14082025-LT-01.qxd 8/14/2025 1:01 AM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune MAKE AMRITSAR ECOLOGICALLY RESILIENT, CM URGED VALLAH'S HISTORY OF DEVOTION & SACRIFICE BONEY SHARES POST ON SRIDEVI’S 62ND BIRTH ANNIV PeopleforAravallis sendarepresentationto CM for making holy city ecologically resilient on its Foundation Day. P3 Known for Guru Tegh Bahadu’s visit and its residents who were instrumental in Sikh morchas and freedom struggle.P3 It has been seven years since world lost Sridevi, but her legacy & charm are still alive in hearts of her fans. P4 » » » FORECAST GENERALLY CLOUDY MAX 30°C | MIN 27°C YESTERDAY MAX 31°C | MIN 26°C SUNSET THURSDAY 7.06 PM SUNRISE FRIDAY 5:49 AM THURSDAY | 14 AUGUST 2025 | LUDHIANA dumping of cow Road cave-in: 11 days on, work still Act strictly to stopDariya: Seechewal dung into Buddha incomplete, commuters face trouble Tribune News Service MC claims work finished, stretch left to dry before it can be reopened to public Manav Mander Tribune News Sevice Ludhiana, August 13 Eleven days after a road caved in near Mint Gumri Chowk in Model Town, the repair work remains incomplete, leaving thousands of commuters to face chaos and safety threat daily. The cavein, which occurred on August 2, has disrupted traffic in one of the city’s busiest corridors, surrounded by schools, colleges, hospitals and residential colonies. While the Municipal Corporation (MC) claims that the repair work has been completed, the road has been left to dry before it can be reopened to the public. “If the road is thrown open prematurely, it may sink again,” said MC Chief Engineer Ravinder Garg, adding that “It will take another week to dry fully. We will ensure barricading remains in place.” However, residents say barricades and ropes put up by the MC are being removed by frustrated commuters, who are now crossing the damaged stretch on foot and even on twowheelers, putting themselves at serious risk. “Is the MC waiting for a mishap to occur? Why it has closed its eyes?” asked social The caved-in portion of the road near Mint Gumri Chowk in Model Town. STRETCH CONNECTS KEY INSTITUTIONS The stretch near Mint Gumri Chowk connects several key institutions, including government health centres, two colleges, various schools and hospitals. With the road still closed and no alternative traffic plan in place, the area remains gridlocked during peak hours. Residents are demanding swift action — not only to reopen the road but also to ensure safety and accountability. activist Arvind Sharma. “It is not inconvenience, it’s negligence,” he says. Local shopkeeper Rajesh Batra, whose business has seen a sharp drop due to the road repair work, said: “Customers avoid the stretch altogether. Even delivery vehi- I-Day spirit cles refuse to come. The delay is hurting livelihoods.” Parents of school-going children are also anxious. “My daughter’s school bus now takes a longer route, adding 30 more minutes to the commute,” said Neha Kapoor, a resident of Model Town Extension. “It’s exhausting for children and frustrating for us,” she said. Auto-rickshaw driver Baldev Singh, who commutes through the route daily, said: “We’re forced to take narrow lanes that aren’t meant for heavy traffic. It’s causing jams and accidents. Why can’t the MC speed things up?” The stretch near Mint Gumri Chowk connects several key institutions, including government health centres, two colleges, various schools and hospitals. With the road still closed and no alternative traffic plan in place, the area remains gridlocked during peak hours. Residents are demanding swift action — not only to reopen the road but also to ensure safety and accountability. “We understand technical constraints, but what we don’t understand is the silence and delay. The city deserves better,” said Arvind Sharma. Students take part in the full-dress rehearsal for the Independence Day celebrations in Ludhiana on Wednesday. ASHWANI DHIMAN P2 Ludhiana, August 13 A surprise checking conducted in the Central Jail, Ludhiana, by staff led to the seizure of 15 mobile phones and one Wi-Fi dongle from inmates. As per information, Assistant Superintendent (Jail) Rajeev Kumar conducted a surprise checking in various blocks of the jail in which different barracks and bathrooms were also searched. During the checking, the officials found 15 mobile phones and a Wi-Fi dongle as well. Of