18102026-JTR-01.qxd 10/17/2026 10:47 PM Page 1 c m y b Jalandhar tribune DIST GRAIN MARKETS RECORD 3.13 LAKH MT PADDY ARRIVALS SOCIAL: ALL THE WAY TO WAYANAD, HERE’S WHY KALIBARI CHD PRODUCTION PRESENTS SWAYANGSIDDHA Jalandhar district recorded an arrival of 25,376 MT on Saturday, taking the cumulative arrival to 3,13,357 MT. P2 The 100-day ‘Brand Wayanad’, an initiative of the Kerala Tourism Dept, was launched earlier this month. P3 It is a dance drama that delves into women's enduring quest for identity, dignity and freedom. P4 » » FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 31°C | MIN 17°C YESTERDAY MAX 31°C | MIN 17°C SUNSET SUNDAY 06.01 PM SUNRISE MONDAY 06.33 AM » SUNDAY | 18 OCTOBER 2026 | JALANDHAR 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. boycotts preacher, 1 nabbed, heavy machinery Dera Ballanleaderovermaryada community seized in Beas mining bust Also accused of attempt to disturb peace at shrine Deepkamal Kaur Tribune News Service 7 flee on spotting flying squad; 6 tippers seized at Sultanpur Lodhi village Tribune News Service INBRIEF TWO ARRESTED WITH TABLETS Phagwara: The Kapurthala city police have arrested Jagdish Singh and Sukhjinder Singh, both residents of Bijli Nangal village, allegedly with 65 intoxicant tablets. According to the police, the two were intercepted during patrolling in the Ashram area of Dhakka Colony after they allegedly attempted to flee on seeing the police. A case under Sections 22, 61 and 85 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act was registered. OC TWO NABBED IN DRUGS CASE Phagwara: The Shahkot police have arrested Ranjit Singh, a resident of Tarn Taran district, and Baljit Singh, a resident of Hoshiarpur, in a drugs case. They were allegedly caught with 30 kg of poppy husk. The police said two white plastic bags, each containing 15 kg of poppy husk, were recovered from them near the main highway on Nakodar Road, close to Singha Gate. OC Jalandhar, October 17 Officials on Saturday raided an illegal mining site in Khijarpur village of Sultanpur Lodhi, arresting one person and booking seven others who are currently absconding. The area along the Beas river was raided by a flying squad following a complaint by the Mining Department. The authorities also seized several vehicles, including six tipper trucks. The arrested person has been identified as Michael, a resident of Lamma Pind in Jalandhar. The case was registered at the Talwandi Chaudhrian police station under Section 21(1) of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957. ‘Area riddled with pits’ According to information, two of the six seized tipper trucks were loaded with sand. The riverbed where the mining was found to be taking place is riddled with pits and depressions caused by frequent sand mining. A video released by the police shows the area teeming with mining vehicles. Woman dies by suicide after loan recovery bid Phagwara, October 17 A woman allegedly died by suicide at her residence in Phagwara on Saturday, reportedly distressed over threats allegedly made by representatives of a private company seeking loan repayment. The deceased has been identified as Balbir Kaur. According to information, she had taken a loan from a private company. Two days before the incident, some employees of the company allegedly visited her residence to recover the outstanding amount and threatened her. However, the circumstances surrounding her death and any possible link to the alleged loan recovery threats are yet to be established. — OC Agniveer recruitment rally from Nov 14-22 Jalandhar, October 17 An Agniveer recruitment rally will be held at Government Arts and Sports College in Jalandhar from November 14 to 22 for the recruitment of eligible youth into the Indian Army under the Agnipath Scheme. It is expected to witness the participation of more than 6,000 candidates who have successfully cleared the Common Entrance Examination. The rally will also include the selection of women candidates from Punjab, Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh. — TNS A tipper and an excavator seized by a flying squad during a raid against illegal mining at Khijarpur village in Sultanpur Lodhi on Saturday. According to the FIR, the flying squad comprised SDO Jasvir Singh, JEs Ashwini Kumar and Taranjit, and DSP Amarbir Singh. When the raiding party reached a spot near an advanced bandh in Khijarpur village, it spotted and seized a tipper truck. The driver was identified as Michael, who was transporting sand but could not produce any permission or permit for the activity. Another tipper truck was found nearby, but its driver fled on seeing the raiding party. Upon further checks, four more tipper trucks were found. Their drivers had also fled. The FIR stated that an excavator and a tractor were also seized. Kapurthala Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Gaurav Toora could not be contacted for comment. Talwandi Chaudhrian SHO Sonamdeep Kaur said, “One person has been arrested in the