29052026-LT-01.qxd 5/29/2026 12:51 AM Page 1 c m y b Ludhiana tribune COPS IN DOCK FOR STOPPING CAR OVER ‘VVIP MOVEMENT’ CITY WRESTLER EYES OLYMPIC GLORY AFTER NATIONAL SILVER Two commuters were told by police that ‘normal people were not allowed to enter into VVIP route’.. P2 Inspired by his taekwondo champion sister, 18-year-old wrestler Munish took up sports at a young age. P3 » SHERBET, SEVIAN & DOLLOPS OF HISTORY PARTLY CLOUDY MAX 42°C | MIN 24°C YESTERDAY MAX 44°C | MIN 26°C SUNSET FRIDAY 7.17 PM Eid-al-Adha in Amritsar is all about history, interfaith harmony, shared culture and good food. P4 » FORECAST SUNRISE SATURDAY 5:23 AM » FRIDAY | 29 MAY 2026 | LUDHIANA Halwara airport opens global gateways for city residents AI rolls out connecting flights to 23 Indian cities, 21 int’l destinations via Delhi by morning, followed by the 12:55 pm Halwara flight. Return flights from Halwara at 7:55 am connect back to these European hubs by midday. From North America, San Francisco and Toronto offer connections. San Francisco flights arrive in Delhi after long-haul overnight journeys while Toronto flights land early morning, both timed to connect with the 12:55 pm Halwara service. Return flights from Halwara at 7:55 am link back to Delhi for onward departures to these cities. Manav Mander Tribune News Service Ludhiana, May 28 The Halwara International Airport has finally placed Ludhiana on the global aviation map, with Air India rolling out connecting flights to 23 Indian cities and 21 international destinations via Delhi from Thursday. For residents of Ludhiana and its surrounding districts, it marks a turning point as now, no longer they have to endure long road journeys to Amritsar or Mohali to catch international flights. Now, passengers can board at Halwara, fly to Delhi and from there connect seamlessly to destinations across the USA, Canada, UK, Europe, Gulf nations and Asia-Pacific. The same convenience applies to inbound travel, with flyers from across the world able to reach Ludhiana through Delhi. This new connectivity is expected to save valuable time and provide a major boost to the region’s industrial growth. Entrepreneurs in Ludhiana, who have long demanded direct flight services, see 11-yr-old boy drowns while bathing in canal Tribune News Service Domestic connectivity The new connectivity is expected to save time and provide a boost to the region’s industrial growth. FILE the move as a step towards faster access to national and global markets. Air India has clarified that for now only, connecting flights are available but as passenger traffic grows, direct flights from Halwara to key destinations will be introduced. Int’l flight schedule Connecting flights to Halwara are available from major Asia-Pacific cities such as Bangkok, Colombo, Ho Chi Minh City, Kathmandu, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Phuket and Singapore. Flights from these destinations will typically arrive in Delhi during morning or late night hours, with onward connection to Halwara at 12:55 pm (AI 483). Return journeys begin from Halwara at 7:55 am, linking back to Delhi for onward flights. From West Asia, cities such as Dubai, Doha, Jeddah and Riyadh connect via Delhi, with overnight arrivals and onward Halwara flights in the morning or early afternoon. In Europe, London, Birmingham, Frankfurt, Paris, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Milan, Rome, Vienna and Zurich all have evening departures, reaching Delhi Khanna police launch spl initiative to redress Army personnel’s grievances Nikhil Bhardwaj Ludhiana, May 28 A child drowned while bathing in the Gill Canal here. The boy’s body was recovered from the canal on Wednesday evening. His 16-year-old sister died in Feb due toserious illness The deceased has been identified as Taranjit Singh (11), a resident of Karnail Singh Nagar. His father said Taranjit had gone to bathe in the Gill Canal on Tuesday morning. When he did not return home by the evening, his family began searching for him. When no trace of the victim was found despite numerous searches, the police were informed. A search was conducted in the canal on Wednesday and the child’s body was recovered around 5:30 pm. Taranjit’s father is a daily wage labourer while his mother is a homemaker. The boy was the youngest of his siblings. Family members had already experienced a significant loss as their eldest 16-year-old daughter died in February due to a serious illness. Only a son among the siblings, Karandeep (14), remains in the family. As news of Taranjit’s body being recovered from the Gill Canal reached home, his parents lost consciousness. Upon