these, seven mobile phones were seized from six inmates, Arjun Bhatti, Mohd Afzal, Kamaljit Singh, Sharanjit Paddy dwarfing virus resurfaces in state RECURRING CLIMATE PATTERNS Manav Mander Tribune News Service PAU VC Dr SS Gosal and other experts inspect a field attacked by the SRBSDV in Ludhiana. significant yield losses. “We were introspecting why the disease hit in 2022 and again in 2025, skipping two years in between,” said Dr SS Gosal, V-C, PAU. “One striking similarity was the weather pattern — overcast skies, hot and humid conditions and identical rainfall and daylight hours. Our study confirms that these factors have con- tributed to virus resurfacing.” Dr Gosal added that climate plays a crucial role in crop health, influencing pest migration, disease outbreak, and overall productivity. Even minor shifts in temperature or rainfall can alter the vulnerability of crops to infections. In the case of the SRBSDV the , virus thrives in specific climat- ic conditions, making weather a key trigger for its spread. Surveys conducted by the PAU across 20 districts in July and August confirmed the presence of the SRBSDV in submountainous areas, including Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Ropar, Fatehgarh Sahib and Patiala. Field observations revealed that early transplantation played a c m y b major role in infection rates. Crops transplanted before June 20 were more vulnerable, while those transplanted after June 25 largely escaped infection. “In the same village, we observed fields with and without the disease. The difference was transplanting dates,” Dr Gosal added. “We are compiling a detailed report to be submitted to the government.” To contain the spread, the PAU has issued insect-vector management guidelines. Farmers are advised to monitor the WBPH populations and use only recommended insecticides such as Pexalon, Ulala, Osheen, Imagine, Orchestra and Chess, in specified doses and water volumes. Leading the on-ground response, Dr Gosal visited affected villages with senior scientists and urged farmers to stay alert and follow advisories issued by the PAU’s Krishi Vigyan Kendras and Farm Advisory Service Centres. meeting with the officials at 225 MLD Jamalpur STP and issued necessary directions to stop the flow of cow dung and untreated industrial waste into the ‘Buddha Dariya’. Directions were also issued to the PPCB officials to take strict action against dyeing units dumping untreated waste into the MC sewer lines or Buddha Dariya. The MP said the state government, led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann was committed to make ‘Rangla Punjab’. They appealed to residents to join hands with the government and the administration so that combined efforts could be made for saving the environment for coming generations. MP Balbir Singh Seechewal during an inspection near an ETP in Ludhiana on Wednesday. 15 mobiles, dongle seized from jail Tribune News Service Ludhiana, August 13 This year’s outbreak of the Southern Rice BlackStreaked Dwarf Virus (SRBSDV), which causes severe dwarfing in paddy crops, appears to be closely linked to the recurring climate patterns. A preliminary report of the study conducted by Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) has found that the weather conditions in 2025 — marked by similar rainfall, temperature, and daylight hours — mirror those of 2022, when the last major flare-up occurred. The virus, transmitted by the white-backed planthopper (WBPH), leads to stunted growth, poor tillering, shallow roots and narrow upright leaves. Infected plants often fail to mature, resulting in Ludhiana, August 13 Taking strict note of cow dung being dumped into the ‘Buddha Dariya’, Rajya Sabha MP Sant Balbir Singh Seechewal directed officials to take strict action and impose environment compensation (EC), if necessary, on violators to stop dumping of cow dung. He conducted inspections in the Haibowal Dairy Complex effluent treatment plant (ETP) established to treat dairy waste and the Balloke sewer treatment plant (STP) on Wednesday. MC Additional Commissioner Paramdeep Singh, MC Joint Commissioner-cumZonal Commissioner Abhishek Sharma, Executive Engineer Ekjot Singh, MC Health Officer Vipal Malhotra and Executive Engineer (sewerage board) Balraj Singh were among other officials of the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB), PEDA and other