29102025-LT-01.qxd 10/29/2025 12:51 AM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune DIST ADMN OPENS CAFÉ, RUN BY SPECIALLY ABLED STAFF RURAL WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS SHINE EMRAAN HASHMI LEADS COURTROOM DRAMA HAQ To make differently abled persons self-reliant, the district administration has set up a cafeteria. P2 Two women, Vasu and Meena Kumari, are rewriting their stories with grit, innovation & PAU’s support. P3 Emraan & Yami Gautam are set to bring Haq,which focuses on Mohd Ahmed Khan vs Shah Bano Begum case.P4 » » » FORECAST MAINLY CLEAR SKY MAX 30°C | MIN 16°C YESTERDAY MAX 30°C | MIN 16°C SUNSET WEDNESDAY 5.38 PM SUNRISE THURSDAY 6:35 AM WEDNESDAY | 29 OCTOBER 2025 | LUDHIANA Heaps of garbage set afire at vegetable Contractual power employees hold protest march, raise slogans market; MC, Mandi Board pass buck Tribune News Service Incident raises serious concerns about waste mgmt, air quality in area already compromised. Such blatant disregard for environmental norms is unacceptable. We demand accountability and immediate remediation.” The committee has urged the authorities to impose penalties under the SWM Rules, 2016, and environmental laws and to ensure proper waste processing on the mandi premises. The incident has reignited concerns over Ludhiana’s chronic waste management failures and the need for systemic reforms. Manav Mander Tribune News Service Ludhiana, October 28 A thick cloud of smoke engulfed Bahadur-Ke Road early on Tuesday morning after tonnes of garbage was allegedly set ablaze on the premises of the Wholesale Vegetable Market. The incident raised serious concerns about waste management and air quality in the area. The Punjab Mandi Board and the Municipal Corporation (MC) are passing the buck, with neither side owning up to the fire or the festering waste. Amid the blame game, accountability remains elusive. The Public Action Committee (PAC), led by Er Kapil Dev, Dr Amardeep Bains and Kuldeep Singh Khaira, have shot a formal complaint to the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) and Deputy Commissioner. The PAC members have accused officials of the Punjab Mandi Board and the Municipal Corporation of collusion in illegal dumping and burning of waste. The incident, they claimed, had triggered severe environmental damage and health concerns for residents in surrounding localities. Waste being burnt at the wholesale vegetable market in violation of the norms on Tuesday. REFUSE WILL BE CLEARED WITHIN WEEK: MC CHIEF Municipal Commissioner Aditya Dachalwal said: “It is difficult to ascertain the reason behind the fire at this stage. However, the garbage around the compactor site will be cleared within a week.” “It is not just negligence but a repeated violation of environmental laws and Supreme Court directives,” said Er Kapil Dev. “Despite the matter being subjudice before the National Green Tribunal (NGT), the authorities continue to ignore the law and public health,” he said. According to the complaint, the fire broke out in the wee hours and frantic residents attempted to contact the fire brigade as smoke spread across the area. The complainants allege that the corporation and the Mandi Board had failed to comply with the Solid Waste Management (SWM) Rules, 2016, which prohibits open burning of waste. Dr Bains emphasised the urgency of the situation. “We’ve sent photographic and video evidence with GPS coordinates to the PPCB Chief Engineer and other officials. The garbage mound is still smouldering, and the stench is unbearable. It is a clear case for environmental compensation and punitive action,” he said. The complaint also mentions previous NGT directions requiring the Municipal Commissioner to appear virtually in the ongoing case. However, the complainants argue that no meaningful action had been taken to clear the illegal dump or prevent further fires. Kuldeep Singh Khaira said: “The city’s air quality is What market committee official says Market committee secretary Harinder Gill said he got information about the fire at the vegetable market and rushed to the spot. “The blaze was brought under control using water,” he said. “The exact cause of the fire is still unclear. It’s yet to be determined whether the garbage was deliberately set ablaze or if it was an accident. A large amount of waste has accumulated around the Municipal Corporation’s compactor site and we are issuing a notice to them, directing immediate clearance of the area,” he said. Ludhiana, October 28 Powercom and Transco Contractual Employees Union, Punjab, held a state-level protest in the city on Tuesday. Protesting employees started their protest march near Verka milk booth and reached the office-cum-residence of Punjab Industries and Power Minister Sanjeev Arora. The employees in a big number raised slogans against the state government for its lackadaisical approach. They said they were continuously struggling to get their rightful and legitimate demands fulfilled and alleged exploitation at the hands of the contractor. A series of meetings was also being held during the struggle. State president Balihar Say they were struggling to get their legitimate demands fulfilled, allege exploitation by contractor Singh, state general secretary Rajesh Kumar Maur and state press secretary Inderpreet Singh said the workers had been toiling hard in the Electricity Department but it had failed to regularised them