01062025-TTB-01.qxd 6/1/2025 12:23 AM Page 1 123 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 145 NO. 150 | 24 PAGES | ~7.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2024-2026 ESTABLISHED IN 1881  DELHI US WARNS INDO-PACIFIC ALLIES OF ‘IMMINENT’ THREAT FROM CHINA WORLD /thetribunechd ARMY CHIEF DWIVEDI HONOURS BSF WOMAN OFFICER J&K VISUALISE TENACITY & CONSTITUTION HAS KEPT COURAGE OF CHHONZIN COUNTRY UNITED IN ANGMO SPECTRUM CRISES: CJI BACK PAGE sunday | 1 june 2025 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com Pballows clubbing of industrial plots CHANDIGARH: The Punjab Government has allowed industrialists to club adjoining vacant industrial plots. Simply put, it means that in case an industry, set up on a huge piece of land, is not doing well, the owner can now opt for the de-clubbing of the land and sell a portion of the land not in use for his industrial operations. INSIDE 18 killed as heavy rain batters N-E ITANAGAR/GUWAHATI: At least 18 people have been killed in flashfloods and landslides triggered by heavy rain in the northeastern region in the past few days. In Arunachal Pradesh, seven members of two families lost their lives after their vehicle was swept off the road by a landslide in East Kameng district late Friday night. BACK PAGE Influencer arrested in G’gram over post GURUGRAM: Sharmishta Pano- li, a social media influencer, was arrested by the Kolkata police from Gurugram for allegedly uploading a video with communal overtones. Panoli was arrested on Friday night after she, in a now-deleted video, accused Hindi film actors of maintaining silence over Operation Sindoor. INSIDE Suffered losses in air, switched tactics to inflict damage on Pak airbases: CDS Jet downing not important, finding reasons is: Gen Chauhan | Both sides ‘acted rationally’ Modi: Op Sindoor most successful anti-terror exercise in India’s history Tribune News Service Ajay Banerjee Tribune News Service New Delhi, May 31 Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Gen Anil Chauhan today confirmed that India did face “losses” in the air duel with Pakistan during Operation Sindoor. However, he said there was a swift change in tactics that led the Indian Air Force (IAF) to inflict a decisive retaliation on the airbases of the western neighbour. General Chauhan, who is in Singapore for the Shangri-La Dialogue, gave separate interviews to news agency Reuters and Bloomberg TV. On May 11, the IAF’s Director General Air Operations, Air Marshal AK Bharti, on being asked about losses to the IAF had said, “We are , in a combat scenario; losses are a part of combat.” Today Reuters quoted the CDS as saying that India switched tactics after suffering losses in the air on the first day of conflict (May 7) with Pakistan and established a decisive advantage before the neighbours announced a ceasefire on May 10. “What was important is, why did these losses occur, and what continued on page 7 Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan (second left) shared stage with Pakistan’s joint chiefs of staff committee chairman General Sahir Shamshad Mirza (extreme right) as representatives of various countries converged for the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on Saturday. Cong seeks special session of Parliament India, Pak officials share stage, twice STATION: Ajay Banerjee After the CDS, Gen Anil Chauhan, confirmed that India suffered losses in the air in the conflict with Pakistan, the Congress demanded a comprehensive review of national defence preparedness by an independent panel and sought a special session of Parliament. INSIDE Tribune News Service New Delhi, May 31 For the first time since the May 7-10 skirmishes between India and Pakistan, senior representatives of the two countries have shared space at international forums within a span of two days. The Indian representatives — Kirti Vardhan Singh, MoS for External Affairs, and Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan — took part in multilateral meetings at Dushanbe in Tajikistan, and Singapore, respectively. Their photographs posted on the social media showed repre- sentatives from Pakistan sharing the frame. While officials from the two sides have attended such multi-lateral forums in the past, their presence at such events assumes significance in the wake of Operation Sindoor. On Friday evening, Kirti Vardhan Singh continued on page 7 New Delhi, May 31 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said Operation Sindoor, India’s military response to the Pakistan-sponsored April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, was the most successful counter-terrorism exercise in Indian history. The PM was speaking on the occasion of the 300th birth anniversary of Lokmata Devi Ahilyabai Holkar. Addressing the Lokmata Devi Ahilyabai Mahila Sashaktikaran Mahasammelan after inaugurating multiple development projects, the PM, referring to the attack in Pahalgam, said terrorists not only shed the blood of Indians but also struck at the nation’s cultural ethos seeking to divide