05022026-ATR-01.qxd 2/4/2026 11:57 PM Page 1 c m y b Amritsar tribune FORECAST MAINLY CLEAR SKY MOCK DRILL TO TACKLE CHEMICAL DISASTER HELD EXAM PRESSURE TRIGGERS STRESS AMONG STUDENTS NETFLIX INDIA UNVEILS STAR-STUDDED SLATE FOR 2026 A mock drill based on a chemical and nuclear disaster was held by a team from the NDRF in Tarn Taran. P2 With the exam season around the corner, students are experiencing rising levels of mental stress. P3 Netflix unveiled its ambitious slate for 2026 with Sunny Deol and Madhuri Dixit set to lead its biggest projects. P4 » » » MAX 21°C | MIN 5°C YESTERDAY MAX 21°C | MIN 5°C SUNSET THURSDAY 6.07 PM SUNRISE FRIDAY 7.20 AM THURSDAY | 5 FEBRUARY 2026 | AMRITSAR 42kg heroin seizure: Police nab mother, sister of prime accused Pawan K Jaiswar Tribune News Service Amritsar, February 4 Continuing investigations into the seizure of nearly 43kg of heroin along with four hand grenades and Glock pistol, the Amritsar Rural Police have arrested two more persons in this case taking the total number of arrests to six. This time, the Rajansansi police have nabbed Davinder Kaur and Kirandeep Kaur, mother and sister of the Dubai-based prime accused Karan Chheharta. They were currently in police custody further investigations, said Deputy Superintendent of Police (Rajasansi) Neeraj Kumar. Earlier, the police had arrested Sonu, an auto-rickshaw driver, Mohit, a courier, Anil Poddar and Ritik, both residents of Bhalla Colony in Chheharta. The police have also nominated Karan Chheharta in the case. The Amritsar Rural Police recovered nearly 43 kg of heroin, four hand grenades, a Glock pistol and a large quantity of ammunition at Othian village here on January 29. Investigations have Eight arrested with over 9 kg heroin in three separate cases Tribune News Service The contraband in the custody of the police in Amritsar. FILE revealed that the consignment was sent at the behest of a youth, identified as Karan Chheharta, who is currently based in Dubai. Police officials said Karan has links with drug traffickers operating from Pakistan and had earlier also facilitated the disposal of consignments of heroin and explosives. A senior officer privy to the investigation said that the mobile phones seized from Karan’s mother and sister contained vital evidence pointing towards their alleged active role in the cartel. Preliminary analysis of the digital data raised suspicions over the role of both the arrested women. The police maintained that the findings have strengthened the police claim that the family members were not merely aware of the illicit activities but were actively assisting the crossborder smuggling network. The police are also conducting raids to arrest the brother of accused Ritik, whose involvement is suspected in the racket. Investigators believe that his arrest could expose further layers of the smuggling network and reveal key links involved in the distribution chain. Amritsar, February 4 The Counter Intelligence (CI) wing of the Amritsar police has busted a drug smuggling module with the arrest of four persons and the recovery of 5 kg heroin. The accused were allegedly in direct contact with a Pakistan-based smuggler who was using drones to send heroin consignments across the International Border. The arrested individuals have been identified as Sukhchain Singh, alias Mani, Navdeep Singh, Sukhpal Singh and Akashdeep Singh, all residents of village Daoke in Amritsar district. The police have also seized two Splendor motorcycles (bearing registration numbers PB02EU7751 and PB02DY9343, respectively) used for transporting the contraband. Director General of Police (DGP), Punjab, Gaurav Yadav said the operation was carried out based on specific Teachers and students of DPS Amritsar with the ICC World Cup Trophy on Wednesday. T20 World Cup trophy reaches Abhishek Sharma’s alma mater Tribune News Service Amritsar, February 4 As India prepares to host the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup along with Sri Lanka, a team of ICC officials brought the World Cup trophy to Delhi Public School, Amritsar, the Ahead of the Men’s T20 World Cup, the ICC launched a special trophy tour covering the alma maters of players in the Indian T20 World Cup squad. The tour has included cities such as Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Chennai, Patna, continued on page 2 Sukhchain Singh, alias Mani, was running a drug smuggling network with the help of his associates and had recently received a large heroin consignment from across the border. The accused were allegedly planning to deliver the consignment near Kala Ghanupur area in the city. Acting swiftly, police teams NGT member calls for stricter action to curb pollution in city Tribune News Service Tarn Taran, February 4 A woman was killed and two others were injured in a road accident at Sarhali here on Tuesday. The incident occurred when the women, who were walking along NH 354, were hit by a speeding car from the rear. The deceased has been identified as 33-year-old Veerpal Kaur, a