13112025-JTR-01.qxd 11/12/2025 10:42 PM Page 1 c m y b Jalandhar tribune PUNJAB POLICE CLUB WIN STATE-LEVEL FOOTBALL TITLE The Punjab Police Club emerge as champions at the third state-level torunament in Hoshiarpur. P2 » 5,408 TB PATIENTS REPORTED IN JALANDHAR THIS YEAR The Civil Hospital has been receiving between 2,500 and 2,600 TB patients every month, majority being men. P3 » NEVER TAKE MY AUDIENCE FOR GRANTED: YAMI GAUTAM Yami Gautam Dhar’s latest release, Haq, is ‘inspired’ by the landmark Shah Bano case. P4 FORECAST MAINLY CLEAR MAX 26°C | MIN 10°C YESTERDAY MAX 25°C | MIN 10°C SUNSET THURSDAY 5.30 PM SUNRISE FRIDAY 6:54 AM » THURSDAY | 13 NOVEMBER 2025 | JALANDHAR HEALTH & WELLNESS The Tribune is starting a Q and A column to address your health-related queries. Please mail your questions (not exceeding 40 words) at healthandwellness@tribunemail.com. The Tribune’s panel of doctors will answer all your healthrelated concerns. Displaced after floods, sisters Remove garbage from plots or spend days in tent amid winter face fine: MC Aparna Banerji Tribune News Service INBRIEF GHAZIABAD TRAVEL AGENT NABBED Hoshiarpur: In an inter-state operation, an NRI wing team has arrested wanted accused Baljit Singh, who had been absconding for long. The accused had been declared a proclaimed offender by the court on September 24, 2024. A case was registered on October 7, 2021. Accused Baljit Singh, a resident of D-69, Jail Road, Fateh Nagar, New Delhi (currently residing in Ghaziabad), was accused of cheating Sukhwinder Singh of ?11,50,000 on the pretext of sending his brother to New Zealand. A case was registered against the accused under Sections 420 and 406 of the IPC and under the Punjab Travel Professional Regulation Act, 2014. The accused was arrested on November 11. OC 2 BOOKED FOR BURNING STUBBLE Phagwara: The Lohian Khas police have booked a farmer on the charge of burning stubble. The accused has been identified as Major Singh of Khosa village. The nodal officer has sent his report to the police which was verified and examined at the places of occurrence. A case has been registered against the accused. The Shahkot police booked farmer Harnail Singh of Raharrwan village for burning paddy stubble. OC DRIVER BOOKED FOR DEATH Phagwara: The Shahkot police have booked an unidentified driver on the charge of causing death by negligence. Piara Singh of Nawan Pind Donewal village complained to the police that unidentified Bolero driver was driving the vehicle rashly and hit his father Sadhu Singh's motorcycle from behind, killing him on the spot. OC THREE DRUG PEDDLERS HELD Phagwara: The Nakodar police have arrested two persons on the charge of selling intoxicating tablets. As many as 81tablets were recovered from the possession of the accused Tarsem Lala, alias Tara, of Shankar village and Vishal, alias Billa, of Sharakpur village. The Shahkot police arrested Harpreet Singh of Baupur village with 30 tablets. oc 2 FRAUD CASES REGISTERED Hoshiarpur: The district police have registered two separate cases of fraud amounting to ?17.65 lakh and named two accused in the matter. Himmat Kumar of Bajwara Kalan lodged a complaint with the City Police Station, alleging that Ashok Kumar, a travel agent from Ram Nagar, cheated him of ?7.5 lakh on the pretext of sending him to Poland. In another case, Jaswant Singh of village Mahadpur informed the Hajipur Police Station that Sonu Walia alias Harpreet Walia duped him of ?10.15 lakh by promising him a job in the Railways. oc Baupur/RampurGaura, November 12 For the past nearly two months, Manjit Kaur and her sister Raj Kaur, whose twin houses fell to the raging waters of the Beas, have been spending days in a tent shack in the middle of fields at Baupur amid winter season. Four months after the Sultanpur Lodhi floods, the sisters and their families are yet to find a house. The bare, skeletal shack is their only dwelling. Nights are spent at the village sarpanch’s home where he has spared space for destitute families. The tent, too, is on sarpanch Gurmeet Singh’s land. Like the sisters, the families of Hardev Singh and Bakhtaur, too, have been living at their relative’s houses or sewadar’s homes. Hardev continues to spend nights at village gurdwara. Manjit, Raj and their husbands are daily wage earners. The floods have even robbed the kids of education. For the past 10 months, Manjit’s daughter Manpreet has dropped out of school. The family didn’t seek re-admission after her Class X exams. Her 7-year-old son Lovepreet is also a school drop-out. Manjit Kaur says, “Ghar hi hai nahi, baccheyan nu kiddan parhavange. (We have no home, how will we ensure kids’ education.) We have nothing left. Our houses are damaged and six acres of collective land is under water. Some of the belongings have been kept at home of Sarpanch Gurmeet and his brother Paramjit. Water has also damaged most fields hence our husband’s daily wage work is