17032026-ATR-01.qxd 3/16/2026 11:40 PM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune FORECAST PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 23°C | MIN 11°C YESTERDAY MAX 21°C | MIN 12°C BATALA SCHOOL KIDS VISIT VIDHAN SABHA DELHI L-G RETURNS TO HIS ROOTS AT GURU NANAK DEV UNIVERSITY ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER DOMINATES AT THE OSCARS Fifty students of Woodstock Public School visited the Vidhan Sabha, facilitated by MLA Sherry Kalsi. P2 Taranjit Singh Sandhu recently visited GNDU after being named the Lieutenant-Governor of Delhi. P3 Leonardo DiCaprio-starrer One Battle After Anothertriumphed at the 98th Academy Awards on Sunday, winning six Oscars.P4 » » SUNSET TUESDAY 6.39 PM » SUNRISE WEDNESDAY 6.37 AM TUESDAY | 17 MARCH 2026 | AMRITSAR Man injured in firing during bid to resolve conflict; five booked Tribune News Service Amritsar, March 16 A man was seriously injured after being shot while trying to mediate a dispute between two groups in the Daburji area under the Maqboolpura police station in Amritsar on Sunday night. The injured has been identified as Satnam Singh, a resident of Gehrimandi in Jandiala Guru. He was immediately rushed to a hospital where he is currently undergoing treatment. According to the police, both groups had earlier been involved in violent clashes and had assaulted each other on two separate occasions. Complaints had also been filed by both sides at the Jandiala Guru police station and the matter was already under investigation. Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (ADCP) Harpal Singh said that after preliminary investigation and based on the statement of Satnam Singh, a case of attempt to murder and under the Arms Act has been registered against five persons. The accused include Gurjant Singh, Harman Singh and Fateh Singh, all residents of Rampura, along with their unidentified accomplices. The entire incident has also been captured on CCTVs installed in the area, he added. Shamsher Singh, a relative of the victim, said that his brother Lakhbir Singh works as a manager at Best Price in Manawala. A few days ago, Gurjant Singh, a resident of Gehri Mandi in Jandiala Guru, had visited the showroom to purchase goods. An argument reportedly broke out between the two over the price of an item. Following the altercation, Gurjant Singh and his associates allegedly intercepted Lakhbir Singh on the way and thrashed him. Later, when Lakhbir’s relatives returned from Sri Anandpur Sahib after attending the Hola Mohalla festival and learned about the assault, they allegedly stopped Gurjant Singh and beat him up in retaliation. Since then, both parties had lodged complaints against each other and were repeatedly being called to the Jandiala Guru police station. In an attempt to resolve the dispute, acquaintances of both sides arranged a meeting in the Daburji area on Sunday night to settle the matter and withdraw their complaints. However, instead of reaching a compromise, the meeting soon turned into a heated argument. During the confrontation, one of Gurjant Singh’s associates allegedly pulled out a pistol and opened fire. The bullet struck Satnam Singh, who collapsed on the spot. After the incident, the accused fled the scene, creating panic in the area. Police teams rushed to the spot and seized the DVRs of nearby CCTVs to assist in the investigation. Further probe into the case is underway. Over 50K commercial units in city operating without trade licences Charanjit Singh Teja Tribune News Service Amritsar, March 16 In the four-century-old city of Amritsar, which has developed into a major commercial hub of the region, only about 14,000 commercial establishments have obtained trade licences from the Amritsar Municipal Corporation, despite more than 70,000 businesses falling within the ambit of the licensing system. The trade licence system is an important source of revenue for the municipal corporation. However, in the absence of strict enforcement, many traders do not renew their licences. Although the income of the municipal corporation’s trade licence department increased by about Rs 25 lakh compared to last year, officials say the rise is largely due to the recovery of pending dues rather than new registrations. According to officials, the Though over 70,000 businesses are falling within the ambit of the licensing system, only about 14,000 commercial establishments have obtained trade licences from the municipal corporation. slow pace of new registrations is mainly due to staff shortage. Owing to a lack of manpower, field visits to identify and register new businesses are not being conducted effectively. In the absence of strict enforcement, many traders are also not coming forward to obtain trade licences, while the MC is unable to intensify