Jennifer Aniston has expressed love for her Friends character Rachel Green and her iconic hairstyles. P4 » » SUNSET MONDAY 7.19 PM SUNRISE TUESDAY 5:34 AM » MONDAY | 13 MAY 2024 | AMRITSAR Over 42 kg heroin, narcotics destroyed Amritsar, May 12 The Punjab Police have destroyed over 42 kg of heroin along with other narcotic substances recovered in various cases in the four police districts falling under the Amritsar border range here. The contraband was destroyed through incineration process at Khanna Paper Mill in the presence of Rakesh Kaushal, DIG border range, and SSPs of Amritsar (Rural), Batala, Gurdaspur and Pathankot police districts. Kaushal said among drugs seized included 35.810 kg of heroin in Batala and Gurdaspur police districts. Besides heroin, the police destroyed narcotic powder, poppy husk, intoxicants, smack and charas, he said. He said the contraband was lying in the centralised malkhanas of each district and was destroyed after completing all the legal formalities by the drug disposal committees. He said the entire disposal process was videographed and photographed in order ensure transparency. — TNS 13 bootleggers held in cordon, search op in four border dists 287 litres liquor, 16,850 kg lahan seized |17 FIRs registered Tribune News Service Amritsar, May 12 In view of the upcoming elections for the 18th Lok Sabha, the Punjab Police today carried out cordon and search operation (CASO) in four districts of the border belt here and recovered huge quantity of illicit liquor and lahan (raw material for brewing liquor). The police arrested 13 bootleggers and registered 17 FIRs in the four districts in this connection. Rakesh Kaushal, DIG border range, said the police carried out CASO in Amritsar (Rural), Batala, Gurdaspur and Pathankot districts on Sunday and recovered a total of 287 litres of illicit liquor along with 16,850 kg of lahan. “In Gurdaspur district 212 litres of illicit liquor, which is maximum, has been seized Illicit liquor recovered in a border district on Sunday. TRIBUNE PHOTO while 12,200 kg of lahan has been recovered in Batala alone,” the DIG said, while adding that 45 litres of illicit liquor was recovered in Batala, 15 litres each from Amritsar (Rural) and Pathankot districts. In Gurdaspur 4,500 kg of lahan was recovered. In Amritsar (Rural) 150 kg of lahan was recovered. Nine FIRs under the Excise Act were registered in Gurdaspur followed by five in Batala, two in Pathankot and one in Amritsar (Rural). Seven, four and two persons were arrested in these cases in Gurdaspur, Batala and Pathankot, respectively. The DIG said residents were urged to share information regarding bootleggers and drug peddlers in their respective areas with the police so that untoward incidents could be averted. He said the police was committed to nail those involved in drug trafficking and smuggling of illicit liquor which could be used to lure voters. He said anybody found involved would be taken to task. Couple arrested with 275 grams of heroin Our Correspondent Tarn Taran, May 12 The Valtoha and the Goindwal Sahib police recovered 2.78 kg of heroin from the areas falling under their respective jurisdictions on Saturday. Two of the suspects, who are couple, have been arrested after recovering 275 grams of heroin from them. Gurpreet Singh, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Bhikhiwind, said a police party led by subinspector Sunita Rani, SHO, Valtoha, recovered 2 kg of heroin from fields of one Baj Singh, a farmer of Kalia Sanaktra village. The DSP said another police party led by ASI Avtar Singh recovered 505 grams of heroin from the fields of farmer Roop Singh on Saturday. In another incident, the Goindwal Sahib police led by ASI Avtar Singh arrested Sukhdev Singh Sukha and his wife Poonam Kaur, both Singh Sukha ❝SukhdevPoonam and his wife Kaur, both residents of Fahehbad, have been arrested after recovering 275 grams of heroin from their possession. The couple was going on a motorcycle to deliver the contraband to dealers when a police party nabbed them. ❞ Goindwal Sahib police residents of Fahehbad, after recovering 275 grams of heroin from them. Senior officials said the couple was going on a motorcycle to deliver the contraband to dealers when the police party nabbed them after receiving a tip-off. Cases under the relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act were registered against the suspects. Juvenile among two nabbed with heroin, tablets Tribune News Service Amritsar, May 12 A 17-year-old boy was arrested by the Sultanwind police for allegedly possessing 255 grams of heroin. Besides, Rs 300 drug money was also recovered from him, said the police. Subinspector Jasbir Singh, Station House Officer, Sultanwind police station, said the suspect was arrested by a police patrolling party in the Vallah area here. In another incident, the Chheharta police have arrested Avtar Singh, alias Laddu, a resident of Guru Nanakpura, and recovered 183 intoxicant tablets and an amount of Rs 3,150 from his possession. Separate cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act were registered against the two suspects at the respective police stations and further investigations initiated in this connection. Garbage burning irks residents, Burning of crop residue goes