07082026-JTR-01.qxd 8/6/2026 10:57 PM Page 1 c m y b Jalandhar tribune POLICE STEP UP SECURITY AHEAD OF INDEPENDENCE DAY 43RD SURJIT HOCKEY TOURNEY RESCHEDULED FOR NOVEMBER ADNAN SAMI LAUNCHES NEW SONG ISHQ TAMASHA The Punjab Police conducted a special search operation at the Hoshiarpur bus stand. P2 The Asian Hockey Champions Trophy is being organised at Surjit Hockey Stadium from October 25. P3 Adnan Sami’s new song Ishq Tamasha released by Zee Music looks at love through a contemporary lens. P4 » » FORECAST RAINY MAX 34°C | MIN 24°C YESTERDAY MAX 33°C | MIN 25°C SUNSET FRIDAY 7.18 PM SUNRISE SATURDAY 5:48 AM » FRIDAY | 7 AUGUST 2026 | JALANDHAR Damaged bridge sparks safety fears near Shahkot HEALTH & WELLNESS The Tribune has started a Q and A column to address your health-related queries. Please mail your questions (not exceeding 40 words) at healthandwellness@tribunemail.com. The Tribune’s panel of doctors will answer all your healthrelated concerns. Tribune News Service INBRIEF VILLAGER HELD FOR ASSAULT Phagwara: The Lohian Khas police have arrested a villager on the charge of outraging religious feelings and assault. The accused has been identified as Harbans Singh of Kakkarr Kalan village. Balbir Singh, a resident of the same village, complained to the police that Harjindar of the same village was sitting in a house discussing society election when the accused and his accomplice Sulindar Singh barged into his house with weapons and threatened Harjindar to kill him and removed his turban and threw him on the ground by pulling his beard and started beating him up and fled after residents started assembling there. A case has been registered against the accused. oc BOOKED FOR ILLEGAL MINING Phagwara: The Nakodar police have booked an unidentified person for illegal mining in Baruah Khurd village. Mining Inspector Ajay Kumar, in a complaint to the police, alleged that the accused was illegally excavating earth in the village. A JCB machine used in the activity was impounded. Acting on the complaint, the police registered a case and launched further investigation. Meanwhile, the Bilga police booked two persons (a farmer and a Tipper driver) for indulging in illegal mining in Burj Hassan and Dhagara villages. OC NO HIGHWAY TREE FELLING: CENTRE Phagwara: MP Balbir Singh Seechewal has raised the issue of protecting large, old and heritage trees during the construction of national highways in the Rajya Sabha. Responding to his query, the Union minister assured the House that trees would not be felled unless absolutely necessary during infrastructure development works. OC P2 YOUTH BOOKED FOR KIDNAPPING Phagwara: The Nakodar police have booked a Jalandhar youth on the charge of kidnapping a minor girl. The accused has been identified as Ankush Dheer of Virdi Colony, Harbans Nagar, Jalandhar. Father of the victim complained to the police that the accused kidnapped his minor daughter. oc MINOR GIRL KIDNAPPED Phagwara: The police have registered a case on the complaint of Jatinder Kumar Lolo of Patti Takhar, Nakodar. The complainant alleged that Ankush Dhir of Harbans Nagar, Jalandhar, abducted his minor daughter with the intention of marrying her. OC A huge traffic jam on the Jalandhar-Amritsar national highway after heavy rain on Thursday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: SARABJIT SINGH 2-hour downpour brings city traffic to a crawl Tribune News Service Jalandhar, August 6 While a spell of heavy rain lasting nearly two hours brought much needed relief from heat and humidity on Thursday, it also exposed the city’s persistent civic infrastructure problems. Severe waterlogging across several parts of the city led to massive traffic snarls, leaving commuters stranded. The most affected stretches were the national highway and BSF Chowk, where long traffic jams were witnessed during morning hours. In some areas, commuters found it extremely difficult to move from one point to another as vehicles crawled through waterlogged roads. Areas, including Transport Nagar and Pathankot Chowk, presented a grim picture, with several vehicles getting stuck in stagnant water. Some motorists were left A vehicle with LPG cylinders stuck on the flooded Transport Nagar road in Jalandhar. SARABJIT SINGH today. This is the kind of problem we are living with. It is the monsoon season. Does that mean I should stop going to my factory every day?” he said. Waterlogging was also reported outside Milap Chowk, Ladowali Road and opposite the Deputy Commissioner’s office. “Though residents welcomed the pleasant weather after the rainfall, the submerged roads, stranded vehicles and prolonged traffic congestion has again highlighted the urgent need for effective and better civic planning in Jalandhar,” said Ravneet Kaur, a banker. Our Correspondent Mangled