Colony guards beaten up by outsiders; one battles for life

Maj Gurdeep Singh Samra,a social worker and resident of the colony,informed,“Two people came in an SUV and told the guards that they were from the police and that they should report to the police station on the following morning. When the guards on duty said that they would like to note down the number of the vehicle,the boys probably panicked and began beating up the guards. One of the guards ran to get help while the other was hit badly on the head and is battling for life at Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital (GTBH). He has suffered serious head injuries.”

Irked,the residents of the colony said,“This is not the the first time such an incident has occurred here. This colony,though PUDA-approved,falls beyond the LMC limits and,therefore,has no official looking after it. A small police post which has few policemen on duty,is hardly a deterrent for law-breakers. Incidents of chain snatching are common here and we have even had a murder in the area recently,which is still unsolved.”

SHO Sardar Parmjit Singh said,“We have not been able to identify who these boys were. However,to ensure security in the area,we have increased the number of police men from two to five at this police post. We will ensure that security is not an issue in this area in future.”

But the residents have a long list of complaints. Major Samra added,“We took the guard to the civil hospital and the doctor on duty expressed his helplessness in undertaking treatment as the hospital does not have CT scan facilities. This is the state of our government-run hospital while our government makes such tall claims.”

He added,“This colony is located adjoining Phase 2,Urban Estate Dugri Road,and has been linked with the 200 feet-wide road running parallel to Phase 2. Since the colony is located outside the municipal limits and adjoining the city,it does not have anyone in authority to listen to the problems of the residents. The rural people are looked after by the political establishment as they are their vote banks and the city has councillors to do the needful. This colony,being PUDA approved,does not have any godfather to take care of the needs of residents.”

The resident alleged that complaints made to GLADA have fallen on deaf ears so far. They have demanded that they should be provided a PCR to cover all colonies falling between Village Phulawal on Pakhowal Road and Bhagat Singh Nagar colony on Dhandra Road. They have also stressed that the colonizer should be punished for not providing adequate security lights and representatives of the colonies should be included in the district-level security set-up.