04032025-LT-01.qxd 3/4/2025 12:56 AM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune CANAL BRIDGE CONSTRUCTION GAINS MOMENTUM LAND CAUGHT IN DISPUTE, SCHOOL KIDS FEEL CORNERED ANORA, THE BRUTALIST WIN BIG AT 97TH ACADEMY AWARDS First prefab structure arrives, 17-km four steel truss bridges to decongest South City area. P2 Authorities of GPS, Payal, are struggling to get hold of a chunk of land, on which somebody have staked claim. P3 Sean Baker's Anora won the Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. P4 » » FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 21°C | MIN 11°C YESTERDAY MAX 22°C | MIN 10°C SUNSET TUESDAY 6.23 PM SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 6:44 AM » TUESDAY | 4 MARCH 2025 | LUDHIANA War on drugs: Two women among Launch vigorous awareness drive to eliminate drug abuse, says DC 28 smugglers arrested in a week Tribune News Service New Khanna woman SSP leads charge, 18 properties worth ~8 cr seized the past two years, of which 18 cases had been approved with assets amounting to over Rs 8.06-crore forfeited while two cases to forfeit properties worth Rs 14 lakh had been rejected for technical reasons,” the SSP revealed while stating that the rejected cases were being examined afresh. Nitin Jain Tribune News Service Khanna, March 3 Waging a no-holds-barred war on drugs, the Khanna police have arrested at least 28 smugglers, including two women, in 14 separate cases registered under various provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) during the past week. New woman Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Dr Jyoti Yadav, is leading from the front the special drive against drugs by launching an offensive against those involved in the illegal trade and reaching out to villagers and residents of vulnerable areas to seek their help and support. The 2019-batch Punjabcadre Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, who took charge of the police district here on February 22, has been leading the cordon, search and seizure operations, besides holding one-to-one public interactions in rural and urban areas, especially those notorious for drug trade. In a major blow to drug lords, as many as 18 most notorious smugglers booked by the Khanna police have lost their properties worth over Rs 8 crore. The district police have already seized the illegally acquired properties by the 18 drug lords valued over Rs 8.06 crore. However, two cases with a proposal to Samrala hotspot SSP Jyoti Yadav interacts with residents at a village in Khanna on Monday. PROPERTY FORFEITURE A DETERRENT ❝ We have adopted a zero tolerance approach against those involved in the illegal trade of drugs while targeting the big fish under our sustained offensive against drugs. The forfeiture of properties illegally acquired by drug smugglers will act as a deterrent and will continue in future as well. — Dr Jyoti Yadav, SSP, KHANNA ❞ seize property worth Rs 14 lakh have been rejected by the competent authority for technical reasons. The forfeiture of the illegally acquired properties by the drug lords was done under the provisions of the Chapter V-A under Section 68-F of the NDPS Act. The development assumes significance as Ludhiana, under which Khanna falls, which was earlier famous for all good reasons and popularly known as Manchester of India, had recently attained the dubious distinc- tion of being the hotspot for illegal drug trade. The recent disclosure by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) had further put the district, in terms of area and population, under focus for being the hub of an international drug syndicate linked to Punjab, Pakistan and Afghanistan. The NCB’s drug bust holds credence as cases registered under various provisions of the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, suspects arrested and recoveries of contra- band and intoxicant substances have also increased manifold in the state’s industrial and business capital. Dr Yadav told The Tribune here on Monday that the fool-proof prosecution cases had led to the conviction of 18 drug lords, whose properties have been seized while the cases of the other smugglers, whose assets have also been seized, were undertrial and in the advanced stage of decision. She said the district police had been waging a war on drugs and all-out efforts were being made to catch smugglers and peddlers involved in the illegal trade, recover the contraband and, in turn, prevent narcotics-related offences. “A total of 20 cases for forfeiture of properties worth Rs 8.2 crore illegally acquired by the drug lords had been sent to the competent authority in If areas where drug lords, whose illegally acquired properties have been seized, are taken into consideration, Samrala has emerged as a hotspot with a maximum