affected.” Manjit’s father-in-law had also died in the 2023 floods when water had suddenly gushed into homes and streets. Raj Kaur says, “We had just recovered from previous floods when this year’s floods upended lives again. Since their father had died, my sons too quit school to pursue daily wage. Floods have robbed kids of their childhood. “ Raj Kaur added, “The district administration promised Rs 1.20 lakh cheques for all of us. While cheques were disbursed, we are yet to receive them.” Hardev says, “My 90-yearold mother is living at someone else’s home, I stay sometimes at the gurdwara and sometimes in a shelter.” Gives three-day time to plot owners Our Correspondent Phagwara, November 12 Acting on reports of the alleged misuse of several plots by drug addicts and anti-social elements, the Municipal Corporation has launched a swift cleanliness and enforcement drive across the city. Municipal Commissioner Dr Akshita Gupta, in a press release issued on Wednesday evening, said a special team of the corporation conducted inspections in various localities, including the posh Hargobind Nagar area and the approach road leading to the VIP gate of the SDM Office, Phagwara. During the drive, officials pasted warning notices on a number of plots whose owners remain unidentified. The notices directed the owners to clean their plots within three days, failing which the corporation would initiate action and impose penalties under the relevant municipal laws. Dr Gupta emphasised that the civic body would not tolerate negligence that contributes to public nuisance or health hazards. She noted that several plots in the city had turned into dumping grounds for garbage and overgrown with congress YET TO GET GOVT AID ❝The district admin promised ~1.20 lakh cheques for us. While cheques were disbursed, we are yet to receive them. Raj Kaur, FLOOD-HIT ❞ Sisters Manjit Kaur and Raj Kaur at a Baupur tent; and (R) Raj Kaur drinks water from a hand pump. PHOTO MALKIAT SINGH MLA Raman Arora 4 gang members nabbed after encounter gets extortion call Two of them injured in retaliatory police firing ; pistol, cartridges seized Our Correspondent Tribune News Service Jalandhar, November 12 Out on bail in a corruption case, Jalandhar MLA Raman Arora has alleged receiving extortion calls from a foreign number on his phone. He made a complaint to the Commissioner of Police, Jalandhar, Dhanpreet Kaur, on the issue. The MLA submitted a complaint regarding this to the Jalandhar police on Tuesday. The MLA, who is also a businessman, reportedly received an extortion call for Rs 5 crore on November 8. The caller reportedly threatened to kill his family, if the demand wasn’t met. The investigation on the matter has been marked to DCP Investigation Manpreet Singh. Speaking to the Tribune, DCP Investigation, Manpreet Singh said, “The MLA made a formal complaint on the matter on Tuesday but so far there is no identification regarding the caller or his name. Investigation on the matter is on and we are tracing the number from which the call came. An FIR can only be registered after the matter is probed.” Following a corruption case against him, the MLA had recently lost his security cover. Phagwara, November 12 In a significant breakthrough in the ongoing investigation into the murder of a local gangster, the police arrested four individuals linked to the notorious Sonu Khatri and Binnu Gujjar gang. The arrests followed a dramatic encounter in village Khankhana near Banga, where two of the accused opened fire on police personnel and were subsequently injured in retaliatory action. The primary accused, identified as Ishwinder Singh, alias Ishu, a resident of Uchha village, and Aman from Jethpur, both in their 20s, sustained gunshot wounds to their legs after allegedly firing at the police team during an attempted escape. Ishwinder was hit in both legs, while Aman suffered a bullet injury to his right leg. Both are currently under med- Glock pistol recovered from gangsters. ical supervision. SSP Mehtab Singh told The Tribune last night that the duo was actively involved in the murder of Satnam Singh, alias Satta, a resident of Uchha village. The case had sent shock waves through the region due to its links with organised crime. The police also arrested two other associates Abhay Sidhu of Jandiala and Sandeep Kumar, alias Shipa, of Khanpur. All four individuals have confessed to their roles in the murder and other criminal activities, including an attempted murder bid on a local trader in Mandali village, SBS Nagar, on October 29. Investigations revealed that the accused were allegedly recruited by Jalandhar-based criminal Raju Aulakh, who coordinated with foreignbased gangster Sonu Khatri. The plan was to eliminate the trader, reportedly over extortion-related disputes. During the operation, law enforcement officials recovered a Glock pistol with four rounds and a .30 bore pistol from the accused. A fresh case