11022026-CT-01.qxd 2/11/2026 12:31 AM Page 1 c m y b Chandigarh tribune TWO U-TURNS COMING UP UNDER ZIRAKPUR FLYOVER MC EARNED ~10.21 CR FROM PARKING SINCE JULY 2024 PREITY ZINTA’S LAHORE 1947 SET FOR AUGUST RELEASE New U-turns between Patiala Chowk and Kohinoor Dhaba point to ease traffic on the highway. P2 Union Minister tells Lok Sabha in response to a question raised by Chandigarh MP Manish Tewari. P3 Preity’s upcoming film is set to hit theatres on August 13. The period drama is one of the most-awaited films.P4 » » MAX 25°C | MIN 10°C YESTERDAY MAX 25.8°C | MIN 9.3°C SUNRISE THURSDAY 7.05 AM /THETRIBUNECHD Decade on, global connectivity yet to take off at Chandigarh airport MOSTLY CLEAR SKY SUNSET WEDNESDAY 6.08 PM » WEDNESDAY | 11 FEBRUARY 2026 | CHANDIGARH FORECAST FACEBOOK/CHANDIGARHTRIBUNE City’s pride MP Sandhu flags absence of PoC status, seeks flights to London, Singapore, Vancouver Nitin Jain INAUGURATED BY PM IN 2015 Tribune News Service Chandigarh, February 10 More than a decade after its inauguration, Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport, Chandigarh, located in Mohali, continues to fall short of its potential as a global gateway, with the absence of the crucial ‘Point of Call’ (PoC) designation. The lack of the PoC status has been the biggest roadblock to fullfledged international operations at the airport. The BJP Rajya Sabha MP , Satnam Singh Sandhu, raised the issue during Zero Hour in Parliament today, urging the Union Government to grant the PoC status to the airport. He demanded the immediate introduction of direct international flights from Chandigarh to London, Singapore and Vancouver. The airport currently operates only two overseas services — Dubai and Abu Dhabi — both handled by IndiGo. He also pressed for enhanced cargo capacity at Punjab’s two international airports, Chandigarh and Amritsar, to boost exports from the region. ■ 2015: Chandigarh International Airport inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi ■ 2019 (April): Airport becomes fully 24x7 operational ■ 2022: Renamed as Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport ■ 2024-25: Annual passenger traffic at the airport touches around 40-42.5 lakh OPERATIONAL FLIGHTS MP Satnam Singh Sandhu raises an issue in RS. Calling Chandigarh an aviation hub not just for Punjab but also for Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, Sandhu said the airport catered to a combined population of nearly 7 crore. “Chandigarh Airport was built to handle six million passengers annually. At present, it handles about 40-42.5 lakh passengers a year and still has the capacity to accommodate at least 20 lakh more. The demand for international flights is real, International: Dubai and Abu Dhabi Domestic: Around 18-20 destinations, including Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Chennai, Srinagar, Leh, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Pune, Lucknow, Patna, Indore, Goa (Mopa and Dabolim), Dehradun, Dharamsala and Hisar Average domestic movement: 84 flights per day sustained and shared across states,” he told the House. Despite world-class infrastructure and steady growth in passenger traffic, the airport has been unable to attract foreign airlines because it is not notified as a PoC under India’s bilateral air service agreements. In the absence of this designation, the airport does not feature on the bilateral offer list, a prerequisite for foreign carriers to operate flights to and from any Indian airport. As a result, airlines such as Emirates, Lufthansa or Air Canada cannot schedule services to Chandigarh even if market demand exists. The consequence is visible on the ground. A large number of passengers from Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh continue to travel long distances by road to Delhi or Amritsar to board international flights and even several direct domestic services. c m y b For many, Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport remains the default option, adding to travel time, cost and congestion — a gap Chandigarh airport was originally meant to bridge. Sandhu pointed out that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India’s aviation sector had seen unprecedented expansion, with the number of airports rising from 74 in 2014 to over 163 today. Punjab alone now has two international airports — Chandigarh and Amritsar — and four domestic airports at Adampur, Halwara, Bathinda and Pathankot. He cited the recent inauguration of Halwara Airport and the renaming of Adampur Airport as Sri Guru Ravidas Ji Airport as examples of the Centre’s focus on regional aviation. “Punjab has got much from the Union government, but Punjabis ka dil maange more,” he remarked, reiterating the demand for greater international connectivity from Chandigarh. Senior officials of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) told The Tribune that over Continued on page 2 Cadet Mehak Thakur of the Post Graduate Government College for Girls, Sector 11, Chandigarh, being felicitated by PM Narendra Modi. She was declared the All-India Best Cadet (Naval Wing – Senior) at the Republic Day Camp. Woman duped of ~40L in cyber fraud Chandigarh, February 10 The police have arrested a 25-year-old man for allegedly duping a woman of Chandigarh of nearly Rs 40 lakh by posing as a ‘tantrik’ (a man practising magic) on social media platforms. The accused, identified as Rohit Bhargav, a resident of Jhunjhunu district in Rajasthan, was arrested in connection with a case registered in January here. The victim, who is reportedly suffering from mental distress due to family issues, came across advertisements on Facebook and Instagram claiming to offer solutions to Continued on page 2