26102025-ATR-01.qxd 10/25/2025 10:11 PM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune FORECAST MAINLY CLEAR SKY MAX 31°C | MIN 17°C YESTERDAY MAX 31°C | MIN 17°C INTACH TO REVIVE WELLS FROM BABA BUDHA JI’S ERA NAMBARDARS HOLD PROTEST, DEMAND ~5K ALLOWANCE SARABHAI VS SARABHAI ACTOR SATISH SHAH NO MORE A team of volunteers and local villagers have found two wells believed to date back to the time of Baba Budha Ji. P2 The Punjab Nambardar Union staged a protest at the Chabal Chowk in Tarn Taran to press for their demands. P3 Bollywood celebrities paid tributes to veteran actor Satish Shah, who passed away on Saturday at the age of 74. P4 » » » SUNSET SUNDAY 5.46 PM SUNRISE MONDAY 6:42 AM SUNDAY | 26 OCTOBER 2025 | AMRITSAR R’sthan bricks make it tough for state kilns, capture 25% market share Sharp decline after new tech introduced; numbers down to 1,500 from 2,700 Neeraj Bagga Tribune News Service Amritsar, October 25 The state brick manufacturing industry is facing a severe competition from the Rajasthan brick industry, which has captured about 25 per cent market share in Punjab. Keen competition has forced Punjab-based brickkiln operators to fix the price of their bricks as per the rates being charged by their counterparts in Rajasthan. Ludhiana-based Punjab Brick Kiln Association president Ramesh Mahe says: Supplies of their bricks have reached the interiors of Punjab, upsetting indigenous industry. Owing to this, the number of brick kilns have declined from a high of 2,700 about five years ago to presently about 1,500 now. The sharp decline started after the state government made it mandatory for the brick-kilns to shift to the costly induced, high draft zig-zag technology, leaving them economically destabilised. Over five years ago, each kiln required an investment of nearly Rs 50 lakh, in which 10 lakh bricks were used to The sharp decline started after the state government made it mandatory for the brick-kilns in Punjab to shift to the costly induced, high draft zig-zag technology. FILE PHOTO bring down the suspended particulate matter (SPM). However, the transformation of the technology was not smooth as the number of workers increased from 12 to 16, and their salary also increased. At a kiln, staff was divided into three categories, depending upon their monthly wages of Rs 11,000, Rs 12,000 and Rs 15,000. Their monthly emoluments were hiked to Rs 15,000, Rs 20,000 and Rs 25,000. This technology also improved the quality of pro- duction and decreased the usage of fuel. Earlier, a lot of bricks being produced consisted of 70 per cent superior quality and 30 per cent inferior. Now, the quantum of superior bricks has increased to 80 per cent. Similarly, the consumption of coal has also decreased by 10 per cent. Muktsar-based brick-kiln operator Lakhbir Singh insisted on uniformity of rules for the brick-kiln industry across India to offer equal opportunity of business. He rued that costly induced high draft zig-zag technology was forcibly introduced in Punjab, while the Rajasthan government had once again extended its deadline to implement it to June 30, 2026. “In order to comply with the norms of the technology, we have to use coal as a fuel, which costs between Rs 15 to Rs 18 per kg. On the other hand, Rajasthan-based kiln operators use agriculture waste fuel, reducing their annual fuel cost, which runs into over Rs 1 crore. c m y b With no such restrictions applicable in the neighbouring state, they took advantage of the situation while over 1,200 kilns here were closed. Amritsar-based brick-kiln owner Mukesh Nanda blamed arrival of overloaded vehicles, under value billing, use of low cost agricultural waste as fuel, low labour rates in Rajasthan and denying of equal footing to the Punjabbased industry. He added that in the entire Majha region, including Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Tarn Taran and Amritsar, a lot of 1,000 bricks in retail costs between Rs 6,700 to Rs 6,900, while Rajasthan-based kilns are providing the same at Rs 6,500 and even less. He claimed that labourers here charged Rs 980 for moulding of 1,000 bricks, Rs 250 for carriage, whereas in Rajasthan wages of the same work were paid between Rs 600 and Rs 150, respectively. In addition, each brick-kiln here engages about six employees on monthly wages, which varies between Rs 16,000 to Rs 20,000 per month. In Rajasthan the employees are paid about Rs 12,000. Police register 58 FIRs for stubble burning this season Tribune News Service Amritsar, October 25 In a crackdown on stubble burning, the district administration and police have intensified action against violators, registering as many as 58 FIRs against farmers found indulging in the illegal practice of crop residue burning during this season. Officials said that multiple teams had been deployed across rural areas to monitor farm fires through ground surveillance and satellite imagery. The police have also been directed to take strict legal action against those found flouting government norms despite repeated appeals. “We have registered as many as 58 FIRs this season. Instructions have been passed to the cops to keep watch on the violators while the district administration was also monitoring the situation,” said Maninder Singh, Amritsar (Rural) SSP . A senior official from the Agriculture Department said that concerted awareness drives had been conducted in the past to encourage farmers to adopt eco-friendly residue management techniques. “We are appealing to the farmers to refrain from burning paddy stubble as it severely affects the air quality and public health,” the official added. According to reports, Amritsar was close second after poll-bound Tarn Taran as far as cases of crop residue burning were concerned. A Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) official pointed out that they, along with the district authorities, were keeping a close watch on hotspots reported through the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre and were coordinating with the local police to ensure prompt response and accountability. The administration reiterated that zero tolerance would be shown towards offenders to ensure clean air and compliance with environmental regulations. BSF seizes 4.9kg drugs along border Amritsar, October 25 In yet another major success against trans-border narcotics smuggling, the Border Security Force (BSF) has seized eight packets of heroin, weighing a total 4.898 kg, in a series of coordinated operations along the Punjab border within the last 24 hours. The recoveries were made across the Amritsar and Ferozepur sectors. According to the BSF in a , specific intelligence-based joint operation with the Punjab Police, jawans seized six packets of heroin, weighing 3.248 kg, from a farmland near Jalloke village in Ferozepur district. The packets were wrapped in yellow adhesive tape, a characteristic packaging of drone-dropped consignments from across the Pakistan border. Similarly, in another operation in the Amritsar sector, alert BSF personnel seized one packet of heroin, weighing 1.080 kg, from an area near Mullakot village. In a separate search, BSF jawans also found one more packet weighing 570 gm from a field near Chaharpur village in Ajnala, Amritsar. All constignments were dropped via drones.— TNS