17012026-LT-01.qxd 1/17/2026 12:52 AM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune DIST TO GET INDUSTRIAL SAFETY COMMITTEE COPS SENSITISE STUDENTS TO SAFETY PRECAUTIONS Panel will frame comprehensive standard operating procedures for industrial units. P2 WHAT IS FILMMAKER, POET MUZAFFAR ALI ENVIOUS OF? Malerkotla police have launched a drive to sensitise students to necessary safety measures. P2 » PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 15°C | MIN 6°C YESTERDAY MAX 14°C | MIN 5°C SUNSET SATURDAY 5.45 PM Filmmaker, poet Muzaffar Ali delivered 4th Prof Urmi Kessar Memorial Lecture at the PU. P4 » FORECAST SUNRISE SUNDAY 7:19 AM » SATURDAY | 17 JANUARY 2026 | LUDHIANA Stray canine menace escalates in city, 13,728 bite cases reported in 2025 In the past year, five children, two calves mauled to death by dogs Manav Mander Tribune News Service Ludhiana, January 16 The city has been grappling with a surge in dog bite cases, reaching a five-year high in 2025 with 13,728 incidents reported in Ludhiana. The stray dog menace continues in the New Year too, as a tragic incident was reported near Omaxe Flats on Pakhowal Road where three stray dogs attacked a sevenyear-old boy while he was playing outside a farmhouse, leaving him critically injured. The victim, Arpit, is at present undergoing treatment. In December last year, panic had gripped Gandhi Nagar in Model Gram after a stray dog attacked a nine-year-old boy, Sanidhya. The child was on his way to a shop when the dog pounced on him, causing him to fall to the ground. The animal clawed and bit him on his face, leaving injuries on his head and jaw. He has to undergo plastic surgery. The same dog also attacked over 10 persons of the locality and later it Body found outside house in Mundian Tribune News Service Ludhiana, January 16 The body of a man was found outside a house here on Friday morning. People raised the alarm when they saw the body and informed the police. Following which, officials from the Jamalpur police station and Mundian police post reached the scene. According to reports, the body was found outside a house in Happy Colony on the Chandigarh road this morning. The deceased was identified as Babu Kant. He is survived by his wife, son and daughter. His face had injuries. The deceased’s brother, Arjun Yadav, told mediapersons that Babu was his brother. He went to his room on Thursday night, afterwards Babu went home. He doesn’t know how he died. Early in the morning, family members found him lying outside the house. His brother was working at a factory. “On Thursday night, he dropped me at my room in continued on page 2 DOG TERROR YEAR 2025 2024 2023 2022 2021 CASES 13,728 13,488 9,461 8,601 6,115 City residents have called for action from the authorities to tackle the menace. HIMANSHU MAHAJAN tested positive for rabies after the canine was caught. In 2025, five children and two calves were killed by stray dogs. In one of the most horrifying incidents, six-year-old Aditya was mauled to death on Tajpur Road on April 1 last year. Earlier, 10-year-old Arjun Ram and 13-year-old Harsukhpreet Singh were killed by pack of dogs in Hasanapur village in January 2025. Days later, two calves met the same fate at the village. March 2025 saw another child, Sanjeev Kumar (10), losing his life at Mohi village in yet another stray dog attack. City residents have called for action from the authorities in the matter. The two-acre dog sanctuary at Haibowal Dairy Complex is yet to be completed while the menace is increasing. “The stray dog menace is increasing every day and the authorities should adopt some measures to check it. People are being attacked and administration cannot just sit and watch,” said Jagjit Singh, a city resident. Ravinder Kumar, a victim, who was recently attacked by stray dogs said he was terrified since the day he was attacked by stray dogs. “I never go out alone after dark or in wee hours and always carry a stick with me while going out,” he said. Desraj, father of Sanidhya who has to undergo plastic surgery after attack by a stray dog, said it was the worst day of his life, seeing his son’s face covered in blood. “Later, we found that the dog was rabied. It terrified us. We are taking every care of our son and remembering the day still send shivers to us,” he added. Blind murder case cracked, 3 suspects land in police net Nikhil Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Ludhiana, January 16 The Ludhiana police claimed to have solved the blind murder case with the arrest of three suspects. A financial dispute with one of the suspects and harassment of the sister of another accused by the victim were the reason behind the crime. Deputy Commissioner of Police Jaskiranjit Singh Teja, ADCP Jashandeep