so far. The present state government had promised to cancel the privatisation policy and make all outsourced contract workers permanent. But despite passage of over three years, no worker had been made regular. Workers were losing their precious lives due to electrocution and the union was continuously demanding that the privatisation policy be cancelled and all workers be directly included in the department, including implementing a minimum living wage and guaranteeing permanent jobs and pensions for accident victims and resolving demands listed in the demand letter. Several meetings were held with the Chief Minister, Finance Minister and the Power Minister and government representatives, during which the authorities concerned passed the agenda to include the workers directly in the department and sent it to the state government but it was not implementing the agenda, due to which there was a huge resentment among the contract workers, they said. Contractual power employees take out a protest march in Ludhiana on Tuesday. ASHWANI DHIMAN Six women among 22 hurt as PRTC bus, truck collide on Ludhiana-Delhi highway Prayers mark end of Chhath Puja Truck driving on wrong side collided with public vehicle head-on, damaging it severely Mahesh Sharma Devotees perform rituals on the last day of Chhath Puja in Ludhiana on Tuesday morning. ASHWANI DHIMAN Payal, October 28 At least 22 occupants, including six women, were injured when a PRTC bus collided with a truck coming from the opposite direction on the Ludhiana-Delhi national highway in Khanna city on Tuesday morning. The bus was heading to Patiala from Ludhiana when a truck driving on the wrong side collided with it head-on, severely damaging the bus. Daljit Singh and Harsimran, driver and conductor of the bus, respectively, informed that about 50 passengers, including 40 students and six women, were travelling in the bus that had left the The ill-fated vehicles that met with the mishap in Khanna. Ludhiana bus stand for Patiala. It was near Pristine Mall that a truck coming from the wrong side collided with the bus, injuring over 22 persons. DSP Vinod Kumar said the rescue operation was started after receiving information. All injured were shifted to hospitals. Pungrain leads paddy procurement in district 3 land in police net Agency procures 2,99,045 metric tonnes of paddy, Markfed 1,71,000 MT, Punsup 1,12,802 MT Tribune News Service Ludhiana, October 28 Punjab Grains Procurement Corporation Limited (Pungrain) has emerged as the leading food agency in paddy procurement and lifting operations across the district during the ongoing kharif marketing season. As on October 27, Pungrain has procured 2,99,045 MT of paddy and lifted 2,58,772 MT. Markfed ranks second with 1,71,000 MT procurement and 1,54,500 MT lifting. Punjab State Civil Supplies Corporation Limited (Punsup) follows with 1,12,802 MT purchase and lifting of 1,08,539 MT. The PSWC procured 80,514 MT of paddy and lifted 71,707 MT. In a meeting with offi- cials from the Food, Civil and Supplies Department, Deputy Commissioner Himanshu Jain said payments worth Rs 1,545 crore had been made to farmers. He emphasised the district administration’s commitment to procuring every grain of farmers’ produce. It has made comprehensive arrangements at all procurement centres to ensure seamless operations. The officials have been instructed to conduct regular inspections of mandis to monitor and optimise the procurement process, addressing any challenges promptly. To maintain quality standards, Jain urged farmers to ensure their paddy was thoroughly dried and meets government-specified moisture levels before bringing it to the markets. Additionally, he exhorted farmers to manage paddy stubble by using modern agricultural machinery instead of burning it as burning not only harms the environment but also produces pollution detrimental to human health. He said paddy stubble was useful for farmers as the residue could play an important role in enhancing the soil fertility if incorporated into the field with the help of ultra-modern equipment. with hand grenade Mahesh Sharma Ludhiana, October 28 The Ludhiana police claimed to have prevented a major tragedy by arresting three miscreants who, along with their accomplices, allegedly intended to create panic by throwing a hand grenade in a densely populated area. A hand grenade was recovered from the possession of the nabbed suspects, identified as Kuldeep Singh, Parvinder Singh and Ramnik Singh of Muktsar district, who were arrested at Shivpuri Chowk on Monday evening. The police have launched a manhunt for Shekhar Singh and Ajai, who managed to flee the scene on Officials were told to >> conduct regular inspections of mandis to monitor and optimise the procurement process. INDERJEET VERMA c m y b seeing the police team. Perusal of an FIR registered under Sections 3, 4 and 5 of the Explosive Act and Section 113 of the BNS revealed that the suspects had a connection with ISI agents and carried explosives to Ludhiana to commit the crime. Though the police are yet to divulge details about investigation carried out so far, it is learnt that the suspects were receiving instructions from inmates of some jail in the Muktsar area. Had a patrolling party not acted promptly and nabbed the kingpin, Kuldeep Singh, along with the hand grenade, the suspects could have succeeded in implanting the explosive somewhere near Ladhowal Bridge.