case, while the hunt for the seven others is on. The site is about 10 acres inland from the Beas at Khijarpur. It is a grassland area where there are no farming fields. Multiple previous raids in the area had not revealed any such activity. A detailed investigation is underway, and the culprits will be nabbed soon.” Jalandhar, October 17 Dera Sachkhand Ballan on Saturday boycotted Sant Mandeep Dass, who is popular for reciting hymns of Guru Ravidas at the shrine. The dera also boycotted Jassi Talhan, who heads the Guru Ravidass Tiger Force. The decisions sparked a controversy, with speculation doing the rounds that all was not well within the influential dera ahead of the 650th birth anniversary of Guru Ravidas, to be celebrated on February 20. The dera had come into the limelight in recent months following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with its chief, Sant Niranjan Dass, who was also awarded the Padma Shri.The announcement was made in the presence of the dera chief. Sant Mandeep Dass was earlier shifted to another affiliated dera at Sirasgarh in Ambala. Sant Mandeep Dass has a huge following of his own, and the decision was strongly opposed by a section of devotees. A video of the announcement was released on Ballan TV the dera’s official social , media page. In the video, the dera alleged that both had violated its maryada (code of conduct) and attempted to disturb the peace at the shrine. During the pronouncement, the dera functionaries also referred to a plan for a shobha Tribune News Service Jalandhar, October 17 For families caring for a stroke patient at home, keeping track of small changes in the patient’s condition can be difficult. Three engineering students who experienced these challenges in their own families have now developed an artificial intelligence-based app to make the daily monitoring easier to prevent another stroke. The app, NeuroTrace, has been developed by Deepesh Kakkar from Jalandhar and Prabinder Singh and Anish Grover from Mohali. The three students are pursuing engineering at Thapar Institute of Engineering, Patiala. They have also been selected among the top 20 teams for ‘Samsung Solve for Tomorrow 2026’, a nationwide innovation programme that encourages young people to use technology to find solutions to real-life problems. The selected teams receive mentorship and support to further develop their ideas. Explaining the idea behind NeuroTrace, Deepesh Kakkar said, “After a stroke, patients may have difficulty speaking or responding normally. Families caring for them at home yatra made by Talhan without the dera’s due permission. The shobha yatra was to be taken out on Friday from Dera Ballan to Khuralgarh Sahib, believed to be the site in Garhshankar where Guru Ravidas had meditated. The yatra was scheduled to pass through Dera Sant Baba Phool Nath, Chaheru (Phagwara), and Guru Ravidass Mandir, Chak Hakim, before heading to Khuralgarh via Banga. Talhan said, “We had been planning the event for some time, as year-round celebrations marking the 650th Guru Ravidass Jayanti have been underway. We had arranged 650 vehicles and stationed them at various locations. When we reached the dera, we found all the rooms locked from inside. We also tried to contact the dera chief but could not reach him. We had made extensive arrangements for langar as well, but were eventually told that the dera had not granted permission for the event.” Superintendent of Police (SP) Tejbir Hundal had reached the spot to prevent any clash and pacified both sides. The police had stopped Talhan and his 150 supporters, mostly from Haryana, at a distance from the dera. It took more than 10 hours to defuse the situation, insiders said. After Talhan and his team left the dera, its functionaries held an assembly of the sangat the following morning and made the announcement. Earlier, Sant Mandeep Dass was reportedly asked to leave the main dera following allegations that he had refused to provide shelter for the night to some needy youths and had misbehaved with them. Sant Mandeep Dass’s followers had denied the allegations. AAP’s own deeds behind its downfall: Pilot Deepkamal Kaur Tribune News Service Jalandhar, October 17 Countering the charge that the Congress was exploiting the grief of families who lost loved ones to gangster violence to defame AAP Punjab , Congress affairs in-charge Sachin Pilot said on Saturday that the ruling party was responsible for its own decline in the state. “The Opposition does not even need to attack the AAP in Punjab. When its MLA demands the deployment of more teachers in government schools, AAP suspends him. Its Rajya Sabha MPs have left the party. All government decisions are taken by its high command in Delhi. People have lost trust in the party,” said Pilot as he arrived at the Congress Bhawan here for the first time since his appointment as the party’s Punjab affairs in-charge. He was accompanied by Jalandhar Cantonment MLA Sachin Pilot meets Congress workers during his visit to