remains of the SUV that hit trees near Sultanpur Lodhi. of a school before slamming into another tree. The impact was so severe that the vehicle was completely mangled, with its tyres, windows and other parts scattered across the road. Rahul Gill, a resident of village Bidhipur in Sultanpur Lodhi, died on the spot. The police shifted his body to the mortuary of the Civil Hospital, Sultanpur Lodhi, around 1 am. The other occupants, Lahugli (17) of village Talwandi Bootian, and Anjana Rani (23), wife of Rahul Gill and a resident of village Shankar in Jalandhar district, were rushed to the Civil Hospital, Sultanpur Lodhi. Lahugli later succumbed to his injuries, while Anjana, who remains in a critical condition, was referred to a higher medical centre after receiving first-aid. Damaged bridge near Shahkot Malsian station in Jalandhar. and would follow up again. “I had raised the issue with the officials earlier and will pursue it again. The repair work has been initiated,” the MLA said. Meanwhile, Sherowalia also raised the issue of the badly damaged Lohian-Jakopur road in the Vidhan Sabha. Highlighting the condition of the 9-km stretch, he said it had become extremely difficult for commuters. “The 9-km road is in such a pathetic condition that it has become a major inconven- AAP block chief quits, citing delay in arrest for sarpanch’s assault Our Correspondent waiting for the water level to recede before they could resume their journey. Rajesh Chawla, an industrialist who commutes daily through Transport Nagar to reach his factory, expressed frustration over the recurring problem. “My family told me not to go Two killed as SUV rams into trees Kapurthala, August 6 Two young men lost their lives while a woman sustained critical injuries in a horrific latenight road accident near village Sawal on the Talwandi Chaudhrian road in Sultanpur Lodhi of Kapurthala district on Thursday. An SUV was travelling from Sultanpur Lodhi towards Talwandi Chaudhrian when the driver reportedly lost control of the vehicle near Sawal. The speeding SUV first rammed into a roadside tree, then crashed through the iron grill Jalandhar, August 6 Residents living in villages near the Shahkot Malsian railway station continue to express concern over a damaged portion of a bridge nearly 10 days after the issue first came to light. Locals had said commuting on the bridge had become risky. The repair work has since begun and the damaged section has been barricaded. Ranchet Singh, a farmer leader with the Kisan Sangharsh Committee (Kot Budha group), said it is the part of the national highway and while the authorities had blocked the affected area and initiated repairs, they must also investigate the cause of the damage and take swift action to prevent similar incidents. “There seems to be some issue with the bridge. The authorities must identify the reason behind the damage and act quickly,” he said. Shahkot MLA Hardev Singh Laddi Sherowalia said he had already taken up the matter with the cofficials oncerned Phagwara, August 6 A political row has erupted after Prof Kranti Kumar, block president of the AAP , resigned from his post, alleging inaction by the police in arresting the accused in an alleged assault case involving his wife Lovdeep Kaur, Sarpanch of village Kutbewal near Goraya. Addressing a press conference along with Panchayat members and villagers, Kumar alleged that despite the registration of an FIR, the accused have not been arrested, leading to widespread resentment among residents. He said he had resigned as AAP block president in protest against the alleged delay in delivering justice. Kumar claimed that his wife was allegedly attacked at their residence by a man carrying a sharp-edged weapon while she was alone. He alleged that the accused assaulted her, tore her clothes and manhandled her. Following the incident, the matter was reported to the police. According to him, although the police initially detained the accused, he was later released, prompting anger among villagers. Kumar also claimed that attempts were allegedly made to persuade the family to settle the matter. Expressing disappointment, he alleged that the local constituency in-charge did not visit the family even once after the incident. He said the family, along with their three-year-old child, had been struggling for justice, which ultimately led him to resign from the party. Lovdeep Kaur, along with Panchayat members, also voiced their anger, stating that if elected village representatives themselves do not feel secure, it raises concerns about the safety of ordinary citizens. They alleged that if neither the police administration, nor political representatives come forward to ensure justice, public confidence in the system would be affected. Panchayat members further claimed that they