Rs30m tickets issued to smoky vehicles this year

LAHORE:Lahore Traffic Police have issued over Rs30 million fine tickets this year in its crackdown on smoke-emitting vehicles as part of a campaign to combat smog in the City.

The ongoing campaign has resulted in fines being imposed on 24,648 vehicles for emitting excessive smoke, each receiving a Rs2,000 challan. Additionally, 10,583 vehicles contributing to dust and other environmental pollutants were fined, while 4,000 tractor trolleys, responsible for air pollution at night, were also ticketed.

CTO Ammara Athar announced that fitness certificates of 533 severely deteriorated vehicles have been cancelled. In a bid to raise awareness, more than 2,000 educational lectures have been conducted at schools, colleges, bus stations, and government and semi-government institutions. The Lahore Traffic Police has also introduced Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems to aid in the issuance of fines, resulting in over 4,000 tickets being processed using the technology. The CTO highlighted that several public and semi-public institutions have been issued letters urging them to fix their smoke-emitting vehicles.

Imposter arrested for robbing people

Data Darbar police arrested a man impersonating a police officer who was caught robbing citizens under the guise of a search operation.

The suspect, identified as Shah Rukh Khan, was apprehended after he allegedly searched a labourer and stole his cash and mobile phone. According to police, the incident occurred when the fake officer stopped the victim, pretending to conduct a routine search, and seized the valuables. The victim raised an alarm, which attracted the attention of patrolling Data Darbar police officers. They apprehended the suspect, recovering the stolen cash and mobile phone. The items were returned to the victim.

Five die in separate incidents

Five people lost their lives in different incidents here on Tuesday. According to Edhi officials, in the first incident, a garbage truck ran over a man sleeping on the footpath near Adda Plot, Raiwind Road. The victim, identified as 65-year-old Siddique Sultan, was hit to death in the early hours of Tuesday, said an Edhi spokesperson.

Meanwhile, a body was found in the Liaqatabad area. The unidentified man, believed to be around 40 years old, was suspected to have died due to drug addiction, according to initial assessments by Edhi officials.

Another body of an unidentified man was found near Niaz Baig Chowk in Hanjarwal. The victim appeared to have been subjected to severe physical assault, and the body was estimated to be three to four days old. The police have yet to determine his identity.

Separately, in Shadman, an elderly woman was found dead near the Sunday Bazaar. The 65-year-old woman, who appeared to be homeless, was not yet identified. Additionally, in Nawan Kot's Jhuggian Nagran area, 42-year-old Imtiaz committed suicide by ingesting poison. Edhi officials confirmed that the man took his own life after consuming toxic pills. All bodies were shifted to the morgue, Edhi officials added.

8,314 drug pushers arrested

The Lahore police have registered 8,047 cases and arrested 8,314 drug pushers this year. The police seized 6,067-kg hashish, 252-kg heroin, 144-kg ice and 56,388 litre alcohol. Around 1,853 drug pushers were arrested by City Division, 1,715 by Cantt, 863 by Civil Lines, 1,145 by Sadar, 1,296 by Iqbal Town, and 1,442 drug pushers were arrested by Model Town.

Rape suspect held

Ghaziabad police arrested a man on charges of raping a 16-year-old girl. The Ghaziabad police have registered a case against the accused identified as Zeeshan. The accused lured the girl to his house under the pretense of offering her a job and raped her.