the party office in Jalandhar on Saturday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: SARABJIT SINGH and Punjab Congress chief Pargat Singh. Pilot said the AAP government’s inability to maintain law and order was contributing to the ruling party’s declining popularity. “There have been so many shootouts. Precious lives have been lost, and their min- isters are making irresponsible statements,” he added. Pilot spent around 15 minutes at the Congress Bhawan, where party workers had waited for him for over 1.5 hours. Workers presented him with bouquets and shawls and raised slogans in favour of Jalandhar Lok Sab- ha MP Charanjit Singh Channi, who was reportedly in Ropar on Saturday. Despite the enthusiasm among party leaders and workers, the event was marred by a poor sound system at the venue. Chairs had been arranged for workers on the lawn, and microphones were in place as they waited to hear their leader. However, the low volume meant that Pilot’s speech was largely inaudible. Workers blamed the organisers for the poor sound arrangements. After the event, Pilot headed to Pargat Singh’s residence in Mithapur, where he was scheduled to stay overnight. The two leaders are scheduled to visit the Shahkot, Nakodar and Tanda constituencies to meet the families of slain kabaddi player Sandeep Nangal Ambian, cloth merchant Timmy Chawla and hardware store owner Balwinder Singh. Thapar students develop AI-based app to monitor stroke patients Rishika Kriti A Dera Sachkhand Ballan representative announces the boycott in the presence of Sant Niranjan Dass. The application developed by Deepesh Kakkar (2nd from left), Anish Grover and Prabinder Grewal helps monitor patients at home. may struggle to identify changes in their condition and decide when they need medical attention. Hence, we wanted to make this easier for such families through an app that checks changes in a patient’s voice, facial move- c m y b ments and response time to ensure timely medical help.” NeuroTrace uses a smartphone’s camera and microphone to carry out a daily check-up. During the first 35 days, the app learns how a patient normally speaks, moves their face and responds. It then looks for changes from these usual patterns. The app displays the information collected during daily check-ups on a dashboard, allowing families to track changes in a patient’s condition over time. To avoid unnecessary alerts, it looks for changes in at least two indicators before sending a warning. If it detects concerning changes, it is designed to alert doctors, while family members can receive notifications in simple Hindi through WhatsApp. Prabinder Singh said the idea also grew out of his own family’s experience, as his maternal grandfather had suffered a stroke. The team said it had built a network of nearly 50 doctors from North India to support the initiative. Anish Grover said the app is currently being tested and the team hoped to launch it officially in the next five to six months. Punjab Minister Harpal Cheema greets Davinderpal Singh Ranga on joining AAP in Kapurtahala on Saturday. TRIBUNE PHOTO Known for donation of 100 boats during floods, businessman joins AAP Ashok Kaura Kapurthala, October 17 Former Kapurthala Municipal Council vice-president and exCongress leader Davinderpal Singh Ranga joined the AAP on Saturday and was appointed the party’s halqa in-charge. Davinderpal and his brother, Pritpal Singh, are locally renowned businessmen known for their innovative acumen. They are vendors for the Rail Coach Factory (RCF), to which they supply various metal components. They came into the limelight when they donated 100 boats to flood-affected Sultanpur Lodhi. Recently, they also developed an innovative, handsfree garbage management mechanism designed to address the growing problem of municipal waste. The AAP’s plan to field Davinderpal from Kapurthala appears to be an attempt by the party to take on wealthy businessman and Congress leader Rana Gurjeet Singh in the constituency. Rana Gurjeet Singh or his family members have won six consecutive elections from the seat, including a by-election in 2004. Along with Davinderpal, several prominent personalities from different fields in the constituency also joined the AAP Cabinet Minister Harpal . Singh Cheema inducted them into the party and assured them that they would be given due respect and recognition. Former Kapurthala District Planning Board chairman and former managing director of the Central Cooperative Bank, Kapurthala, Anoop Kallan, also joined the AAP along with his associates. Tarlochan Singh, chairman of the Chamber of Commerce at the Rail Coach Factory (RCF), Kapurthala; advocate Sarabjit Singh Walia, former president of the District Bar Association; and Karan Mahajan, former president of the Youth Congress in Kapurthala, also joined the AAP . Cheema said the peoplefriendly development works being undertaken by the government under CM Bhagwant Mann had inspired a number of leaders and other people to join AAP .