resident of Bharaiki locality (Sarhali). The injured have been identified as Ninder Kaur and Sandeep Kaur, who were relatives of the deceased woman. They were admitted to the Sarhali Civil Hospital. Considering Veerpal Kaur’s condition critical, she was referred to the Tarn Taran Civil Hospital where the doctors declared her brought dead. The two injured women are undergoing treatment and their condition is said to be stable. A case has been registered against the driver of the car on the complaint of kin of the deceased. Amritsar, February 4 Justice Dr Afroz Ahmed, Member of the National Green Tribunal (NGT), held a meeting with district officials to review the measures being implemented for environmental conservation in Amritsar. During the meeting with Deputy Commissioner Dalwinderjit Singh, Municipal Corporation Commissioner Bikramjit Singh Shergill, Additional Deputy Commissioner (General) Rohit Gupta, Additional Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation Surinder Singh, Additional Deputy Commissioner (Urban Development) and other senior officials, Justice Dr Ahmed reviewed the District Environment Plan. He directed officials to strictly enforce checks and curbs and impose penalties on anyone found guilty of industrial or water pollution. “Environment is the common heritage of all of us and we should all work together to preserve clean air and water,” he said while addressing the officials. He also instructed them to take effective steps to check the rising levels of noise pollution. While reviewing the District Environment Plan, Justice Dr Ahmed said conservation of groundwater was the biggest need of the hour, especially in this region. He said that the continuous decline in groundwater levels was a matter of serious concern and stressed the need to ensure judicious use of water and to create awareness among the public about water conservation. Reviewing efforts to curb industrial pollution, Dr Ahmed asked officials of the Pollution Control Board to ensure that pollution-control devices were installed in all industrial units. While reviewing the disposal of biomedical waste, he said segregation of biomedical waste in government and private hospitals and its proper disposal were examined and certain lapses were found. He direct- ed that disposal of biomedical waste must be ensured strictly as per laid-down rules. Deputy Commissioner Dalwinderjit Singh briefed the meeting on the efforts being made by various municipal councils of Amritsar district and the Municipal Corporation, Amritsar, for proper waste management. He said that initiatives were also underway for water conservation and waste disposal in villages. Water bodies were being cleaned through renovation and revival of village ponds under the Thapar model. Regarding stubble burning, the DC said that due to sustained efforts by the district administration and cooperation from farmers, there had been a significant reduction in incidents of crop residue burning during the season. He added that farmers who refrained from stubble burning had been specially honoured and that further efforts would be made to completely eliminate such incidents. City lad Aishpreet’s journey from village fields to national javelin gold Aakanksha N Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Amritsar, February 4 A local jeweller has been receiving repeated threat calls and messages from unidentified foreign numbers demanding a huge sum of money as extortion. The incident came to light when a complaint was lodged with the Jandiala Guru police station here. Following a complaint by victim, Kartik Malhotra (30) of Gali Gujran Wali near Valmiki Chowk in Jandiala Guru, the police have registered a case under Sections 308(4) and 351(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and started a probe. — TNS alma mater of dynamic lefthanded batsman Abhishek Sharma. The occasion was a moment of pride for the school as it hosted the glittering trophy and extended its best wishes to its most celebrated alumnus ahead of the global tournament. intelligence inputs. Preliminary investigations revealed that the accused were directly linked to a Pakistan-based smuggler who used drones to drop heroin consignments near Daoke village, from where they were distributed further within the state. According to the police, the CI wing, Amritsar, received credible information that Our Correspondent Our Correspondent Jeweller gets extortion calls on the Rorawala-Attari road and arrested the three accused. During the search, 2.010 kg of heroin and two mobile phones were recovered from their possession. A case under various provisions of the NDPS Act was registered at the Gharinda police station and further investigation is underway. Similarly, in another case, the Gharinda police, in coordination with the Border Security Force (BSF), conducted a joint operation in the area of joint check post close to Attari. During the operation, Sahildeep Singh was arrested with 2.158 kg of heroin and three cellphones. A separate case under