10122025-TTC-01.qxd 10-12-2025 ANIL’S SON BOOKED IN FRAUD CASE BUSINESS /thetribunechd 00:33 Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 9 NO. 340 | 14 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2024-2026 ESTABLISHED IN 1881 wednesday | 10 december 2025 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com Punjab clears decks to acquire 5,100 acres in Mohali via old law Vote chori anti-national; BJPEC in cahoots: Rahul , $17.5-BN AI PUSH Animesh Singh Tribune News Service Marks shift from scrapped land pooling to full acquisition route THE TRIBUNE EXCLUSIVE 9 NEW MOHALI SECTORS, Nitin Jain Tribune News Service Chandigarh, December 9 Months after rolling back its land pooling policy, the Punjab Government has reverted to the old acquisition law and cleared the decks for a major urban expansion push by moving to acquire over 5,100 acres for developing nine new sectors in Mohali and two townships in New Chandigarh. A notification under Section 11 of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, for acquiring 4,059 acres in Mohali had been issued while compensation awards for 1,048 acres already under acquisition in New Chandigarh would be issued shortly, a senior government functionary told The Tribune. In Mohali, 3,535 acres would be acquired for developing Blocks E to J of the Aerotropolis extension, close to international airport, and 524 acres for new Sectors 87 (commercial), 101 (partial) and 103 (industrial). The mandatory Social Impact Assessment has been completed and the expert committee has endorsed the acquisition. In New Chandigarh, the state has finalised compensation awards for 720 acres of continued on page 8 ‘INDIA SHOULDN’T DUMP RICE INTO US’ BACK PAGE 2 NEW CHANDIGARH TOWNSHIPS BACK TO OLD ACT IN 6 MTHS ■ June 4, 2025: Punjab notifies Land An agriculture field in Sector 87, Mohali, that is to be acquired. VICKY LAND POOLING VS LAND ACQUISITION ACT BASIC APPROACH Farmers turn partners; government returns a portion as developed plots Government acquires land by paying monetary compensation WHAT LANDOWNERS GET Developed residential, commercial, industrial plots depending on sector; certificate for stamp duty exemption Compensation based on market value, solatium, R&R benefits, but no developed plots CONSENT REQUIREMENT Permission of farmers is not mandatory; policy-driven pooling Mandatory SIA, public hearing, objections, transparency norms PROCESS SPEED Promised completion of the land acquisition in four to six months Typically it takes 18-24 months, though Punjab is expediting it FARMER REACTION Strong protests over land-for-land model; fear of reduced control Familiar mechanism; clearer compensation structure LEGAL STANDING Land pooling challenged; stayed by High Court and withdrawn by govt Act has fully enforceable statutory framework with detailed safeguards Pooling Policy-2025 proposing pooling of 65,533 acres statewide ■ June 9: Govt approves acquiring 6,285 acres in Mohali under land pooling; Sectors 84, 87, 101, 103, 120-124 and others planned ■ June 10: The Tribune reports exclusive details; widespread farmer protests begin ■ Aug: Punjab & Haryana HC issues interim stay; govt withdraws policy ■ Oct-Nov: Social impact assessment (SIA) conducted for Mohali acquisition under old Act ■ Dec: Expert committee clears SIA; govt prepares Sec 11 notification for 4,059 acres in Mohali; awards for 1,048 acres in New Chandigarh & issues Sec 11 notification Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella met PM Narendra Modi and vowed $17.5 bn investment in India till 2029 to help boost country’s AI ecosystem. This is the third major AI-driven investment in the country in two months. INSIDE New Delhi, December 9 Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday described the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and the alleged vote theft through it as the “biggest anti-national act” which, he said, was destroying the fabric of India. Participating in a discussion on electoral reforms in the House, which ultimately veered towards the controversial SIR — currently taking place in nine states and three union territories — Rahul alleged large-scale irregularities in voter rolls and a lack of transparency in Centre prunes IndiGo wings, orders 10% cut in operations Tribune News Service ACQUISITION PLAN 3,535 ACRES Aerotropolis Block E to J in Mohali to be acquired 524 ACRES Sec 87 (commercial), 101 (part) & 103 (ind’l) in Mohali to be acquired 720 ACRES EcoCity-3, New Chandigarh; awards finalised; to be announced soon 328 ACRES New low/high density township near MediCity, New Chandigarh; awards finalised; to be announced New Delhi, December 9 The Centre has asked for a 10 per cent cut in planned IndiGo flights to help restore order at the country’s biggest airline that cancelled thousands of flights nationwide after failing to plan for tighter safety regulations. Union Civil Aviation Minister K Ram Mohan Naidu today said the airline management was summoned to the ministry to provide an update. Posting a picture of IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers, sitting c m y b IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers sits with folded hands in front of Civil Aviation Minister K Ram Mohan Naidu at his office. COURTESY: X with folded hands in front of him, Naidu, in a post on X, said, “The ministry considers it necessary to curtail the overall IndiGo routes, which will help in stabilising the airline’s operations and lead continued on page 8 LoP Rahul Gandhi speaks in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday. PTI the election process. He questioned the integrity of voter lists in states such as Haryana and Bihar, saying there were “lakhs and lakhs of duplicate voters”, and reiterated his claim about a “Brazilian continued on page 8 SuspendedNavjot says90%AICC,70% stateCongwithher CHANDIGARH: A day after she was suspended from the Congress for her “Rs 500 crore for CM’s post” claim, Navjot Kaur Sidhu on Tuesday claimed she had the support of 90 per cent members of the All-India Congress Committee (AICC) and 70 per cent of the Punjab unit. Her claim came on a day the Congress high command sought a detailed report from Punjab affairs incharge Bhupesh Baghel over the developments. Meanwhile, Gurdaspur MP Sukhjinder Randhawa served a defamation notice on Navjot Kaur over her corruption allegations against him. INSIDE