of six of the total 15 cases registered there. While Machhiwara and Khanna had registered three cases each, one case each was from Laoud, Morinda and Jalandhar. Ludhiana, March 3 Deputy Commissioner Jitendra Jorwal on Monday asked additional deputy commissioners (ADCs) and sub-divisional magistrates (SDMs) to launch a comprehensive awareness campaign against drug abuse in their respective areas, in collaboration with their police counterparts. “The goal is to eradicate drug menace from society,” he said. Chairing a meeting focused on the anti-drugs campaign, here on Monday, the Deputy Commissioner emphasised that as part of the sensitisation effort, the ADCs and the SDMs, along with their police colleagues, would engage in face-to-face interactions with residents of local wards and villages. “The approach aims to gather valuable suggestions and feedback from the com- munity to effectively tackle the drug issue,” he stressed while highlighting that during these public interactions, senior officials would encourage citizens to collaborate with the government to eliminate the social evil and create a drug-free society. To make the campaign a community movement, Jorwal directed the district officials to organise regular events such as public meetings, rallies, street plays (nukkad nataks), seminars, marathons and marches in various wards and villages to spread public awareness against ill-effects of drugs on the health and society at large. The DC highlighted that strict actions were already being taken against individuals involved in drug trafficking by the police. Besides, he asked the officials to visit the OOAT (Outpatient Opioid Assisted Treatment) and de- addiction or rehabilitation centres within their jurisdiction to ensure that adequate facilities were available for those undergoing treatment there. Jorwal reiterated the need for the firm support of the community in the crucial initiative to protect future generations from dangers of drug abuse. He emphasised the importance of creating awareness, strengthening health infrastructure for ensuring treatment facilities for drug dependents and taking decisive action against smugglers to effectively curb the peril. ADCs Amarjit Bains, Rohit Gupta, Kulpreet Singh and Shikha Bhagat, SDMs Dr Poonampreet Kaur, Simardeep Singh, Jasleen Kaur Bhullar, Baljinder Singh Dhillon, Rajnish Arora, Karandeep Singh and Pardeep Bains were among those others present. Lone woman Amanjot Kaur, alias Soni, was the lone woman drug smuggler among 18 drug lords, whose illegally acquired properties have been forfeited by the Khanna police. She was booked under the NDPS Act at the Samrala police station in 2023 and has since been convicted as well. 18 of 20 cases approved The Khanna police had sent proposals to seize illegally acquired properties of 20 drug lords under Chapter V-A under Section 68-F the NDPS Act to the competent authority, of which 18 cases had been approved while two cases had been rejected. DC Jitendra Jorwal has asked officials to launch anti-drug public awareness drive in Ludhiana on Monday. Youth dies of suspected drug overdose Bizman nabbed for concocting loot story Ludhiana, March 3 In Jagraon, a youth died of suspected drug overdose while allegedly injecting drugs into his arm on Monday. As per information, this morning, a young man was found dead in an old well room located along the main gate of Government Sanmati Science and Research College on Raikot Road here. Upon inspection, a syringe was found injected on the victim’s right arm near the wrist. Many syringes were also found in garbage outside the room. Cops probe the spot where the youth was found dead in Jagraon. Councillor Meshi Sahota said he reached the place after getting information and called the police. The police took the body to the Civil Hospital. Sahota said the deceased did not appear to be a resident of his ward. He might be from a nearby village. Sahota, who is associated with the Congress, said the government had launched a campaign against drugs after three years but it would be successful only if, after questioning drug users, they reach big players who supply drugs to people. The SHO, Jagraon, SI Amarjit Singh, said a police team was sent to the scene after receiving information about the youth’s death. Tribune News Service Ludhiana, March 3 A businessman, Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal, who had concocted a story of attack on him by some unidentified assailants to loot him at Kasabad, was nabbed by the police. Dhaliwal had claimed that he had fired rounds in the air in selfdefence to save him from robbers. However, during investigation, the police found his role suspicious Had fired shots under influence of liquor and arrested him for lodging a fake complaint of loot. As per the police, the