society. “Most significantly, they challenged India’s Nari Shakti and this challenge proved fatal for the terrorists and their handlers. Operation Sindoor is India’s largest and most successful counter-terrorism operation in history,” said Modi, adding that at locations where Pakistan’s forces never anticipated action, the Indian armed forces dismantled terrorist bases. He said Operation Sindoor had sent a clear message that Pb plans to track drug smugglers via GPS anklets Tribune News Service Chandigarh, May 31 The Punjab Police may soon track the movement of drug smugglers released on bail through GPS-enabled anklets, which they plan to introduce after legal scrutiny. A database of drug smugglers/peddlers is also being developed by the state police on the lines of the Punjab Artificial Intelligence System (PAIS). The centralised data will Gupta BJP face for Ludhiana West byelection Shivani Bhakoo Tribune News Service Ludhiana, May 31 With just two days left for filing nomination papers for the Ludhiana West bypoll, the BJP has declared senior leader Jiwan Gupta as its candidate for the constituency. The byelection is Jiwan Gupta scheduled for June 19. The announcement of candidate was made from Delhi around 12.30 pm today. The decision to field Gupta has been welcomed by senior party leaders, who view it as a recognition of the core committee members’ contributions. Gupta, associated with the BJP for over 30 years, worked with the RSS in Fatehgarh Sahib before shifting to Ludhiana. He later rose through the ranks, serving as the general secretary of the state BJP and vice-president of BJP Punjab. Speaking after his candidature was announced, Gupta expressed confidence in his victory, stating that his focus would now be entirely on Ludhiana West. Despite facing opponents with significant financial resources, he continued on page 7 WILL ENSURE RIGHT TO PRIVACY The proposal is being examined from a legal standpoint and will be implemented on a case-by-case basis, ensuring that the right to privacy of such individuals is respected. Gaurav Yadav, PUNJAB DGP ❝ facilitate forward and backward linkages of the arrested drug smugglers, and enhance the efficiency of tracking and monitoring these individuals. The PAIS, which has helped trace, identify and catch gangsters and other hardened criminals, is being used by the police to ascertain the criminal record of suspects by uploading their photographs on the portal, accessible only to the police. Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav, announcing the new initiatives to check drug smuggling here on Sat- urday, said the GPS anklets were inspired by the Jammu and Kashmir Police that use similar devices to monitor individuals charged under the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act. The implementation may not be immediate as legal clearances and right to privacy need to be examined. “The proposal is being examined from a legal standpoint and will be implemented on a case-by-case basis, continued on page 7 3 ex-cops jailed in 1993 fake encounter case Gaurav Kanthwal Tribune News Service Mohali, May 31 A CBI court today sentenced former Rawalpindi SHO Manjit Singh, ASI Karamjit Singh and Phagwara City SHO Gurmej Singh to three to eight years’ imprisonment over the killing of two Phagwara youths in a 1993 fake encounter. Manjit Singh (72) and Gurmej Singh (84) were sentenced to eight years’ RI, while ASI Karamjit Singh (70) got three years’ RI. The court imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 each on the three. Constables Harjit Singh and Kashmir Singh were acquitted. 2 sentenced to 8-year RI, third gets 3 years According to the chargesheet filed by the CBI, a police party of the Rawalpindi police station in Kapurthala, headed by ASI Karamjit Singh, had picked up Palwinder Singh, alias Pappu, from his house at Rawalpindi village on March 27, 1993. On the same day, Balbir Singh of Dhade village, Phagwara, was picked up by Manjit Singh. After being illegally detained for a few days, the Phagwara police station recorded their arrest on April 3. The police alleged they were arrested in a theft case and a scooter and gold ring were seized from them. After a few hours, the police claimed Palwinder Singh and Balbir Singh had absconded from police custody while on the way to recover arms and ammunition. Two days later, the police claimed both were killed in an encounter with the Sultanpur Lodhi police. However, the information about their death was not given to their families and their bodies were cremated as “unclaimed”. In 1995, Darshan Singh, father of Palwinder continued on page 11 TERRORISTS’ BACKERS TO PAY A HEAVY PRICE ❝ India will not only eliminate threats within its territory but will also ensure that a heavy price is paid by those supporting terrorists. Narendra Modi, PRIME MINISTER proxy wars through terrorism would not be tolerated. “India will not only eliminate threats within its territory but will also ensure that a heavy price is paid by those supporting terrorists. Every Indian now echoes the same