unabated in 2 dists hits tourism industry in holy city Country’s best years were during Manmohan Singh’s regime: AICC secy Charanjit Singh Teja Tribune News Service Manmeet Singh Gill Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Amritsar, May 12 Garbage heaps at the Bhagtanwala dumping ground are smouldering. Another fire broke out at a garbage heap lying on a vacant plot in front of the Red Cross office on Old Jail Road last night. Dense smoke emanating from the burning garbage and low visibility irked residents of Ajnala Road, Ranjit Avenue and Old Jail Road. At the Bhagtanwala dump, smoke is still emanating from the garbage. Residents of the areas surrounding the dump have complained of respiratory issues. Visitors at the Golden Temple, which is one-and-a-half-kilometre away from the dump, expressed concern over pollution in the city. The high pollution level is also affecting tourism industry in the holy city. The people from tourism sector claimed that the poor air quality and scattered garbage irked tourists. Gurinder Singh Johal, who works as a guide in the city said, “Amritsar has turned into a polluted city. The pollution level in the city is so high that tourists, including foreigners Smoke billows from a heap of garbage on a vacant plot in Amritsar. and locals, who come from Hyderabad, Mumbai and Bangalore, do not feel good. They dislike the city because of dirt and garbage lying around. The emission from auto-rickshaws and diesel vehicles has made the things worse.” “The fire at the Bhagtanwala dump has worsened the air quality in last few days. Neither the municipal corporation nor the government is serious about tackling the pollution in the city. Such kind of negligence will ruin the tourism industry in the city,” said Johal. Pawandeep Sharma, a social activist, has raised questions over the working of the MC. Sharma said it was the negligence of the Deputy Commissioner, MC Commissioner and heads of all government agencies, who allow garbage burning in the residential areas. He said, “People are suffering from diseases due to pollution in the city and administration is responsible for it. No candidate of any political party has shown concern about pollution in the city. Besides, the MC staff burns garbage. Criminal cases should be registered for such negligence.” Amritsar, May 12 Even as the government is trying to stop burning of crop residue in agriculture fields after harvesting of wheat, it has so far miserably failed in this endeavour as a large number of farm fires have been spotted in the rural areas of Amritsar and Tarn Taran districts on Sunday. As per the data released by the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre, a total of 19 live farm fires were spotted in Amritsar district while the number of such incidents in Tarn Taran district was 54. However, this is just the data about the number of farm fires and not how many fields have been burnt. A visit to the rural areas revealed that crop residue on hundreds of acres was burnt during the last few days. Though incidents of burning crop residue on public holidays such as Sundays are always more as compared to normal working days as it is generally perceived that no one from the government department would come for an inspection. Besides, elections this year have emboldened farmers as employees of government departments have been deployed on poll duties. Wheat stubble set on fire at a field in a village near Amritsar on Sunday. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR The state government position to annoy anyone at this ❝just three weeks away.is in nobe presumed that the governmenttime as elections are It can action if any would be very soft this season. After paddy harvesting last year, fines imposed on farmers had failed to deter them as the government machinery was not able to recover the penalty amount from them. Jagveer Singh, A RESIDENT ❞ The district administrations have yet to take action to stop farm fires. “The state government is in no position to annoy anyone at this time as elections are just three weeks away. It can be presumed that the government action if any would be very soft this season,” said Jagveer Singh, a resident. Moreover, a token action after paddy harvesting last year when fines were imposed on farmers too had failed to deter them as the government machinery was not able to recover the penalty amount from them. he added. Residents said action should be taken against all those who cause air pollution be it farmers or anybody else. “Apart from burning the crop residue, a large number of trees and saplings planted along roads have been damaged by farm fires. At least action should be taken for causing damage to trees and saplings which are public property,” said Joginder Singh, a senior citizen. Amritsar, MAY 12 In a rally organised in favour of Congress candidate Gurjeet Singh Aujla, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary Harish Chaudhary said the best years of the country were during the tenure of Dr Manmohan Singh-led Central Government. He said during those 10 years, every section of the country had witnessed development. Chaudhary said the last 10 years were troublesome for citizens of the country. Inflation, unemployment and widening gap between the