suspect had fired several rounds in the air under the influence of alcohol. Later to save his skin, he drafted a fake story of attack on him by some unidentified robbers. The Salem Tabri police on Sunday arrested the sus- pect, a resident of Kasabad, and also seized the .45 bore licensed weapon from his possession. Investigating officer assistant sub-inspector (ASI) Bhajan Singh said on March 1 the suspect had gone to attend some marriage ceremony where he consumed excessive liquor. While returning home, he fired the gunshots from his licensed weapon. “After the police got to know about the firing and called Dhaliwal for ques- Four women among 10 held with heroin MC General House meeting, Budget likely next week Manav Mander Woman cop’s car stolen from outside SSP’s office Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Ludhiana, March 3 The first meeting of the newly elected Municipal Corporation (MC) General House is expected to be held next week and the Budget will also be presented during the meeting. Confirming the same, Mayor Inderjit Kaur said the General House meeting was expected to be held in the coming week and the Budget would also be presented during the same. The draft for the Budget is being prepared. The Budget for the financial year 2025-26 is expected to be of around Rs 1,080 crore, which will be Rs 89.30 crore more than the previous year. Its main focus will be salaries of the employees and to complete pending projects. Last year, the Budget of Rs 990.70 crore was passed. Since Ludhiana, March 3 A female constable’s Maruti car was stolen from outside the office of the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) in Khanna. The victim, Kiranjit Kaur, came to her duty on February 25. She was working with the RTI branch of the SSP office. She had parked the vehicle outside the office. When she came out at 3 pm, it was missing. Her ID card, 50 travel tickets and Rs 14,700 in cash and some documents were kept in the car. Khanna city police station registered a case of theft against unidentified person(s) in the matter. The police launched a probe to trace the suspects. Tribune News Service Ludhiana, March 3 The Ludhiana police claimed to have nabbed 10 persons, including four women, and recovered 396 gm of heroin from their possession in separate incidents on Monday. Assistant Commissioner of Police (South) Harjinder Singh in a statement issued stated that on Monday, the SHO, Sadar police station, inspector Avtar Singh, by acting on a tip-off arrested four persons, Harsimranjot Singh Goldy (33) of Mehmoodpur, Kanwaljot Singh (34), Harwinder Singh Goga (35), both from Adarsh Colony, and Manpreet Singh (31) of Malerkotla and recovered 80 gm of heroin from them. A case was registered against the suspects. The ACP said the Sadar police arrested Paras Sahni and Sahil Sahni from the Dhandra road area and recov- tioning, he told the police that four unidentified persons tried to stop his car. When he drove past them, they hurled bricks and stones at the vehicle but during investigation, the police found that he had concocted a story as he himself broke the glass of the car to create an mpression that robbers tried to loot him. The police on Sunday arrested the suspect and his licensed weapon was also seized,” the ASI said. Some of the suspects in custody of Ludhiana police on Monday. ered 50 gm of heroin from their possession. A case under the NDPS Act was registered against them and further investigation was on. He said the Sadar police also nabbed four women, Mandeep Kaur (39), Khusneet Kaur (19), Manjit Kaur (33) and Narinder Kaur (55), all residents of Block C, Ishar Nagar, and seized 266 gm of heroin and two scooters from their possession. After registering a case, further probe was launched to bust the entire drug supply line. c m y b there was no MC House held last year, so the Budget was prepared by the MC and it got the same passed from the government. Of the total Budget prepared this year, 69 per cent will likely to go into salaries while Rs 30 crore will be spent on recarpeting of roads, Rs 125 crore on streets of various colonies, Rs 2 crore on repair of bridges, Rs 25 crore on sewerage, Rs 5 crore on tube wells, Rs 3 crore on cleanliness of sewerage lines and Rs 9.80 crore on maintenance of water-sewerage lines. A discussion is going on and the Budget will be finalised in days to come. Last year, the revenue target from property tax was Rs 140 crore but Rs 132 crore was achieved. For this year, the target is expected to be increased to Rs 160 crore while targets from other sources of income, including advertisement tax, building composition, change of land use, road cutting fee, lease and rent, tehbazaari, operation and maintenance cell, cow cess and fire NOC, are also expected to be increased.