field operations due to limited staff. At present, the trade licence branch has only three inspectors, who also handle other responsibilities. The department has only one clerk and no separate staff for recovery work, whereas at least five inspectors and five clerks are required for the branch to function efficiently. Ironically, around two decades ago the municipal corporation had nearly 25,000 registered trade licences. The municipal corporation has fixed the trade licence fee at Rs 500, along with an annual conservancy charge of Rs 300. If the licence is not renewed, a penalty of 25 per cent will be Cong workers stage protest outside AAP Farmers fear crop damage after MLA’s office over unfulfilled promises night rain, strong winds in dist Tribune News Service Manmeet Singh Gill Tribune News Service Congress workers during a protest outside the office of AAP MLA Jeevan Jyot Kaur in Amritsar on Monday. even as it nears the completion of its fifth year in office, leading to growing resentment among the public. He particularly criticised the delay in implementing the promised financial assistance scheme for women. Dimpa said the government had promised to provide Rs 1,000 per month to women, but there was still no clarity on when the benefit would be given. He alleged that arrears of nearly Rs 48,000 for the past four years had not been paid and accused the government of misleading women through various conditions attached continued on page 2 Amritsar, March 16 A spell of heavy rain accompanied by strong winds during the night has increased anxiety among wheat growers across the region as the crop is approaching its final stage before harvesting. Farmers said the standing wheat crop, which is expected to be ready for harvest in about three to four weeks, could suffer damage due to the sudden change in weather. Reports of strong winds and showers were received from several rural areas during the night. Farmers fear that rainfall at this stage could affect both the quality and quantity of the wheat grain. Agriculture experts say that untimely rain and gusty winds during the ripening stage can cause the crop to bend or lodge, making harvesting difficult and reducing the overall yield. It can also lead to a loss of shine in grains. Many farmers visited their fields early in the morning to A farmer checks his damaged wheat crop in Amritsar on Monday. assess the impact of the rain. Although the extent of the damage is yet to be fully known, growers expressed concern that continuous rainfall or strong winds in the coming days could lead to further losses. Baljeet Singh, a farmer from Naushera village, said the rain had created uncertainty among farmers who were expecting a good harvest this season. “The wheat crop is almost ready and only a few weeks are left for harvesting. Rain at this stage can have an adverse effect on both the quality and quantity of wheat. If the rain continues or strong winds occur again, the crop may fall to the ground and it will become difficult to harvest,” he said. Farmers added that moisture in the crop could reduce the shine and weight of the continued on page 2 Youth held with three illegal pistols District library near Gilwali Gate opens to public after months; students hail move Tribune News Service Amritsar, March 16 The Amritsar Commissionerate Police have arrested a youth and recovered three illegal pistols along with eight live cartridges during patrolling and naka checking in the Ranjit Avenue area. Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said the accused was arrested near PR Chowk when a police team noticed him behaving suspiciously while approaching from the bypass side. The team stopped him for questioning during routine checking. During the search, the police recovered eight live .30 bore cartridges from his possession. The accused has been identified as Harmanpreet Singh, a resident of Nawan Pind village, who was presently residing in the Rani Ka Bagh locality in the city. Tribune News Service Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar along with other officials addresses mediapersons in Amritsar on Monday. During further interrogation, the police recovered a country-made pistol (desi katta) from his possession. Subsequent investigation led to the recovery of two more pistols along with magazines, including one PX5 .30 bore pistol and another .32 bore country-made weapon. He said a case under Section 25 of the Arms Act has been registered at the Ranjit Avenue police station and further investigation is underway. Preliminary investigation also revealed that the accused has a criminal background and is allegedly involved in multiple cases registered earlier under the NDPS Act, Arms Act and other criminal offences, including theft continued on page 2 Amritsar, March 