departments who were present during the visit. Seechewal said dumping of cow dung was not only polluting the ‘Buddha Dariya’ but also affecting the working of effluent treatment plants (ETPs) and sewer treatment plants (STPs). While civic body officials stated that challans are issued against dairy owners from time to time, the MP directed the PPCB officials to impose environment compensation (EC) against the violators, if necessary. Later, Seechewal also held a Youth dies of suspected drug overdose Singh, Dhananjay, alias Deepu, and Aniket. A case was registered against them and further investigation was launched in the matter. Eight mobile phones and a Wi-Fi dongal were found lying abandoned on the jail premises by the jail staff. It was being suspected that inmates who might be possessing the banned items abandoned the same on the premises to prevent them from being caught during the surprise checking. A separate case against unidentified inmates was registered. After the recovery, the Ludhiana police had also started a probe to find out with whom the suspects were in contact through the mobiles and the dongle and in whose name were the SIMs found in the mobiles being used. The officials said recovery of a dongle was a serious matter and there was suspicion that they might be in touch with some gangsters or criminals. Angle of making extortion calls from jail is also being probed. Jail Minister Laljit Singh Bhullar had also inspected the jail on Tuesday and had given strict orders to the administration to keep conducting checking campaigns in the prisons every day. He had also listened to grievances of undertrials. AAP has beaten retreat for good, says Warring 23-yr-old UP woman dies by suicide Ludhiana, August 13 Punjab Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring said today that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in the state had beaten a retreat for good as it withdrawn the anti-farmer land pooling policy. “The party has already been barred from entering many villages and soon, it will be barred from the whole state,” the PCC chief said while presiding over a meeting of senior party leaders here on Wednesday. Warring also inaugurated six ‘open-air’ gyms in the city where he provided Rs 4 lakh each from his MPLADS funds. Predicting a severe rout for the ruling AAP in the 2027 Assembly elections in the state, he claimed that the party would meet the fate of its A-team, the BJP which , was completely banished from rural and urban areas of Punjab. — TNS Tribune News Service Ludhiana, August 13 Simran Pandey (23), a native of Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh, allegedly died by suicide by hanging herself. The victim was alone at home when she took the extreme step and it was only when her family returned late on Tuesday night, they found the woman hanging from a noose made of her dupatta. Following which, they brought the body down and informed the police. According to Simran’s father Ajay Pandey, they had been staying in the city for the past around 15 years and Simran used to sing bhajans in religious events. According to residents of the area, there was a dispute between Simran’s brother Shivam and father Ajay due to mutual differ- Mahesh Sharma Raikot, August 13 The Jodhan police have initiated a probe into the mysterious death of a youth of Gujjarwal village, Taranpreet Singh (18), whose body was recovered from a indoor stadium on Tuesday, a day after he went missing from home. His family has demanded action against some peddlers who had allegedly lured the victim into drug abuse. Dakha DSP Varinder Singh Khosla said the police had nabbed two suspects of the four persons who are suspected of causing his death. AUTOPSY WILL REVEAL REASON BEHIND DEATH ASI Ravinder Kumar said the victim was mentally disturbed. The exact reason behind the woman’s death would be known after the arrival of the autopsy report. ences. Shivam ran away from the house for some time. After which, his sister’s body was found hanging. The police took the deceased’s mobile in their possession and would send the same to a forensic lab for examination. ASI Ravinder Kumar said the victim was mentally disturbed and her family also shown some medical reports. However, the police would investigate the matter. The exact reason behind the woman’s death would be known after the arrival of the autopsy report.