13042026-TTB-01.qxd 13-04-2026 00:46 Page 1 c m y b 13 CHINA TO RESET TAIWAN TIES, ADD MORE FLIGHTS WORLD /thetribunechd CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 146 NO. 101 | 14 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2024-2026 ESTABLISHED IN 1881 PM WRITES TO FLOOR LEADERS ON WOMEN QUOTA BACK PAGE monday | 13 april 2026 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com Trump orders Hormuz blockade as Brimful of versatility US-Iran marathon talks in Pak fail ASHA BHOSLE SEPT 8, 1933 — APRIL12 ,2026 Melody queen belted out 12K songs in 20 languages Nonika Singh Vance cites N-hurdle| Tehran flags ‘excessive’ demands| Putin offers to mediate EAM calls on UAE Prez, thanks him for Indians’ safety Ujwal Jalali Tribune News Service O NE of India’s most loved playback singers Asha Bhosle stole hearts of millions of music lovers with songs such as “Chura liya hai tumne jo dil ko…” A voice, which could become one with lyrics, beats and rhythm, ruled Hindi cinema along with her sister Lata Mangeshkar. And like her legendary sister, Asha, who passed away on Sunday, was an institution unto herself. With 12,000 songs to her credit, in over 20 languages, she swooned generations, her voice always a breath of fresh air, epitomising possibly all conceivable moods of not just music but love and life itself. With songs such as “Aao huzoor tumko….”, she literally took us into a surreal expanse. Her voice, shining like stars, transported mortals into a world they can only dream of inhabiting. If versatility had a name, it would be Asha Bhosle, whose range was exemplary. If “Sabarmati ke sant”, ode to the Father of the Nation, was a patriotic number, the playfulness of lyrics echoed in “Bhanwra bada nadaan hai (Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam). If one moment her voice had that enchanting seductive quality, it had that peppy trippy quality in numbers like “Dum maaro dum….” And then it could become poignantly soulful in ghazals. Today, it’s impossible to imagine the spell of Muzaffar Ali’s Umrao Jaan without her voice embellishing “Inn aankhon ki masti ke” or heartfelt “Justuju jiski thi”. Songs like “Monica o my darling”, echoing through the corridors of time, have inspired not only a film title but also composers of virtually every generation, the latest being Dhurandhar. More than one song of hers oozed oomph. “Piya tu ab to aaja…” with her late husband, the hugely gifted composer RD Bur- Two more bodies recovered,Mathura boattragedy toll 13 MATHURA: With the recovery of two more bodies on Sunday, the death toll in the boat capsize incident in the Yamuna in Mathura has climbed to 13. The search for three more missing persons is underway. SP (Rural) Suresh Chandra Rawat said search efforts led to the recovery of the body of Dinki Bansal near Devraha Baba Ghat and Rishabh Sharma, 3 km from the accident site. INSIDE AmarnathYatrafrom July 3; registrations open from April 15 JAMMU: The much-awaited Amarnath Yatra 2026 will commence on July 3 and span 57 days, with extensive security and logistical preparations underway across J&K. Announcing the schedule, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha said the pilgrimage would conclude on August 28, coinciding with Raksha Bandhan. INSIDE ❝ Songs, for me, are notes from the heart. — Asha Bhosle ICONIC, INSPIRATIONAL ❝ One of the most iconic and versatile voices India has ever known… She will continue to inspire generations and her songs will forever resonate in people’s lives. Narendra Modi, PRIME MINISTER man — a musical partnership of nearly 25 years — gave us more than one song to die for, especially in movies like Ijaazat. Of course, composers like OP Nayyar and Ravi too continued on page 9 Pay~1Kcrforbuilding twindams: Pb to J&K Ruchika M Khanna Tribune News Service Chandigarh, April 12 The Punjab Government has asked the Jammu and Kashmir administration to share the construction cost of the Ranjit Sagar and Shahpur Kandi dams, as per the previously agreed terms between the two states. With around Rs 973 crore as unpaid dues, the Punjab Government has sought a meeting with its counterparts in the Jal Shakti Department of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir to resolve the issue. A letter has been sent by the state’s Water Resources Department, seeking a meeting and an early resolution to the issue. Punjab is seeking Rs 301.02 crore as J&K’s share in the Ranjit Sagar Dam and Rs 672.42 crore for the construction of the Shahpur Kandi Dam project. Punjab’s contention regarding the Ranjit Sagar Dam (ear- Ranjit Sagar Dam lier known as the Thein Dam) is that a bilateral agreement was signed between Punjab and J&K on January 20, 1979. As per Clause 1 of this agreement, 10 per cent of the total cost of the project attributable to the irrigation portion was to be paid by the Government of J&K to Punjab. Clause 1 states: “The parties to this agreement shall be joint partners in the Thein Dam project. The Jammu & Kashmir Government shall, however, make investment only in the irrigation portion of the project in continued on page 9 New Delhi, April 12 The high-stakes negotiations between the US and Iran in Islamabad ended without a breakthrough, with US VicePresident JD Vance returning to Washington after over 24 hours of intense, Pakistanmediated talks, even as Tehran underscored that deep-rooted “mistrust and suspicion” made a swift agreement unlikely. Just hours after the failure of negotiations, US President Donald Trump announced that Washington would move to block all ships entering or leaving