the NDPS Act was registered at the Gharinda police station in this regard. The police said that investigations are underway to trace both forward and backward links of the accused. They added that anyone else found involved in the drug network will be dealt with strictly as per the law. Road accident snuffs out woman’s life Over 3 kg heroin, drone seized near BOP Kalia Tarn Taran, February 4 The Valtoha police and the BSF during a joint search , operation launched on Tuesday near Border Out Post (BOP) Kalia, recovered 3.925 kg of heroin and a foreignmade drone. ASI Kulwinder Singh of the Valtoha police said he received information regarding drone activity under BOP Kalia on Tuesday, following which a joint search operation was launched by the police and the BSF One pack. et weighing a total of 4.325 kg was recovered, which contained 3.925 kg of heroin and 400 grams of packing material. The joint team also recovered a drone from the spot, which is believed to have come from across the border. A case has been registered under Sections 21-C, 61 and 85 of the NDPS Act, and Sections 25, 26, and 29 of the Bharatiya Vayuyan Adhiniyam. The international market value of the recovered heroin is estimated to be around Rs 20 crore. The CI wing team with the seized heroin in Amritsar on Wednesday. laid a naka on the AmritsarAttari bypass road and intercepted the suspects. A thorough search led to the recovery of 5 kg heroin from their possession. The DGP said further investigations are underway to establish both forward and backward linkages of the smuggling network and to identify other individuals involved in the racket. Meanwhile, the Amritsar Rural Police arrested four alleged drug smugglers and recovered 4.168 kg of heroin along with five mobile phones in two separate cases on Tuesday. Those arrested were identified as Rohit, Vishal Singh and Gurditt Singh, all residents of Rorawala Kalan village in Attari, and Sahildeep Singh, a resident of Dande village. In the first case, the Gharinda police received specific information that Rohit, Vishal Singh and Gurditt Singh were allegedly involved in illegal drug peddling. Acting swiftly, a police team conducted a raid near a drain Jalandhar, February 4 His hands grip the javelin tightly, eyes locked on the distance ahead. In one fluid motion, Aishpreet Singh releases the throw. The javelin cuts through the air and the ground erupts in applause. At 17-year-old, vertically challenged Aishpreet’s journey has been anything but ordinary. Standing 4 feet tall, the young athlete from Gumanpura village in Amritsar has faced challenges from the very beginning. But spend a few minutes talking to him, and you won’t hear complaints, only quiet confidence and big dreams. The son of a mechanic, Aishpreet is now getting training at the Jalandhar Sports School, where he has been studying and practising for the past year. Getting there, however, was one of the hardest battles he had to fight. “My parents were worried about me. They wanted me to focus on studies,” Aishpreet recalls. “Convincing them to let me come here was difficult.” Everything changed when he appeared for trials and got selected. Seeing his potential, his parents finally agreed to send him to Jalandhar. Aishpreet’s introduction to sports came much earlier, back in school. A teacher handed him a javelin and a shot put ball. With no formal coaching or facilities, he practised alone in open fields, driven purely by passion. It was only after joining the sports school that he began professional training under coach Bikramjit Singh. “Coach sir has supported me,” Aishpreet says. “Under his guidance, I am learning every day.” The results speak for themselves. In just one year of professional training, Aishpreet has won two gold medals at the Sub-Junior National Para Championship that was held in Gwalior, a remarkable achievement that changed how his village and family saw him. After his victories, the village sarpanch honoured him publicly. That moment, Aishpreet says, meant a lot. “After that, my parents became happy and fully supported me.” Aishpreet faced severe bullying because of his height, which once demotivated him deeply. Yet today, with humility, he reflects that those who mocked him and called themselves “normal” are c m y b doing nothing in their lives, while he has risen to become a national-level champion. His daily routine reflects his dedication. Aishpreet wakes up at 5 am, reaches the ground by 6, practises till 8:30 am, and returns again in the evening for practice, balancing running, weight training, and technical work. His dream is crystal clear. “I want to become a world champion. I know I will,” he says with certainty. “I want to represent my country at the Olympics.” From practising alone in village fields to standing atop national podiums, Aishpreet’s story is not just about medals, it’s about belief, and the power of dreams that refuse to be limited by circumstance. Aishpreet has won two golds at national level in javelin throw. TRIBUNE PHOTO: SARABJIT SINGH