sentiment, if you fire bullets, you will face artillery shells,” said the PM. He said Operation Sindoor stood as a testament to the continued on page 7 Trump at it again, says US averted India-Pak‘N-war’ Developing database under AI system to detect suspects, keep tabs on movement Jupinderjit Singh PM Narendra Modi addresses the Mahila Sashaktikaran Maha Sammelan in Bhopal. PTI Tribune News Service Operation Shield, a civil defence exercise, underway at Amar Niwas Complex in Srinagar on Saturday. PTI Amid border tensions, states hold drills for war, disaster preparedness Tribune News Service Chandigarh, May 31 “Operation Shield”, a civil defence exercise to enhance emergency preparedness amid rising national security concerns, was on Saturday conducted across the region. The states and UTs which participated in the exercise included Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Jammu & Kashmir and Chandigarh. The drills, organised under the guidance of the Union Home Ministry, simulated wartime scenarios, including airstrikes, drone attacks and blackout protocols, to test response mechanisms. In Punjab, the exercise was carried out across all districts, with agencies like police, fire services, health department and disaster management teams participating. Volunteers from civil defence, NCC and NSS enacted rescue operations, including evacuating “injured” civilians and extinguishing fires. A scenario in Hoshiarpur involved a swarm of enemy drones attacking a military station, prompting immediate coordination between defence and civil authorities. Haryana executed the drill under the supervision of Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Sumita Misra, who monitored continued on page 7 New Delhi, May 31 Despite India and Pakistan having publicly announced that they were “far away” from being engaged in a nuclear war, US President Donald Trump has yet again claimed to have averted a “nuclear conflict” between the two neighbours. Speaking in the US, Trump on Friday said the “deal” he was most proud of was that he was able to stop “potentially a nuclear war” between India and Pakistan through a threat of stopping trade. In the past few weeks, Trump has repeatedly claimed that he told India and Pakistan that the US would stop trade with the two nations if they did not stop the conflict. On Friday, Trump said, “I think the deal I’m most proud of is the fact that we’re dealing with India, we’re dealing with Pakistan and we were able to stop potentially a nuclear war through trade as opposed to bullets.” “It was getting very bad. It was getting very nasty. They are both nuclear powers,” Trump added while speaking to media at the Joint Base Andrews. At a press conference with Tesla CEO Elon Musk in the Oval Office continued on page 7 Valmik Thapar, iconic tiger crusader & wild’s roaring voice, falls silent at 73 SPECIAL TO THE TRIBUNE Neha Sinha COURTESY: X “...I see what I have come looking for, a huge male tiger, walking along the path towards me, his steps relaxed and unhurried, but carrying within them the promise of explosive power. On he comes, the great muscles of his shoulders moving under the skin with every stride, the yellow eyes in his massive head never leaving the vehi- cle in his path. Although I’ve watched wild tigers from up close for decades, there is still no sight that moves me as much. A moment longer, there is light in the sky now, it catches his coat, the colours explode in orange and gold, his eyes burn, and then he leaps smoothly, silently, into the grass and is gone, a long streak of flowing liquid fire,” wrote Valmik Thapar in his 2017 book, “Tiger Fire”. Thapar wrote as he felt deeply, his reverence for the Today’s issue is of 24 pages, including six-page Spectrum and four page Delhi Tribune. tiger pouring out in his words. For many decades, Thapar, who passed away at the age of 73 on Saturday morning, was the voice and face of the Panthera tigris — writing scores of books on the subject, serving on government committees, making movies on tigers and taking issues connected to tigers to the international stage. For Indian viewers, the first wildlife documentaries they saw had Thapar, not David Attenborough. In the 1980s, Thapar started the Ranthambhore foundation which worked closely on tiger conservation around the Ranthambhore tiger reserve. The park was soon to become what is arguably India’s best known tiger reserve. He also propelled the Ranthambhore School of Art, which had a hyper-real, finely drawn style of painting tigers. “Valmik was one who found a near spiritual connect with a forest landscape and followed its calling with a lifelong dedication. He found solutions to protect the frontiers of his map with passion, creativity and dedication; leading with his writings and intellect,” says Ravi Singh, CEO, WWF-India. “He was his own institution and yet contributed to others in his own differentiated way, showing a direction few had pioneered in India. His voice emerges from his writings and compositions, inspiring many over the years. continued on page 11