receiving information about the incident, the police launched a probe. Investigating officer ASI Harbans Singh said a search operation was launched after the child went missing and he was suspected of drowning in the canal. After considerable efforts, the body was recovered from the canal with the help of divers. The Halwara airport will link Ludhiana directly with 23 major Indian cities via Delhi connections. These include Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Pune, Jaipur, Indore, Lucknow, Srinagar, Bhopal, Raipur, Dehradun, Rajkot, Vadodara, Vijayawada, Aurangabad, Thiruvananthapuram, Goa, Kochi, Bhubaneswar and Visakhapatnam. Tribune News Service Ludhaina, May 28 The Khanna police district on Thursday launched a special facilitative initiative, ‘Sainik Samadhan Uprala’, for military and paramilitary personnel who are serving the nation at the border and forward areas. The sole motive of the initiative was to ensure that such personnel are not deprived of access to justice merely due to their physical absence from their home district. The initiative is the brainchild of Khanna SSP Darpan Ahluwalia, who has already been launching initiatives for the police force, their families and for the public in general. “Given the operational constraints and scarcity of leave faced by serving personnel, grievances and police-related issues often remain unre- Sainik Samadhan Uprala will help the personnel seek police aid through video interactions, says Khanna SSP Darpan Ahluwalia. solved for prolonged periods. The initiative is designed to bridge that gap by providing a responsive and technologyenabled mechanism for grievance redressal,” she said. The SSP said under the initiative, such personnel would enjoy the Digital Darkhast Submission wherein serving personnel may submit their grievance through a dedicated official email ID of Police District Khanna -”ssu.khanna@punjabpolice.gov.in” and she assured that it would enable timely receipt, preliminary scrutiny and informed interaction without requiring physical presence. She asserted that the Khanna police would also ensure that upon the receipt of the darkhast, a video call interaction would be scheduled during a fixed weekly time window, ie, every Saturday from 10 am to 12 noon. The interaction will ensure direct hearing of the grievance and provide reassurance at the level of the SSP . The SSP said subsequent to the video interaction, written directions would be issued to the gazetted officer or SHO concerned. Compliance and follow-up would be monitored by SP (H), who would function as the nodal officer for the initiative The SP (H) will also maintain an internal dashboard, comprising of number of cases received and stage-wise pendency. The same would be reviewed fortnightly by the SSP . Dug-up stretch at Mata Rani Chowk chokes traffic flow Manav Mander Tribune News Service Ludhiana, May 28 One of the city’s busiest intersections, Mata Rani Chowk, has turned into a bottleneck for commuters as repair work on underground wires has left a long trench running along the roadside. The excavation, filled with soil, rocks and debris, has narrowed the carriageway, forcing vehicles to squeeze through a single lane and triggering traffic snarls throughout the day. Motorcycles, auto-rickshaws and cars jostle for space under the overpass while pedestrians are left to navigate dangerously close to the dug-up stretch. Commercial establishments lining the road remain open but shopkeepers complain that dust, noise and congestion have driven away customers. “It is impossible to cross the road without risking a fall Repair work on underground wires has left a long trench running along roadside into the trench or brushing against moving vehicles. The footfall of the customers has affected as the area is already congested and the repair work has added to our woes,” said a shop owner, pointing to cables and pipes exposed in the excavation. The traffic police admit that Mata Rani Chowk was among the most critical points in Ludhiana’s road network, connecting Civil Lines, Chaura Bazaar and the city railway station. Any disruption here ripples across adjoining stretches, slowing movement on Ferozepur Road and Jagraon Bridge. “We are trying to regulate the traffic flow but the narrowed passage leaves little scope for smooth movement,” said an official deployed at the site. Commuters, meanwhile, voice frustration over the lack of prior planning. “It is peak hour traffic and they have left half the road dug up. It takes 30 minutes to cross what should be a twominute stretch,” complained Ashok Joshi, a resident of Salem Tabri, who uses