Singh Gill, ACP Sumit Sood, SHO Jagdeep Gill and CIA incharge inspector Avtar Singh addressed a press conference in this regard. DCP Jaskiranjit Teja said joint teams, led by the CIA police station, successfully cracked the mystery and apprehended the three perpetrators. On January 5, Poonam, wife of Sanjay Singh, a resident of Giaspura, Sahnewal, reported her husband missing. She stated that Sanjay, who was into in car sales and purchase, had left for work on his Bajaj Platina motorcycle (bearing registration number PB10JB 1153). His phone got switched off at 5 pm. Based on her statement, an FIR was reg- Monetary dispute with suspect, harassment of another’s sister by victim led to crime istered at the Sahnewal police station under Section 127(6) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita against unidentified persons. The DCP said on the same day, a passer-by commuting to Kaka village found the body in a vacant plot on the Kaka-Dhola Road. The body had been cut into two parts and set on fire using a flammable substance to prevent identification of the victim. The Meharban police kept the body at the Civil Hospital for 72 hours for identification and registered a murder case. Teja said CIA staff investigated both missing and murder cases simultaneously. By linking the evidence, they identified and arrested the three suspects — Rajesh Kumar, alias Surat Lal Yadav, a native of Bihar, at present staying on Tajpur Road, Munna Kumar, a resident of Ambedkar Nagar, Sahnewal, and Mangal Singh of Malsian, Jagraon — in connection with the murder. The police recovered two iron rods used in the crime and the deceased’s motorcycle. Revealing about the motive of the murder during interrogation, the suspects revealed that Sanjay was known to them. Rajesh had a financial dispute with Sanjay, which often led to heated verbal altercations. Rajesh, along with Munna and Mangal, hatched a conspiracy to kill him. On January 3, they lured Sanjay to a room in the Giaspura area, where they murdered him by striking him with iron rods. Afterwards, they wrapped the body in a cloth, bought a rehri (cart) for Rs 5,000 to transport it, and took the to a secluded plot in the Meharban area. There, they put petrol on the body and set it afire to destroy evidence and hide his identity. Another reason of the crime was harassment of Munna’s sister by the deceased, which angered the suspect. The suspects also had a criminal background. As per the police, Rajesh is facing two criminal cases in Ludhiana, Munna is facing two cases in Ludhiana and Mangal is facing a criminal case registered at the Ludhiana Commissionerate. Massive protest against ‘anti-worker, anti-farmer’ policies of Centre in city Workers, farmers, women, students join dharna in large number Tribune News Service Ludhiana, January 16 Workers, farmers, employees and other residents in a large number gathered outside the Mini-Secretariat here on Friday to protest against policies of the Central Government, which they termed as “antilabour and anti-farmer”. The demonstration was organised jointly by trade unions, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) and various other organisations. A memorandum addressed to the Prime Minister was submitted through the Deputy Commissioner. Participants included members from across the district representing organisations such as the All India Kisan Sabha (1936), Jamhoori Kisan Sabha, All India Kisan Sabha (Hannan Mollah), Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan), AITUC, CITU, INTUC, CTU Punjab, Moulder Union, Jamhoori Adhikar Sabha and Suspects in police custody in Ludhiana on Friday. TRIBUNE PHOTO: HIMANSHU MAHAJAN Doc booked for ~25-lakh extortion bid Tribune News Service Farmers and other residents hold a protest outside the DC office in Ludhiana. HIMANSHU MAHAJAN Tarksheel Society. Women, students and youth also joined the protest in a large number. Similar protests were held at district headquarters across the country. Speakers criticised the Narendra Modi-led Central Government for enacting laws that undermine the hard-won rights of workers and farmers. They alleged that national wealth was being handed over to a few corporate houses while the majority of the population suffers under inflation and unemployment. The protest was described continued on page 2 Ludhiana, January 16 The Ludhiana police registered a case against a doctor on charges of extortion and criminal intimidation. He was accused of demanding extortion of Rs 25 lakh from two other doctors. The suspect was identified as Dr Mannu Bhargav, a resident of Hoshiarpur. The complainant, Dr Neelam Arora, one of the business partners of Arora Neuro Centre, in a com- Issued threats to victims, also doctors plaint to the police stated