has been registered under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Arms Act. SSP Mehtab Singh emphasized the department’s commitment to dismantling organised crime networks in the region. “This operation is a testament to our resolve to ensure public safety and bring perpetrators of violence to justice,” he stated. The police continue to investigate the broader network of the gang, with further arrests anticipated. Warning notices pasted on poles near plots in Phagwara. grass, creating unhygienic conditions and providing cover for drug users and petty criminals. Such conditions, she said, not only spoiled the city’s appearance, but also posed a serious risk to public health and safety. The Commissioner appealed to property owners to maintain cleanliness and cooperate with the Municipal Corporation in keeping Phagwara clean and safe. She added that the drive against the misuse and neglect of plots would continue in the coming days with strict monitoring and follow-up action. 72-year-old dies as gun goes off Jalandhar, November 12 A 72-year-old man died allegedly after an accidental gunshot was fired while he was cleaning his licensed firearm. The incident took place in Amar Enclave Colony, located on Kala Sanghian Road. The deceased has been identified as Harish Kumar. According to the police, Chandra was sitting outside his house, cleaning his licensed gun, when it went off, killing him on the spot. Police officers from Bhargav Camp police station immediately reached the scene. The police have sent the body to the Civil Hospital for the postmortem examination. The police said preliminary investigations suggest it was an accidental firing. — TNS Woman among 3 Ex-MP Rinku takes up old railway Residents meet officer over road construction held with intoxicants bridge issue with Rly Minister Tribune News Service Phagwara, November 12 The police have arrested three persons in two operations under the NDPS Act after recovering 145 intoxicating tablets. Phagwara SP Madhvi Sharma said here on Wednesday that in the first incident, a police were patrolling near Heer Palace when a woman allegedly threw a black polythene packet on the roadside and attempted to flee on noticing the police. She was stopped with the help of woman constable. She was identified as Rekha, alias Pillu, resident of Chajj Colony, Bhogpur. On checking the polythene packet, the police recovered 35 narcotic tablets. She was arrested on the spot. Another team was conducting a checking near Dargah Baba Bhure Shah Ji Chowk, where a motorcycle was found parked outside a shop. Two youths sitting inside were questioned on suspicion and identified as Prince Kumar and Jashan Gill of Balmik Mohalla, village Pasts. A search led to the recovery of 60 tablets from Prince and 50 tablets from Gill, bringing the total to 110 intoxicating tablets. Both accused were taken into custody. — OC Tribune News Service Jalandhar, November 11 BJP leader Sushil Rinku has taken up issue of a railway overbridge reconstruction which affects the people of 40 villages in Shahkot. Senior BJP leader and former MP Sushil Rinku met Union Minister of Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw to discuss the reconstruction of a 100year-old railway overbridge in Gidderpindi. Rinku explained the problem, prompting the minister to issue an order for a new bridge. Rinku explained that c m y b Ex-MP Sushil Rinku with Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. the 100-year-old railway bridge in Shahkot has become a major problem for hundreds of people. Sushil Rinku and Rana Hardeep Singh explained that a railway bridge was built over the river in Gidderpindi about 100 years ago. At that time, its height was around 30 feet. However, due to gradual accumulation of silt and sand, the clearance between the river and the bridge has reduced to just 6–7 feet. This build-up has obstructed water flow, and during every monsoon, water pressure on surrounding embankments leads to frequent breaches, directly impacting hundreds of lives. Jalandhar, November 12 Residents of Rishi Nagar, Vasant Vihar, Cheema Nagar and adjoining colonies met the Chief Minister’s Field Officer today under the leadership of Municipal Councillor Balraj Thakur, demanding the completion of the 120-foot road from PPR Market to Income Tax Colony Road and removal of encroachment. The delegation reminded officials that the Punjab and Haryana High Court has already issued directions to widen this road, which forms a crucial part of the Rishi Nagar Seek completion of 120-ft road from PPR Market-IT Colony Road Improvement Scheme. “Field Officer Navdeep Singh assured the residents that he would instruct the departments concerned to take prompt action on the matter,” Balraj Thakur said. Those present included Ravinder Singh, Surinder Singh Virk, Jarnail Singh, Tarlochan Singh Bhasin, Kulwant Singh, Amit Batta, Ravinder Kumar, and VD Puri, among others.