the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz, in what is being seen as a dramatic escalation which could have farreaching global implications. Declaring that the move would take effect “immediately”, Trump said the US Navy would begin enforcing a sweeping maritime blockade, marking one of the most aggressive steps taken by Washington in the ongoing confrontation with Tehran. “The meeting went well and most points were agreed to, but the only point that really mattered, nuclear, was not. Effective immediately, the US Navy, the finest in the world, will begin the process continued on page 9 edit: us-Iran impasse Chinabidtorename Arunachal places may hit ties: Centre New Delhi, April 12 India on Sunday said China’s move to assign “fictitious names” to Indian territory to manufacture “baseless narratives” cannot alter the reality but could impact ongoing efforts to normalise bilateral ties. Says baseless narratives cannot alter reality External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said New Delhi “categorically rejects” any “mischievous attempts” by the Chinese side to assign such names to places which form part of the Indian territory. India had reacted sharply when China resorted to renaming certain places in Arunachal Pradesh in May last year as well as in April 2024. “India categorically rejects any mischievous attempts by the Chinese side to assign fictitious names to places which form part of the territory of continued on page 9 HP’s Barwal shatters 1978 marathon record Subhash Rajta Tribune News Service Shimla, April 12 Himachal runner Sawan Barwal rewrote history on Sunday as he broke the 48-yearold marathon national record — the longest-standing mark in Indian athletics — at the NN Marathon Rotterdam. Barwal clocked 2 hours 11 minutes and 58 seconds to finish 20th in the elite race, shaving a couple of seconds off the existing national record of 2:12:00 set by Shivnath Singh in 1978 in Jalandhar. Just a year ago, the long-distance runner from the hill state had won gold medals in the 5,000m and 10,000m races at the National Games in Uttarakhand, breaking the meet record in both events. Clocks 2:11:58 in Rotterdam, betters 48-yr-old nat’l mark Barwal belongs to Radda Bhanker village in Jogindernagar, Mandi district. His father Kuldeep Barwal said, “I am glad he has broken the record that stood for nearly 50 years. We are extremely proud to see him smashing records.” For Kuldeep Barwal, who drives light commercial vehicles in Delhi, his son’s success is doubly satisfying. “I was also an athlete but couldn’t reach the heights my son has. So, his success tastes even sweeter,” he said. While it was his father who introduced him to running, athletics coach Gopal Thakur spotted his talent and honed it over nearly a decade. Then a coach with the state’s Sports Department, Thakur noticed Barwal in 2010 at a Panchayat Yuva Krida Khel Abhiyan. Thakur has Barwal’s journey at his fingertips. “He started with a bronze medal at a national event and then won six gold medals over the next three years in the U-16 category in North Zone events. After that, he never looked back,” said Thakur, now head coach at the Khelo India Centre of Excellence in Bilaspur. Barwal was recruited by the Army based on his achievements a few years ago. “He is perhaps the only athlete to hold a national record across events from 5,000m to the full marathon,” said Thakur. Havildar Sawan Barwal. c m y b Tribune News Service New Delhi, April 12 External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Sunday met UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi, thanking him for the support extended to the Indian community amid the ongoing tensions in West Asia and reaffirming India’s commitment to further strengthening bilateral ties. MoS attends Khamenei’s mourning event US Vice-President JD Vance speaks after a 21-hour meeting with Iranian representatives in Islamabad on Sunday. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and special envoy Steve Witkoff are also seen. REUTERS Vance spoke to Trump‘dozentimesin21hrs’ Tribune News Service New Delhi, April 12 US Vice-President JD Vance on Sunday said he remained in constant touch with President Donald Trump throughout the high-stakes negotiations with Iran, revealing the intensity and real-time coordination behind Washington’s diplomatic push. Responding to a question on the frequency of his communication with Trump, Vance said the engagement was continuous during the nearly daylong talks. “We were talking to the President consistently. I don’t know the exact number — perhaps half a dozen times, maybe a dozen over the past 21 hours,” he said. The Vice-President underscored that the negotiations were closely guided by the broader US national secu- rity establishment, with multiple senior officials looped in at every stage. He confirmed consultations with key figures, including Admiral Brad Cooper, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. “We were constantly in communication with the entire national security team continued on page 9 During the meeting, Jaishankar conveyed the warm greetings of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and expressed appreciation for the UAE leadership’s efforts in ensuring the safety and well-being of the large Indian diaspora in the country during the current regional uncertainty. “Deeply honoured to call on the President of the UAE,” Jaishankar said, noting that discussions focused on advancing the India-UAE Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and expanding continued on page 9