that Dr Mannu Bhargav had threatened to terminate her and her friend Niharika Arora from the hospital. He had threatened that if she and her friend wanted to remain in the hospital, they had to pay Rs 25 lakh extortion money. The suspect even issued life threats and warned them that he could also shut the hospital. To seek justice, Dr Neelam had lodged a police complaint, following which a case was registered after through investigation conducted by an ACP rank official. Meanwhile, police sources said further investigation had been launched by the police in the matter. House portion of family facing G RAM G anti-poor, threatens rural livelihood: Warring over 20 smuggling cases razed Tribune News Service Ludhiana, January 16 The Ludhiana police on Friday demolished the illegal portion of the house of a family, members of which are allegedly into smuggling, in the Daba area. Members of the family, including the key suspect, his mother and brother, have been facing around 26 cases of drug smuggling. The police ensured sufficient deployment of personnel to keep the law and order situation under control. The operation was led by Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Harpal Singh, ADCP Karanvir Singh, ACP Industrial Area-B Satwinder Singh along with police force and MC officials. The DCP said the key suspect was identified as Harpreet Singh, alias Vettu, a resident of Sahibjada Fateh Singh Nagar, Daba. The man, along with this mother and brother, had been into drug smuggling for the past over a decade. At present, they were at large in smuggling cases and police teams were already searching for them. He said of the 26 FIRs, about 22 were related to smuggling. After verifying the status of the illegal portion of the property of the suspects, the same was demolished with the help of the Municipal Corporation. Meanwhile, police sources said the police had identified many such properties of drug smugglers and after verifying their status, the same would also be demolished in coming days. The police had also submitted a list of smugglers to the corporation to inquire about properties owned by them and illegalities involved in the matter. Ludhiana, January 16 The District Development Coordination and Monitoring Committee (DISHA) of the district on Friday passed a unanimous resolution opposing the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Aajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB–G RAM G) Act, 2025, terming it anti-poor and detrimental to rural livelihood and demanded its immediate withdrawal. The meeting was presided over by MP from Ludhiana, Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, at the District Administrative Complex here on Friday. The committee expressed concern over the replacement of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), c m y b PPCC chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring addresses the media in Ludhiana on Friday. PHOTO: ASHWANI DHIMAN 2005, particularly the proposed shift from 100 per cent central funding of wages to a 60:40 Centre–state cost-sharing formula, stating that Punjab’s weak fiscal position makes such a model unviable. Highlighting the state’s financial stress, the resolution noted that the state’s public debt is projected to touch Rs 4.17 lakh crore by March 2026, amounting to over 46 per cent of its Gross State Domestic Product, leaving little fiscal space to absorb additional welfare liabilities. The committee observed that despite structural limita- tions such as highly mechanised agriculture and dependence on migrant labour, MGNREGA has remained a crucial safety net in Punjab, especially for Scheduled Caste workers who constitute about 70.55 per cent of active job card holders. It pointed out that Punjab generated an average of only 40.8 days of employment per household in 2024–25, significantly below the national average of over 50 days, and warned that imposing higher state contributions could further weaken implementation and delay wage payments. The committee demanded continuation of MGNREGA with full central wage support and called for wide-ranging consultations with state governments, workers’ organisations and experts before any policy change. It also urged the state government to take up the matter at the national level. The meeting also reviewed schemes such as Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, Jal Jeevan Mission, Swachh Bharat Mission, Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, National Health Mission and Ujjwala Yojana. Later talking to the media, Warring said the AAP government had already failed in implementing MGNREGA in the state, adding while the new law came recently, during the past four years, the it had failed in implementing the scheme. — TNS