16 After remaining non-functional for the past several months, the District Library Central located at Dr BR Ambedkar Park near Gilwali Gate has finally been opened to the public, bringing relief to students and avid readers in the area. The library was constructed by the government with the aim of promoting reading habits and providing a dedicated study space for students. However, despite the infrastructure being in place, the facility could not be made operational earlier due to basic utility issues. Anil Kumar, a resident of the nearby Ambedkar Colony, said that the library had hardly been seen open in c m y b The District Library Central near Gilwali Gate in Amritsar. the past. The facility was constructed around a year ago on the park’s land. The library is currently Wheat crop flattened by hailstorm in Tarn Taran Our Correspondent PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR Amritsar, March 16 Congress workers, led by constituency in-charge Jasbir Singh Dimpa, staged a protest and gheraoed the office of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Jeevan Jyot Kaur from the Amritsar East constituency, accusing the state government of failing to fulfil its poll promises. The protest was part of a statewide campaign launched by Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, directing party leaders to gherao MLAs and constituency in-charges of the ruling party over what the Congress described as unfulfilled commitments made in the election manifesto. Addressing supporters during the protest, Dimpa alleged that the government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had failed to deliver on several promises imposed from May 1. Similarly, if the conservancy charges are not deposited, a penalty of 10 per cent will be levied from April to September and 20 per cent thereafter. The MC had set a revenue target of Rs 3.75 crore for this year from trade licences. Former councillor Gurpreet Singh said the municipal corporation had initiated a door-to-door Geographic Information System (GIS) survey aimed at digitising mapping, improving tax collection and assessing urban infrastructure, but the exercise remains incomplete. He suggested that the MC should send teams to markets not only to facilitate trade licence registrations but also to recover pending dues. “Teams equipped with Point of Sale (POS) machines can visit commercial units and carry out onthe-spot recovery,” he added. being managed by the Knowledge Villa Integrated Educational and Welfare Society, which has taken responsibility for its functioning and maintenance. Vikramjit Singh, president of the society, said that the absence of a water connection had prevented the library from operating for quite some time. “The washrooms could not be made functional due to the lack of water supply, which made it difficult to open the facility regularly for visitors,” he said. He added that the issue has now been resolved after the authorities provided a water connection to the building on Sunday. With the washrooms now operational, the library has officially been opened to the public. Ritu Gill, municipal councillor of the ward, said that the library would be formally continued on page 2 Tarn Taran, March 16 Continuous light to moderate rainfall across different parts of the district over the past two days, along with a hailstorm on Sunday night, has left farmers in a state of panic. Sources in the Meteorological Department said on Monday that the district received between seven and 10 mm of rainfall today. Apart from strong winds, reports of hailstorms have also emerged from several villages. Satnam Singh Manochahal, a resident of Manochahal Kalan and a farmer leader, said that besides his village, hailstorms were also reported in villages such as Manochahal Khurd, Shahbazpur, Khemkaran and Valtoha. He said that the wheat crop, which was almost ready for harvesting, has been flattened on the ground due to the hailstorm and strong winds. Tajinder Singh Rasulpur, a farmer from Rasulpur village, said that the fallen crop would affect the yield and result in smaller grain size. He added that combine harvester operators are likely to demand higher charges from farmers to harvest the lodged crop. Chief Agriculture Officer Tejbir Singh Bhangu confirmed that hailstorms had occurred in some places and said that details about the extent of the damage were being collected. Expressing concern over the damage caused by the hailstorm, Satnam Singh Manochahal, leader of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, demanded that the government immediately conduct a girdawari and provide compensation to farmers. He said that farmers are yet to be compensated for the losses caused during the floods, and now the hailstorm has further worsened their situation.