the chowk daily to reach his workplace. Another office-goer, Amit, who works at a bank near Bhadaur House, said the traffic situation had only worsened with the ongoing repair work. “The work should be completed at the earliest as commuting has become a difficult task,” he said. “Mata Rani Chowk is a lifeline. Any work there must be executed with speed and safety measures. Otherwise, the city grinds to a halt,” said a civic activist. Commuters pass through the dug-up stretch at Mata Rani Chowk in Ludhiana. HIMANSHU MAHAJAN Academic pressure pushes two students to end their lives Nikhil Bhardwaj Tribune News Service Ludhiana, May 28 Unable to take the pressure of studies, two minor girls, one from Class VIII and the other from Class IX, allegedly died by suicide. One of them consumed acid while the other hanged herself. The first case pertains to the Daresi police station area. According to the police, 16-yearold Muskan Kumari was the eldest child of her family. Her father Ishwar Paswan is a daily wage labourer. She had failed in Class VIII and due to the same she was in depression. On the evening of May 26, she con- sumed acid at her home. When her condition deteriorated, family members rushed her to the CMCH, where doctors battled to save her life. However, she succumbed to her injuries two days later during treatment. The family is inconsolable after the incident. The second incident was reported from Guru Gobind Singh Nagar, where 14-yearold Suhana ended her life by hanging herself at her residence. Her father is also a labourer and the family was facing financial hardships. Station House Officer inspector Balbir Singh said Suhana was a Class IX stu- dent and she failed to bear the academic pressure. It pushed her into mental distress. When family members found her hanging in the room, their cries echoed through the neighbourhood. The incidents are not merely cases of suicide but reflect the intense mental pressure under which children are living today. There is an urgent need for parents to become a source of support for their children rather than adding to their stress through scolding and other such acts. Meanwhile, the police have initiated further investigation into both cases. Eid al-Adha: A tapestry of faith, fraternity Shahi Imam, politicians extend greetings, foreign students join prayers Manav Mander Tribune News Service Muslims offer prayers at Jama Masjid to mark Eid al-Adha in Ludhiana on Thursday. HIMANSHU MAHAJAN c m y b Ludhiana, May 28 The morning light over Field Ganj Chowk fell gently on domes of the historic Jama Masjid, where devotion and festivity converged in a scene both timeless and immediate. By 9 am, the courtyard was alive with worshippers bowing in unison, their prayers weaving a rhythm of faith that echoed across the city. Eid al-Adha, the festival of sacrifice, unfolded not merely as a ritual but as a living dialogue of unity, drawing thousands into its embrace. The Shahi Imam of Punjab, addressing the congregation, underscored the essence of sacrifice beyond ritual. “Neither blood nor flesh reaches Allah, but the sincerity of intent does,” he reminded, urging believers to surrender pride, arrogance and false grandeur along with their offerings. The celebrations bore an international hue as foreign students also joined the prayers. Muhammad Tukur from Nigeria spoke of finding the fraternity far from home. “We are more than 10 persons visiting the place. Seeing temples and gurdwaras alongside mosque fills me with joy,” he said. Political representatives too marked their presence. MLA Ashok Parashar Pappi hailed the Jama Masjid as a symbol of Ludhiana’s communal spirit. Here mosque, temple, gurdwara and church stand shoulder to shoulder. “it is the beauty of Punjab, our festivals are occasions of collective joy,” he said. MLA Madan Lal Bagga echoed the sentiments, likening Punjab’s brotherhood to a bouquet enriched by many colours. Adding to the chorus of voices, city resident Mohammad Arif, a shopkeeper from Field Ganj, reflected on the spirit of shared meals. “Eid is not complete till we all friends and family sit together, share food from the same plate. That is the real joy, our tables become symbols of brotherhood,” he said. Meanwhile, Shahi Imam of Punjab, in a social media post, extended Eid al-Adha greetings to PPCC chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring but added a sharp note of sarcasm. He remarked that though invitations from Jama Masjid reach him every Eid, Warring never attends the event. The Imam cautioned that during election campaigns, he should refrain from projecting himself as a secular leader.