haves and have not’s kept increasing. As a result people were most worried during the tenure of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He claimed that PM Modi gave benefits only to a few. He said Punjab was a state of farmers who were forced to struggle. Addressing the gathering on the occasion, Congress’s Lok Sabha candidate Gurjeet Singh Aujla said at present, the people of the country were in favour of the Congress. Meghalaya NULM delegation visits Reviving vanishing industries becomes poll pledge for parties MC’s shelter for urban homeless Neeraj Bagga Tribune News Service Amritsar, May 12 A delegation from the National Urban Livelihoods Mission (NULM) representing Meghalaya, led by state mission manager Larisa, recently visited shelter for the urban homeless managed by the Amritsar Municipal Corporation (MC). The Meghalaya team expressed satisfaction over facilities provided at the shelter. The team liked the separate accommodations provided for men, women, and physical challenged individuals. On the directions of MC Commissioner Harpreet Singh, officials led by nodal officer Sushant Bhatia accompanied the Meghalaya An NULM delegation at the shelter for homeless in Amritsar. team to the night shelter. The visiting team lauded standards of hygiene maintained in toilets and bathrooms at the shelter, while acknowledging the efforts of the MC in ensuring the well-being and dignity of the urban homeless population. Recently, the MC had renovated the building of night shelter and provided new beds and bedclothes. Visitors at the night shelter also expressed satisfaction over the upgraded infrastructure and facilities. The NULM team discussed various aspects about the homeless population in the city with staff of the MC present on the occasion. — TNS Amritsar, May 12 With candidates of all prominent political parties promising to restore holy city’s bygone industrial status, revival of the vanishing industries has almost become a political issue in this Lok Sabha election. BJP nominee and former diplomat Taranjit Singh Sandhu, SAD candidate and former Cabinet minister Anil Joshi, AAP nominee and NRI Affairs Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal and incumbent Congress MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla are assuring the voters of Amritsar Lok Sabha constituency that the problem of high unemployment and youth going abroad in search of jobs could be resolved by c m y b setting up new industries and reviving the old ones. Industrialists associated with vanishing industries like electric fans, carpets and textile processing say they have been demanding a special package and trained youth to revive their units. Owners of industries, including warp knitting, a form of textile, and nut-bolt manufacturers, are of the view that their industries are on the decline due to competition posed by external forces and without government intervention, they would soon be bracketed in the category of city’s vanishing industries. A screw and nut-bolt manufacturer Samir Goel said, “The city is fast losing its edge of being a domestic market leader in manufacturing screw and nut-bolts to China. The local industry does not require financial assistance, but R&D support to improve the quality of finished product.” He said party leaders were promising to assist the local industry, but they must spell out a concrete plan as each industry required different hand-holding. Satnam Singh Kanda, who once used to operate a fan manufacturing unit, said from over 2,500 units years ago, their number had come down to a few hundred. He said a majority of manufacturers and skilled labourers switched to other professions while successive governments never bothered to know the factors leading to their decline. Now, a keen contest between the candidates forced them to show their desire to set up local industries which might pave the way for the revival of old units, he felt. The flourishing processing and dyeing industry for textiles also recorded a fall from over 100 units to the nearly 30 now surviving in this border city. Industrialists associated with the textile industry say the textile sector here fell on bad days due to lack of technical and monetary support by the government, the failure of owners to modernise and labour stirs led by Left parties. The golden period of the textile processing industry here was between 1970 and 1990. The same period was characterised as the peak time for Left politics in the city. Once famous for handmade Persian-style carpets, also called Bukhara style (a place in Iran where the art is quite popular), the art is on the verge of extinction. Local warp knitting units use polyester yarn as raw material, prominently used in party wear dresses. Besides, it is used in manufacturing a range of items, including shoes, school bags, automobiles, curtains, bed sheets, briefcases, sportswear, helmets, travelling accessories, men and women’s wear, upholstery of cars, home textiles, and many other items. Over 400 warp knitting units, with an annual turnover of around Rs 2,000 crore, are facing a double challenge from Bangladesh and Gujarat where a large number of such units have put the local industry in existential crisis.
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