were distancing themselves from the AAP in protest. ience for the public,” he said. The MLA pointed out that the road was constructed in 2022, but began deteriorating within 1.5 years. “I had earlier demanded a vigilance inquiry into the matter, but I fail to understand why no investigation has been initiated so far,” he said during the Assembly session. “There are only stones scattered across the road now,” he added, urging the government to fix accountability for the poor quality construction. Nod to 3 scan centres for Jalandhar Jalandhar, August 6 The PCPNDT Advisory Committee on Thursday approved the registration of three new ultrasound scan centres and renewed the registrations of 27 existing centres in Jalandhar district. Presiding over the meeting, Civil Surgeon Dr Rajesh Garg directed health officials to intensify efforts to further improve the district’s sex ratio. He reiterated that sex determination of a foetus during pregnancy is illegal and a punishable offence. Dr Garg stressed the need for strict enforcement of the Pre-Conception and PreNatal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act and said the Health Department was conducting regular inspections of scanning centres to curb female foeticide. The committee examined applications for the registration of three new scan centres and approved these after verifying the required documents and completing procedural formalities. It also approved the renewal of registrations of 27 existing scan centres after scrutiny of their records. Besides, two new Medical Termination of Pregnancy centres were also cleared. — TNS Adarsh schoolteachers’ salary issue raised in House Prof Brar takes charge as Getting ~11,000 pm since 2016 | Banga MLA Sukhi asks MLAs to address grievance officiating V-C of IKGPTU Aakanksha N Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Nawanshahr, August 6 Banga MLA Sukhwinder Sukhi on Thursday raised the issue of the meager salary of teachers at FCS Adarsh Senior Secondary School, Jandiala (Nawanshahr), during the Vidhan Sabha session, bringing the attention to the pending demands of the school staff. Speaking in the Assembly, the MLA pointed out that the teachers of the school had been on strike for the past week and urged the government to ensure that they are paid fair and adequate salaries and that it should not affect the future of the students. “They must be given proper salaries,” the MLA said, raising the matter in the House. The issue comes after the teachers staged a series of protests over their wages. They initially observed a ‘kalam chhod’ strike before holding dharnas, demanding a revision in their salaries, which, they say, have remained unchanged for nearly a decade. According to information, Adarsh Schools were established in 2012 under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Sukhwinder Sukhi model. However, in several schools, private partners are no longer involved in their management. The teachers said they have been drawing c m y b the same monthly salary of Rs 11,000 since 2016. FCS Adarsh Senior Secondary School, Jandiala, has more than 1,600 students and only 39 staff members, despite requiring around 65 teachers as per norms. The school also reportedly does not have a security guard. “How can anyone run a family on Rs 11,000 a month in today’s time? It has become extremely difficult for us,” a teacher said. He further claimed that teachers have held nearly 20 meetings with the Education Minister and Finance Minis- ter over the past four years and were repeatedly assured that their concerns would be addressed, but nothing has been done so far. School Principal Amit Kaushal welcomed the MLA’s intervention and expressed hope that the issue would now receive the attention it deserves. “The MLA has assured us that he stands with the teachers. Our school has highly qualified and dedicated staff members. We are hopeful that the government will now resolve this long pending issue,” he said. Kapurthala, August 6 Prof Yadwinder Singh Brar, Dean Academic and Head of the Electrical Engineering Department at IK Gujral Punjab Technical University (IKG PTU), assumed charge as the university’s 20th officiating Vice-Chancellor on Thursday. He succeeds Dr Susheel Mittal, whose tenure as ViceChancellor recently concluded. The Department of Technical Education and Industrial Training, Punjab, issued the order appointing Prof Brar to the post. Prof Brar is a native of Moga district and has studied Electrical Engineering from Panjab University, Chandigarh. He has 34 years of experience in teaching, research and administration. Prof Brar has served as a faculty at Giani Zail Singh College of Engineering and Technology, Bathinda, and Guru Nanak Dev Engineering College, Ludhiana. More than 200 research papers are to his name. — TNS